The Beatles are often thought of as the best band ever, but they were only together for a short time. They have a long and interesting history, though. Over the last 50 years, many works of art have been based on the group, which is a pop culture icon. In addition to the many songs, movies, paintings, and clothes that pay tribute to the group, there is also a big mythos about their lives and careers.
One of the best things about being a Beatles fan is talking to other people about the band. Since the group is one of the most popular musical acts of the last 50 years, almost anyone can talk to you about them. Here are 10 great documentaries about The Beatles that will help you get ready for that trip.
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Above Us Only Sky
Any fan of The Beatles who really likes them has probably wondered what the famous rock and rollers were like when they were by themselves. Above Us Only Sky is a close look at John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s lives after the Beatles broke up. The film shows what happened in their lives while Lennon was making his Imagine album. The film mostly takes place at their mansion in Tittenhurst Park, where John had a recording studio built in the basement. It shows scenes from their home life as well as the studio sessions that made up Imagine.
The movie changes the known history of John Lennon’s career by putting the focus on his relationship with Yoko Ono and how much she influenced him and the art he made. John talks about how “Imagine” should have been published as “Lennon-Ono,” but he was too macho at the time. Above Us Only Sky has many scenes where Yoko is editing John’s lyrics, which backs up that claim. It also goes into Yoko’s life and how her imagination has always been an important part of it.
Eight Days a Week
This documentary gives you a look into the lives of the world’s most famous band when they were at the top of their touring game. Eight Days a Week is about The Beatles’ touring years, when they were becoming famous in ways that no other band had ever been before. From the outside, everything sounds great, but this documentary gives a glimpse into the personal lives of the group at the time and shows how hard it was for them to stay in the spotlight.
The title is a joke that was made by the group’s chauffer during those years. It’s a joke about how much he’s been working. Even though the group turned the phrase into a love song, they could also use it to describe how they work. At the time, the Beatles lived from hotel room to bus to concert to recording studio to movie set to hotel room, and it was affecting their mental health. The movie shows how the band used marijuana as a way to escape at the time, as well as the many things that caused them to stop touring for good.
George Harrison: Living in the Material World
George Harrison: Living in the Material World, which was directed by Martin Scorsese and is about four hours long, is so much more than a typical rockumentary. It is a spiritual experience that is so much more than a rockumentary. The story of George Harrison is told in three parts. It naturally includes the story of the Beatles, but it is told from a very emotional point of view. It shows that, even though he was known as the quiet Beatle, he had a lot of personality that the public didn’t notice in the beginning.
In parts two and three, Scorsese goes into detail about George’s life after the Beatles. He shows how he struggled with addiction while still being an amazing friend and a light to the whole world through his music. The honest feelings of those who were interviewed for the film show how much Harrison must have meant to his closest friends, and as you watch, you can see that he had a lot of friends. This documentary shows his whole life and shows how meaningful a person’s life can be if they treat it with meaning.
Get Back
How is it to hang out with The Beatles while they record an album? Get Back is a documentary that answers this question definitively. With a running time of about eight hours, the movie is all about the fans. Get Back is about how the Beatles made their album Let It Be. It is made up of over 60 hours of old footage that Peter Jackson and a small team remastered and edited in a great way. Fans get to see the record being made from scratch, which is a long and winding process.
Before the movie came out, the recording sessions were known as the tense last straw that broke up the band for good. But Peter Jackson’s edit shows that, despite the sad parts, the Beatles were very close friends who liked to spend time together. Even though they have a very busy schedule and have to work hard to make a record, they are also seen messing around just as much, if not more.
Good Ol’ Freda
Who better than a huge fan of The Beatles to work for them? Good Ol’ Freda is the story of a teenage girl from Liverpool, where the Beatles were from, who became the loyal secretary to the group and their manager Brian Epstein for the rest of their career in the 1960s. People say that behind every great man is an even greater woman, and this rockumentary proves that saying to be true. The movie shows Freda’s role in the band and brings to light an amazing woman who had been forgotten.
How the Beatles Changed the World
If you ever want to teach a friend about the best band of all time, this documentary is a great way to start. How the Beatles Changed the World goes over the whole history of the band’s career and looks at the major ways they changed western culture. They are known for making long hair on men cool, for getting a lot of young people interested in playing instruments and writing songs, and for being totally daring in all forms of expression. The Fab Four helped start the Cultural Revolution because they were young people who liked to try new things and had the most fans of any band before or after them.
Imagine: John Lennon
Imagine if John Lennon himself spoke in a documentary about his life. Well, that’s exactly what John Lennon is. The film is told by John and is made up of hundreds of hours of interview clips from throughout his life and career. The clips were cleverly edited to fit into a structure. It also has interviews with some of the most important people in the musician’s life, like his two sons, his first and second wives, and his mistress. The rocker’s narration gives a glimpse into his emotional side. He talks about his late mother, his marriage, and his journey with the other three Beatles.
The film was made after his death in 1980 and shows how the people in his life dealt with it. Yoko Ono paid for the film. The other three Beatles were asked to be in it, but none of them agreed.
The Beatles and India
Ever wanted to see what it was like to go on one of the most well-known religious journeys in pop culture? When the Beatles went to India, it was a life-changing event that made them more open to the benefits of transcendental meditation. The Beatles and India tells fans about the band’s time in India. It also shows footage from the band members’ personal cameras that has never been seen before. The movie takes the audience on the Beatles’ trip around the world and shows how spiritual it was for them at the time.
The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit
The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit is made up of footage from the band’s first ever tour in the United States. It is a great and raw way to learn about The Beatles’ career and sense of humor. They didn’t know how loved they were overseas until they got off the plane at JFK Airport. On the band’s first night in America, they played on the Ed Sullivan Show, which was watched by one-third of all Americans at the time.
The whole trip from New York City to Washington, D.C., and then down to Miami Beach is shown in the documentary. It has press conferences, concert footage, and the band’s own recordings of what they did in their hotel rooms. You can be sure that when the camera is on them, the lads act like fools.
The U.S. vs John Lennon
Today, people remember John Lennon as a symbol of peace and love, since that’s what his music was mostly about. The U.S. vs. John Lennon talks about how at one point, the American government saw Lennon as a threat. He and Yoko Ono’s anti-war activities, such as bed peace, bagism, and the give peace a chance rally, put them on the CIA’s list of people to keep an eye on.
The movie shows how John was caught with too much marijuana and was almost kicked out of the United States. But it looks like the drugs were put there on purpose, which is a good reason to take away his green card. The documentary shows how painful this situation was for John, who loved America and living in New York City. New Yorkers always had a soft spot for Lennon and didn’t want to see him leave.
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