The Beatles Anthology
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Movie Reviews of The Beatles Anthology
Movie Review: Comprehensive..well worth the money
Summary: 5 Stars
I think the DVD is actually cheaper than the VHS set when it came out, and that didn't even have the extras!!
This is the authorized video bio of The Beatles, the band that turned the world on its ear in the early 60s until 1970 when they broke up.
A lot is covered in the 4 discs, where they grew up, how they got together, the (mis)adventures they went on, the bonding and humor that got them threw the storm known as Beatlemania, the drug use, the women, and the eventual breakup.
You can tell the interviews were done over a number of years, and because Lennon had done a number of lengthy interviews, we are lucky to be able to hear his voice throughout the film. We see George in various states of facial hair and hair length, Paul getting ready for a show and driving a boat, Ringo kicking it on the west coast as well as the "Threetles" hanging in George's backyard and in a kitchen, talking like old war buddies. Yoko is interviewed here and there, as is producer George Martin. In a way, you kind of wish the other Beatle girlfriends/wives were involved because they were there when it was going on, and would have been able to give a different take on it.
John Lennon's "Imagine" has been recently released on DVD and is worth watching after this, even if just for the Beatles era. "Wingspan" goes into Paul's solo career, and "Concert For Bangladesh" might not be a documentary but it is a great concert that was just released.
The heart of this collection, in between the stories, is the music itself as well as the promotional films (Before they called them music videos). The Ed Sullivan footage is readily available on its own, but the Shea Stadium footage calls for a full-length release, it looks amazing, and the "Strawberry Fields" footage also looks great when having seen grainy bootleg versions.
The down side is that the songs are not easily accessible (on purpose?) and at times there is narration over them, or they're not shown completely. Something like "Strawberry Fields Forever" was considered groundbreaking, why not show it from beginning to end? The "Let It Be" footage also looked fantastic, far better than what they had released on video years ago.
Because it's the "authorized" story, you're not going to get the gossipy salacious stuff that has been brought up over the years, but at times the language from time to time is not for young children.
The documentary is a lot to digest in one sitting, but here and there it's a great story. The extras are great but one wishes there was more of it. It would have been nice had they put just concert and promo footage just the same.
Between this, the book, "The First US Visit", the movies,the Anthology 1-3 CDs as well as the CDs of their catalog, you get to see and hear the story the way they intended it to be told.
Movie Review: Worth the upgrade to DVD? The new bonus materials.
Summary: 5 Stars
(4/1/03) Whatever you may have thought of The Beatles Anthology documentary in its earlier incarnations (broadcast, VHS, Laser), the most compelling reason to purchase this DVD release lies in the last of the five discs: "Special Features."Those already familiar with the Anthology as a film will, as I did, look to this disc first. The new material, already mentioned in other reviews, succeeds in completing the documentary project as an addendum; the material provides interesting insights into the production of the Anthology film, as well as the CD's and the two "new" videos/songs "Free as A Bird" and "Real Love."
The bonus materials also give us (perhaps unintentionally) a more lively insight into the interpersonal dynamics of the remaining Beatles in the late 1990's (the kind of realism so called "Reality TV" vainly contrives). Shot during what was no doubt an arduous, yet therapeutic re-examination of their past, the group reminiscences (edited from material filmed either for the production or the later marketing of the Anthology) are fascinating. Those well versed in Beatles and post-Beatles rumor and lore will no doubt have much to examine (or "read into") when watching Messrs McCartney, Harrison, and Starr cheerfully and sometimes tiredly reminisce in both song and in story. (Contrary to some rumors, there are really no new song performances here - all are informal and incomplete dalliances.) Detail oriented Beatle-ologists will no doubt examine and re-examine everything said and sung during these group sessions, as well as everything unsaid and unsung. "Regular" Beatle fans will enjoy the often funny anecdotes and the music, no matter how "impromptu" or unpolished.
As a package, the DVD is faithful to the original Anthology release in artwork and packaging, taking its cues from Klaus Voorman's poster wall concept, with an animated version of the collage serving as theme to the menu navigation on the discs. The sound has been re-mastered for DTS, Dolby 5.1 and PCM Stereo, which is arguably great for the music, but bears little impact on the interviews.
As an owner of the older VHS set, my only minor unpleasant surprise in viewing the new DVD's was the odd choice of fonts for the titles and subtitles. In re-mastering the film for DVD, the producers stripped away all the original "Copperplate Gothic" establishing titles to clear way for the DVD's digital subtitles. While understandable (it arguably shows that the film was consciously re-mastered for disc) the digital "sans serif" titles lack the film style that gave the original documentary visual sophistication. Again, a minor point.
Those looking to update their ownership of the Anthology would do well do consider this latest technology release. The DVD replaces aging tapes and the Special Features complete and rejuvenate the film.
