The Fab Four's first movie A HARD DAYS NIGHT (1964) was such a smashing success that they made HELP! the next year with the same director, Richard Lester. It's not considered quite as good, but I prefer it because it's in colour. The Beatles were disappointed because they felt like extras in their own movie.
A Hindu sect in India attempts to sacrifice a woman to the god Kali, the equivalent of the Grim Reaper. The sacrifice cannot be completed without a ruby ring stuck on Ringo Starr's finger. Evil Maharajah Clang (Leo McKern) and his followers in the sect chase the Beatles around the world in an attempt to obtain the ring. Clang says, "Without the ring, there is no sacrifice, without the sacrifice there is no congregation, without the congregation there'll be no more me." Ringo asks, "Look John, I've had some great good times with this finger, and how do you know I wouldn't miss it?"
(Ringo's hand is trapped in the sandwich dispenser)
Ringo: "Hey someone's got hold of me finger!"
John: "Are you trying to attract attention again?"
(to Ringo whose arm is trapped inside a mail box)
John: "What are you doing?"
Ringo: "Posting a letter."
(John and Paul try to get Ringo to cut his finger off)
Paul: "You don't miss your tonsils, do yer?"
(a failed attempt to steal Ringo's ring)
Ringo: "Hey! Have you been messing about with me in my kip?"
John: "Eh?"
Ringo: "No, I mean, you know, with a fishing rod."
John: "I wouldn't touch it with a plastic one. What are you doing on the floor?"
Ringo: "I'm tired."
Supt.: "Oh come on now lads, don't be windy, where's that famous pluck?"
John: "I haven't got any, have you George?"
George: "Did have."
Paul: "I have had."
Ringo: "I will have! Lead on!"
(In disguise at the airport. Newspapers have discovered their destination)
Ringo: "Okay, who let it out."
John: "Nobody'll know."
Paul: "We're not going there."
John: "We just put it about we're going there."
Paul: "We're not going there!"
John: "We just put it about we're going there!"
George: "Just so everybody would think we're going there?"
Ringo: "I'd like to go there."
John: "You wouldn't like it."
Ringo: "Where are we going anyway?"
John: "Never you mind."
There are side-trips to the Alps, a battlefield, Buckingham Palace, and The Bahamas. Mad Professor Foot (Victor Spinetti) and his assistant Algernon (Roy Kinnear) also want the ring. Prof. Foot says, "With a ring like that I could--dare I say it?--rule the world." In the end, when Ringo is about to be sacrificed, the ring finally comes off. Ringo puts the ring on Clang, and his followers attempt to sacrifice him.
With a bigger budget for this movie, there is good location filming. First they filmed in the Bahamas, then the Alps, and finally in London, Salisbury Plain and at Twickenham Film Studios in England. The Beatles said the film was inspired by the Marx Brothers' DUCK SOUP (1933), and it is also a satire of the James Bond series of films. As well, it does resemble the GOON SHOW.
HELP! is a fast, frenetic and funny farce that sometimes tries too hard to be humourous. There are lots of wild and silly gags in this inventive and rambling follow-up. The absurdity and fast pacing led George Harrison to believe that Monty Python was a natural progression from the Beatles. Harrison also admitted that the Beatles smoked marijuana on the the plane trip all the way to the Bahamas.
An instrumental version of "A Hard Day's Night" can be heard throughout the movie. The other songs the Beatles sing are: "Ticket to Ride", "Another Girl", "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away", "Help!", "You're Gonna Lose That girl", "The Night Before", "I Need you", and "She's a Woman". The soundtrack album is the Beatles' fifth album with two 1 hit singles: the title song and "Ticket to Ride". The album contains seven other songs: "Act Natually", "It's Only Love", "You Like Me Too Much", "Tell Me What You See", "I've Just Seen a Face", "Yesterday", and "Dizzy Miss Lizzy". "If You've Got Trouble", "That Means a Lot", and "Yes It Is" were recorded but not included. "Yesterday" is the most recorded song in history.
The cast also includes: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Eleanor Bron (Ahme), John Bluthal (Bhuta), Patrick Cargill (Superintendent), Alfie Bass (Doorman), Warren Mitchell (Abdul), Peter Copley (Jeweller), Bruce Lace (Lawnmower), Deborah DeLacey (High Priestess), Zienia Merton (Marie-Lise), and many others. The script is by Marc Behm and Charles Wood. Incidental music is by Paul McCartney and Ken Thorne. Richard Lester directed.
