Help!
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Movie Reviews of Help!
Movie Review: Just Plain Fun!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
Despite the frivolous, not to say silly, plot, "Help!" is just plain fun; and, if one gets past the frantic antics, it is full of delightful puns and allusions (some are very British). The adorable four are supported by an A-1 cast, including Leo McKern, who puts as much zest into his role as the evil Clang as he does into that of Rumpole. Victor Spinetti (who was also in "A Hard Day's Night"), chews the scenery as the mad scientist, Foot, and he is ably assisted by Roy Kinnear as the dippy Algernon. Eleanor Bron is outstanding as the mysterious Ahme, who, decked out in an outrageous peacock blue turban and plumes informs the lads that there is more to her than meets the eye. Each one of us probably has our favorite scene; mine is one in which Ringo in the cellar is told not to worry about the Bengal tiger; all he has to do to calm the beast is sing the "Ode to Joy" from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony; and then all the Beatles and everyone else in the pub above the cellar belt it out in German! Goofy, but so what? It's fun!
The second disk with the commentary is particularly enlightening. Not only are there the very interesting comments of the director, Richard Lester, but there is also a fascinating explanation by the technicians on the intricacies of restoring the film. Wendy Richard, who plays Miss Brahms, in "Are You Being Served?", talks about the thrill of playing her very first role in "Help!," only to discover at the last minute that the scene had been cut (They show bits and pieces of it).
"Help!" is a film to watch on a summer night when you just want to sit back, relax, and have a good laugh.
Movie Review: Help! vs. A Hard Day's Night
Summary: 5 Stars
I am probably committing heresy here but I've recently watched both A Hard Day's Night and Help! in high-def and I have to give Help! the edge, in spite of its far-fetched plot involving a magic ring. Let's face it, both of these movies have their plot defects, but Help! comes through somehow fresher.(I would have felt differently 30 years ago).
One thing that I found evident was just how much the television show, The Monkees, that I grew up with was a blatant (but well-done) rip-off of Help! When I was a kid, growing up in the 70's, the Beatles were yesterday's news, but the Monkees' show was on every afternoon, and as Michael Stipe has often said, was perhaps a bigger influence on that generation than the disbanded Beatles, whom I would discover through listening to Wings, about the time that Wings began to falter.
Anyway, watching Help! is a bit like watching an extended Monkees episode(Yes, they all had ridiculous plots just like Help!) and for the MTV generation who came prior to The Real World, this will feel comforting because Help! is basically full of music videos.
The newly-released print looks sensational. I am not sure if I have ever seen a color movie from that era that looks as good as the new Help! DVD and the movie seems a lot better than it did the first time that I saw it back in the mid to late 1970's. The boys look great and were at the height of their musical prowess and their beauty as men. They would never again look this great together and appear to be such great friends, just having a sensational time as mates.
Every Beatles' fan should buy this.
Movie Review: Gear, Fab, and Other Pimply Hyperboles
Summary: 5 Stars
Reading the liner notes to "Help!" I didn't think I could add anything to the debate because director Richard Lester and Martin Scorsese capture the essence of the film so succinctly. My comments may be reiterating the obvious but so be it. I haven't seen "Help!" for a good twenty years or so and I was taken aback about how much better it was then I remembered it. Aside from the Marx Brothers style hayhem I was struck by how sly the humor in the film was. Alot of it is specific to the time and place it was made in a.k.a. mid-sixties Britain and wondered if a relative neophyte would get a lot of the inside jokes. I was also in awe of the musical segments that in my mind, moreso than "A Hard Day's Night", precursed the images we would later see on MTV. The songs are naturally great, a progression from their previous album, "Beatles for Sale" and anticipated "Rubber Soul" which was released later in the year. I also admire the fact that the Beatles were generous in deferring screen time to some of Britain's finer character actors, Leo McKern, Eleanor Bron, Victor Spinetti, and Roy Kinnear among others. What make's this achievement even more amazing is consider that it was made during a period of whirlwind recording and touring for the Beatles. Also consider that Lester directed "A Hard Day's Night" the previous year and directed "Help!" and "The Knack...and How to Get It" in 1965. This enterprise doesn't have a hint of cynicism and is indicative of how the Beatles always delivered a heartfelt effort to their fans and public alike.Movie Review: Help!!! I Need Someone!!! Help!!! Not Just Anyone!!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
1965, It was the Beatles and James Bond, both competing for the pop culture dollar. Just as in 1956 you had Elvis and Davey Crockett, squaring off for the entertainment dollar. In '65 Goldfinger and 007 were all the rage and The Beatles who were invincible up until then were facing off against The upstart Rolling Stones, The California cool Beach Boys and Motown wonders The Supremes. So how did the Liverpool Lads counter?...Brilliantly of course.
First you take a half-baked sort of spy-like, espionge story-line. You incorporate some silly slap stick routines and you round it out with an outstanding selection of orginal songs...and....Walla!!!!! What have you got?...Why a pop cultue phenomenon that has outlasted the Hoola Hoop, The Nehru Suit, The Love In and I dare say even Davey Crockett himself.
But if it were only that easy.... Then again, it all seems so easy in the capable hands of the The Fab Four. Afterall, true talent will always prevail. And so we have HELP. I don't think you need any further analysis to conclude that HELP truly was and always will be a pop culture milestone. Surfice to say... "When I was young I never needed anyone"...Anyone that is except The Beatles. Forty plus years later, that still hasn't changed, Yes I can live in a world without James Bond, Davey Crockett, The Rolling Stones and the like. But even at fifty seven years old I couldn't bear to live in a world without The Beatles..."Help! I Need Someone...No Not Just Anyone"...."Help"...I Need The BEATLES!!!!
Movie Review: A silly but contagiously fun Beatles excursion
Summary: 5 Stars
After the overnight success of "A Hard Day's Night", there was just no stopping the "runaway train" known as the Beatles. But instead of giving us AHDN knockoff, director Richard Lester & the boys aimed for something different: A footloose adventure delving into "Alice In Wonderland" surrealism, wrapped around a James Bond-like spoof. And in COLOR, no doubt!
Ringo--the "quiet" Beatle--is the centerpiece of this film, having the misfortune of wearing a sacred & valuable ring sought after by a religious cult, mad scientists & other assorted characters. But this movie is more significant than people realize, for it preceded the zany antics of Monty Python by a few years (witness the off-the-wall "intermission" plot break that could've been easily used by Python!). For four musicians, the Beatles solidify their status as "the English cousins of the Marx Brothers", living in a zany, surrealistic apartment, shrinking Paul down to gum-wrapper size (you have to see it to believe it) and poking fun at all the so-called "danger" around them.
And of course, there are the musical interludes in the film, hinting at what would come with the music video revolution. The film's carefree exuberance is another example of why John, Paul, George & Ringo are so-much loved all over the planet.
The DVD restoration of this film is simply remarkable; it looks as if it was just filmed yesterday. "Help" is going to be a real keeper for generations to come!