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Directed by: Michael Schultz Starring: Peter Frampton, The Bee Gees, Aerosmith, every also-ran in the 1970s Hot off the heels of the awful film version of Tommy, this well-meaning film version of The Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's tries to turn the plotless album into an actual story with some help from songs lifted from albums Abbey Road and others, but at what cost? Almost none, really. Fans of The Beatles will be pleased to note that few of the songs are terrible. In fact, almost none of them are terrible. Actually, the majority of them are pretty good! There are a few misfires, like Steve Martin's version of Maxwell's Silver Hammer, or Frankie Howerd's When I'm 64, but on the whole I was shocked by how enjoyable they were. If you like Peter Frampton or The Bee Gees (who didn't sell all those albums for nothing), you'll get a kick out of this. A Barry Gibb solo vocal turns A Day In the Life into one of the most effeminate things I've ever heard, but Sandy Farina is fantastic on Here Comes the Sun and others. You've never heard Got to Get You Into My Life until you've heard it performed by Earth Wind & Fire. You've never heard Come Together until you've heard Aerosmith's take on it. If The Beatles had written their music in the 70s, this is probably what it would have sounded like, and you can take that as you will. OK, aside from the music, this movie does tend to the silly. For starters, the plot is absurd. The Lonely Hearts Club Band must live up to their parents' legacy and make it big in the evil world of showbiz, while battling Mean Mr. Mustard and the mysterious FVB, recovering their stolen instruments, protecting their home town of Heartland, and learning to love what they have. But honestly, it's not any sillier than the universally beloved Yellow Submarine. The outfits are ridiculous, but they're based on the album cover, the arrangements sound dated but are true to the spirit of the times, and the movie tries as hard as anything can to make songs like Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite work. You never really realize how silly the music of The Beatles is until you have to watch it. It's interesting how seriously their music is taken as the gospel of Rock and Roll, but I'm pretty sure there's not a person alive on the planet who could sing When I'm 64 with a straight face, so don't make fun. This movie was a lot of fun. It came off a lot better than the similar Tommy, mostly because while Tommy had serious messages behind the pinball and child molesting and the movie couldn't translate them well, Sgt. Pepper's and Abbey Road have few to no serious messages at all, and so this movie is free to enjoy itself onscreen. Really, you'll just be pissed they didn't put in songs like Something or Octopus' Garden or whatever your favorite Beatles tune is. Anyone who dislikes this movie is a cruel and hateful person who either can't appreciate well-meaning but cheesy movies or is WAY too fanatical about The Beatles. It deserves no less than a 4 because there isn't anything wrong with it, since it's as good as you could hope a movie based on an album with no concept or story could be and much more. RATING: 4.0 PROS: Surprisingly tasteful music, they finally turned Sgt Pepper's into a concept album CONS: Maximum cheese ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078239/
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# ? Oct 14, 2005 18:43 |
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# ? Apr 18, 2024 00:21 |
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Something that the first reviewer didn't seem to hit on is the irony and satire that is liberally woven through the film. Realizing that the sum of Sgt. Pepper's (the album) and Abbey Road would not make for a sophisticated narrative, Sgt. Pepper's (the film) offers up a commentary on fame and the music industry of the time while it also manages to be a romp through the Beatles tunes -- fortunately not held on a pedestal but freely interpreted to suit the meandering plot (and maybe the whims of the writers). The last few minutes of this film are some of the most intensely enjoyable I have seen, which I wasn't expecting at all, despite enjoying the first section. The ending is what takes this from a 4 to a 5 -- it's a near-continuous medly, featuring the most hilarious uses of Beatles music I have ever seen and heard. And who could forget the black Jesus figure and his supernatural powers. 5/5
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# ? Nov 5, 2005 03:05 |