Movie Review: the band from which all others decended
Summary: 5 Stars
first, let me explain what significance the Beatles hold for myself and perhaps the millions of fans over the world. the beatles are quite simply the most important contribution to humanity . their efforts in the field of music are incalcuable. they arrived at a pivitol time in America. they helped us to forget the problems of that time. John F. Kennedy had only been assisignated three short months before their legendary appearance on Ed Sullivan. the country was facing the beginnings of Vietnam, racial injustice and a generation that were becoming fed up with the standards which had been laid down by their elders. it was a dreary time and the Beatles that February night with more than 70 million people watching their television sets proved that music (if only for ten brief minutes)held the potential to change the world. My entire basis of musical understanding is based on the words and music of this great band.i watched the anthology series back in November of 1995 with great anticipation. i knew that for many years this project had been in the works and that there had to have been far more material not aired over the course of that week. the purpose of the series accoring to George Harrison was to add closure for all Beatles fans but i look at this as an opening for the casual Beatles fan to come and explore what made these songs so memorable. Hours had been shaved off this series to fit within the parameters of network tv. i waited for that day to arrive when they would be released on dvd. my prayers have been answered.
when you think of the great Beatles machine, their grandeur and mystique you tend not to think of the band as individual but this amazing foursome who wrote some of the greatest songs of the 20th century and perhaps rival the works of classic composers like Bach, Beethoven and Gershwin. this program is a unique and rare glimpse into the individuals minds. how they saw it and lived it. you begin to see them for their endearing qualities which only helps build your exisiting admiration for them. you'll be amazed at some of the footage you see such as their taxi ride from JFK airport to the hotel they were staying at. truely remarkable. this documentary is unparalleled and unprecendented and truely is the chronological tell all of the greatest band ever as told through their experiences and experiences of trusted aquaintances of the band. well I'm working on disc two athe moment and have another 7 1/2 hours to go not including the 90 minutes of extra footage (beyond the extra footage worked into the original documentary). long live John, Paul George and Ringo! Thanks for your lessons in melody and communication. hats off to george martin for taking that sound and formatting it for our ears.
Movie Review: "Magic it is and magic it always was."
Summary: 5 Stars
Back in January 2000, I reviewed this box set here (see "If You Liked the TV Special, You'll Love This!"). 3 years later, many Beatles fans' prayers (including my own) have been answered with the release of this video library in DVD form. Rather than resay what I said back then, I just thought I'd write with a different perspective. The opening statement is from the liner notes of Derek Taylor, who served as the Beatles' press agent.To answer a recent review, here's what's on it: performances of the Beatles live in concert and television performances (not complete concerts), some original videos, narrated by Sir Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, the late George Harrison (who was still around during the making of this documentary) and the late John Lennon (his comments are culled by old interviews), excerpts from early recordings, studio outtakes, press conferences and all 5 of their movies and finally, over 30 complete Beatles tracks (By the way, "Real Love" is included in this edition).
The sound quality is superior here than the original VHS (and you have the option of LPCM Stereo, Dolby Digital surround sound and DTS 5.1 surround sound). You also have the option of subtitles in English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, and Portuguese (Brazilian and European). Just don't expect your Linguistics teachers to be impressed with how many French or Spanish words you learned while watching this!
It is a bit of a shame that individual tracks weren't assembled for complete songs. Oh well, a minour disappointment! Keep in mind that the 8 video VHS box set was actually pricier than the 5 DVD box set back when it was released in 1996 (I remember paying over [money] for mine!).
Then of course, there's the Special Features DVD. In addition to the "Real Love" video (which wasn't included on the original VHS edition), there's a segment in which Paul, George and Ringo all gather together in 1994 to discuss the old days and jam out on old songs. The 3 are also featured here in 1995 discussing with George Martin, their producer, the choosing of different outtakes on the 3 Anthology CD's and studio techniques they used during the original recording sessions. Paul, George and Ringo also discuss with Jeff Lynne how a Beatles mini-"reunion" took place with 2 John Lennon demos ("Free As a Bird" and "Real Love"). Also, there's a section on how many hours of interviews and classic footage came together for this documentary and a feature on how the "Free as a Bird" video was made.
Give yourself at least 2 weeks to enjoy as Derek Taylor once put it these "10 hours of unchallengable evidence" of the Beatles' legacy, which continues even to this day.
Movie Review: (Helpful?) Tip...
Summary: 5 Stars
As a fan of Beatles music for some 20 years now, I naturally found this collection pretty enjoyable, as my appetite for "behind-the-scenes" footage always exceeded what was commercially available. While it is true that much of what is on this 5-disc DVD series has been seen before (the often-seen Ed Sullivan show appearances, for example, and the first US tour landing at JFK airport), it does, however, include some footage that I hadn't seen before, such as some extended scenes at the Maharishi complex in India, for example, and a few live performances from the Rubber Soul/Revolver period filmed in color. Perhaps more importantly, there are some pretty good interviews with the surviving members, that were done specifically for the release of this series back in 1995.
The interviews at George Harrison's estate in 1994 include conversations with Paul, George, and Ringo reminiscing about some of the band's early experiences, and include a brief jam session by the three of them, complete with amplifiers and instruments inside George's home; as well as a lovely outdoor scene on the lawn, where they sit casually on the grass and converse, and even sing a song or two with ukelele's while Ringo pats out a beat on his knees.
The 1995 get-together with George Martin at the sound mixer in the Abbey Road studios is also quite memorable, and includes discussions with the four of them (Paul, George, Ringo, and George Martin) about how some of the songs came together in the studio, including A Day in the Life and Tomorrow Never Knows, to name a couple.
Since it is not my intent to provide much further in the way of content review, I will add only one minor technical point, which might or might not be helpful to other purchasers of this product. Each of the 1st four discs contains two episodes (the 5th disc is bonus material...the making of, etc.). I mistakenly assumed that both episodes of each disc would play all the way through automatically. However, I realized much to my chagrin after watching 2 of the 5 discs that I had missed the second episode of each disc. This was because (in the case of my particular DVD player model, at least) it was necessary to return to the top menu after the first episode, in order to access the second episode of each disc. Needless to say, my failure to discover this sooner resulted in a rather out-of-sequence viewing experience for me. I don't really fault the producers of the discs for this, so much as myself for not having realized it sooner.