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In the “Nothing like Any Previous Musical, British or American: The Beatles’ Film a Hard Day’s Night” the author, Rowana Agajanian, explains the importance of the film “A Hard Day’s Night” as the key to understanding the features of the 1960s.
Freedom, love, peace – these are the signs of the 1960s. Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles – these are the icons and legends of the 1960s. The power of the music and the image has brought the British band the Beatles to the status of icons in the United Kingdom, in the United States of America and in a whole world. The Beatles’ music has always been in the spotlight, but their film work has been of much less interest. As a group the Beatles took part in four films and the cartoon movie. They are “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964), “Help!” (1965), “Magical Mystery Tour” (1967), “Yellow Submarine” (the cartoon movie) (1968), “Let It Be” (1970). Among these films, “A Hard Day’s Night” is truly a window into the sixties. More than fifty years have passed since the film premiere, but it is still able to fascinate and delight. In today’s perception of “A Hard Day’s Night” prevails the feeling of the nostalgia and warm sorrow for the good old times, when the Beatles were at the top of their popularity.
“A Hard Day’s Night” shows us one “ordinary” day of the Beatles’ life. They travel from their hometown Liverpool to London to make a performance on the television. The Beatles try to get to the studio without being torn to the souvenirs by enthusiastic admirers, cause the nervous breakdown of their manager, have fun and get into different other adventures and stories. As a matter of fact, the Beatles’ “ordinary” day is not ordinary at all: it is quite difficult and very eventful. But they are spending their time in a relaxed, spontaneous and light manner.
The film was directed by American-born director Richard Lester, who lived in the Great Britain. The screenplay was written by a British screenwriter Alun Owen, who has grown up in Liverpool, the hometown of the Beatles. He spent a couple of days with the group, and they told him about their life. Therefore, Owen has written the screenplay from the specific point of view. He has showed the Beatles as the hostages of their fame, as though the timetable of their concerts and studio work was the worst punishment for them. Owen was able to catch not only the lifestyle of the British musicians, but also their personalities. Both director and screenwriter have done a great job.
The author suggests that due to successful tandem of the American director and the British screenwriter, “A Hard Day’s Night” combines two distinct genres – the Hollywood fiction and fantasy, as well as the British fact and realism. Furthermore, the film reveals the relationships between Britain and the United States in cultural exchange. The 1960s was the period of so-called “British invasion” when the British music, film, and fashion tended to dominate the United States and Western Europe. The Beatles were one of the most significant elements of “British invasion”.
Permanent conflicts with parents, the thousands of rules, the prohibition to be different, the predefined way of life and ever present American democratic values – these are the parts of the American youth’s opinion about their life. The Beatles have encroached on these sacred things and have shaken the American principles and convictions. There were gentle irony and loyal protest in the Beatles’ songs. They ridiculed the modern industrial society, its principles, and values. But this laugh was expressed in simple and clear words, and their irony was expressed in wonderful emotional and melodious music, the traditional mix of the British and the American tunes and beats of the rock-n-roll, skiffle, and jazz. They have aroused something bigger in the American youth – some kind of consensus, common joy, which later became its power. The Beatles’ influence on young people was much more than simple craze: the musicians have vested them with the new powers.
The Beatles’ acting in “A Hard Day’s Night” is worth being mentioned. All Liverpool guys – scapegrace John Lennon, clear head Paul McCartney, brutal George Harrison and very modest Ringo Starr – were very vivid; and everyone, leaving the cinema in 1964, was able to boast almost personal acquaintance with the fabulous four from Liverpool. It is amazing, how these modest, shy and ingenuous guys have become the violators of the public rest and the ones, who were subverting the moral principles. And even now many experts are asking themselves, how the Beatles were able to drive the crowd of young girls mad without an affectation and breaking their guitars, simply by civilized and respectable executing of beautiful songs about love.
“A Hard Day’s Night” is full of witty jokes and clever moves, typical for the period of the silent movies of early Charlie Chaplin. The jokes paste the parts of the film plot together, and many of them even today is used as the catchphrases.
About 30 percent of “A Hard Day’s Night” is the music video. We can hear the sounds of the world hits, such as “I Should Have Known Better”, “A Hard Day’s Night”, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, “She Loves You”. The music is beautiful, tender, lyric; full of youth and love, the melodies are simple and easy to remember. The English version of soundtrack fully consists of Lennon and McCartney songs, and it has revealed, how unsurpassed their skill is. The title song “A Hard Day’s Night”, written by John Lennon, is opened with unusual and surprising chord and moves forward with an indefatigable passion. Moreover, the film has shown that the Beatles started to deal with more serious topics in their songs, such as melancholy, loneliness, and regrets.
The film is the document of the gone era. It is a peculiar reminiscence of legendary events, a striking illustration of the Beatles’ phenomenon, and their incredible rise to the summits of glory. “A Hard Day’s Night” wins the audience with the feeling of liberty, lightness, naturalness and improvisation.
However, the film was also criticized, both in Britain and abroad. Some reviewers were not impressed, confident in their right to demand much more from the film with the incredible four from Liverpool. The others mentioned that the jokes were forced, and Liverpool slang was inappropriate sometimes. Nevertheless, a number of laudatory reviews were overwhelming.
Richard Lester has directed a very significant film as for the 1960s. He has raised the Beatles and their music one stage higher and has provoked an unprecedented surge of “Beatle mania”. Today it is difficult to amaze somebody with the musical film about famous group or singer, nevertheless, the article claims, that “A Hard Day’s Night” remains the “blue-print” of this genre.
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