The business reason for the movies was to provide soundtrack albums of Beatles songs. Despite his reputation, Brian Epstein was a pathetic manager when he signed a record deal. The Beatles were screwed for royalties. However, the contract did not include movie soundtrack records and this is where the Beatles were able to make lots of money with appropriate royalties.
John Lennon said: "The movie was out of our control. With A HARD DAY'S NIGHT, we had a lot of input, and it was semi-realistic. But with HELP!, Dick Lester didn't tell us what it was all about. I realize, looking back, how advanced it was. It was a precursor for the BATMAN 'Pow! Wow!' on TV--that kind of stuff. But he never explained it to us. Partly, maybe, because we hadn't spent a lot of time together between A HARD DAY'S NIGHT and HELP!, and partly because we were smoking marijuana for breakfast during that period. Nobody could communicate with us, it was all glazed eyes and giggling all the time. In our own world. It's like doing nothing most of the time, but still having to rise at 7 am, so we became bored."
Paul McCartney said: "We showed up a bit stoned, smiled a lot and hoped we'd get through it. We giggled a lot. I remember one time at Cliveden (Lord Astor's place, where the Christine Keeler/Profumo scandal went on); we were filming the Buckingham Palace scene where we were all supposed to have our hands up. It was after lunch, which was fatal because someone might have brought out a glass of wine as well. We were all a bit merry and all had our backs to the camera and the giggles set in. All we had to do was turn around and look amazed, or something. But every time we'd turn round to the camera there were tears streaming down our faces. It's OK to get the giggles anywhere else but in films, because the technicians get pissed off with you. They think, 'They're not very professional.' Then you start thinking: This isn't very professional--but we're having a great laugh."
The original title for HELP! was "Eight Arms To Hold You". India is never explicitly mentioned in the film; "Eastern" is used instead. For example, Professor Foot cannot read a label because it is "written in Eastern". Probably the Beatles did not make any more similar movies because THE MONKEES (1966-1968) TV show and their HEAD (1968) movie were essentially the same thing, but superior because the Monkees could act. The Beatles were great musicians but not good actors.
Other Beatles movies followed, but they are not very good. MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR (1967) is basically Paul McCartney's home movie, and even Queen Elizabeth expressed her disappointment when it was shown on TV. It has its moments and some very good songs, but is a poor production overall. It was conceived as a way for the Beatles to do something fun and exciting after manager Brian Epstein's death. The Beatles were in financial trouble and had to spend their wealth or else the British government would tax them into poverty. So they started Apple Corps. and MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR was the first project they made under the Apple company. Paul McCartney directed the bulk of the footage, and John Lennon probably directed "I am the Walrus" and the segment with Ringo's Aunt eating a large pile of spaghetti. George Harrison probably directed "Blue Jay Way". Musical numbers are quite good and the production of "Your Mother Should Know" with a dance segment of the Beatles coming down a grand staircase in white tuxedos is excellent. The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band perform "Death Cab For Cutie".
Mrs. Starkey: "Now shut up!"
Ringo: "Shut up--to me? I've had enough of it! I can't stand it any more! I'm gettin' off! Off!"
Mrs. Starkey: "Don't get historical!"
YELLOW SUBMARINE (1968) is an animated psychedelic rip-off of Peter Max. The Beatles had very little to do with it, and agreed to it only to complete a movie contract. They did not like the Beatles cartoon TV series. Most songs are older ones, although the Fab Four did supply a few "rejects" and inferior new songs. They do make a brief appearance at the very end, because they were impressed by the finished product. I don't like animation and the over-the-top psychedelia is too much. The Beatles' voices are dubbed in by sound-alike actors.
LET IT BE (1970) is a documentary that shows the Beatles breaking up, obviously because of John Lennon's morbid infatuation with Yoko Ono. Paul McCartney tries to take control of the situation. This was so boring for me that only the loud music kept me from falling asleep.
Paul: (to George) "I'm not trying to get you. But I really am trying to just say: Look, lads- the band, you know. Shall we... try it like this, you know?"
George: (to Paul) "Yeah, okay, well, I don't mind. I'll play, you know, whatever you want me to play. Or I won't play at all if you don't want me to play, you know. Whatever it is that'll please you, I'll do it."
John: "I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves, and I hope we pass the audition."
