“The
amazing phenomenon that was
The Beatles scorched onto the pop
scene in the early Sixties to become
among the most influential musicians
of the times, launching their acting
career with films such as the fascinating
and hilarious fly-on-the-wall pseudo-
documentary —
now coming to DVD
and Blu-ray —A Hard Day’s Night...”
TAKING THE WORLD BY STORM, The Beatles were, as they said back in the Swinging
Sixties, "something else" and became the biggest band on the planet — a
world firmly in the grip of Beatlemania.
With their powerful and unforgettable music, four talented Liverpool lads called
John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr opened a window
onto their world with a supposedly typical Beatle day as the Fab Four try to
make it to their televised performance against all the odds in A Hard Day's
Night.
“A
Hard Day’s Night…
an incredible film
with terrific music
that’s
still hugely visual;
hilarious,
thoroughly entertaining
and fun, fun, fun!”
The
1964 film, now available on DVD and Blu-ray, sees experienced television advertisement
director Richard Lester and screenwriter Alun Owen draw upon classic slapstick
comedy with a nod to the French 'New Wave' movement, creating a unique and innovative
movie in documentary style destined to influence a whole generation of music
videos and films.
The film follows The Beatles as they prepare for their public, racing to catch
the train to their hotel but mobbed wherever they go as they try to avoid their
screaming fans.
Not always an easy thing to do and humour is high on the agenda. On the train
they are joined by Paul's grandfather (Wilfred Bramble: Steptoe And Son) and
when they reach the hotel George invents a new "shaving mirror" and granddad
is offered the opportunity of visiting a casino in the guise of an English lord,
for which he has a unique way of kitting himself out.
At the press conference later, John is asked how he found America. "Turn left
at Greenland", he responds. "Are you a mod or a rocker?" Ringo is asked, to
which he replies: "A Mocker." It seems these boys cannot take anything seriously
and it is good to see George and Ringo getting as much exposure as John and
Paul.
Paul's grandfather is arrested while selling fake signed photographs of The
Beatles and Ringo goes missing from the studios with just twenty minutes to
go before they are due to perform live on air. At the studios the expected mishaps
and mayhem follow, making life impossible for the harassed television producer
(Victor Spinetti: Help). The day is beset with problems so will The Beatles
all make it to the theatre on time?
Some of the band's best-known tracks accompany the film, including the title
song A Hard Day's Night, the melodic If I Fell In Love With You
and the beautiful ballad, And I Love Her. A Hard Day's Night has
transcended the years and this incredible film with terrific music is still
hugely visual; hilarious, thoroughly entertaining and fun, fun, fun!
A Hard Day's Night is a fitting memorial to the two Beatles who are no
longer with us. John Lennon was shot and killed in 1980 and George died of cancer
in 2001. A Hard Day's Night has now become a wonderful period piece from
a progressive era that paved the way for today's popular music.
The Swinging Sixties gave us transistor radios, chilled milk and orange machines
on street corners, unrestricted smoking, spacious trains with real luxury first
class carriages, accessible telephone boxes and fabulous, exciting music. No
mobiles, ipads or laptops for Sixties teenagers!
To celebrate its 50th Anniversary, Second Sight and Metrodome Distribution present
a new 4k digital restoration of The Beatles' A Hard Day's Night approved
by director Richard Lester, with three audio options; a monoaural soundtrack
in addition to newly created stereo and 5.1 surround mixes supervised by sound
producer Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell at Abbey Road Studios.
The brilliant soundtrack of classic Beatles tracks includes: I Should Have
Known Better; And I Love Her; Tell Me Why; If I Fell;
and Can't Buy Me Love. And features an outstanding supporting cast including
comedienne Anna Quayle as Millie, cartoonist Bob Godfrey, television host Robin
Ray, dancer Lionel Blair as a television choreographer, Harrison's future wife
Patti Boyd and director Richard Lester himself. Phil Collins also makes a brief
appearance as a young fan.
A Hard Day's Night also features: Deryck Guyler as Police Inspector;
Richard Vernon as the Man On the Train; Alison Seebohm as Secretary; Eddie Malin
as Hotel Waiter; and David Jaxon as Young Boy.
Music is The Music Of The Beatles; Director of Photographer is Gilbert Taylor,
BSC; Produced by Walter Shenson; Original Screenplay by Alun Owen; and Directed
by Richard Lester.
*
The
Beatles' A Hard Day's Night, a seminal piece of filmmaking that shows
The Beatles as they had never before been seen, is released in the UK in cinemas,
On-Demand and available to download from 4 July 2014, followed by a Special
Edition Blu-ray and two-disc DVD release, courtesy of Second Sight Films, on
21 July 2014.
In Their Own Voices: A new piece combining 1964 interviews with The Beatles
with behind-the-scenes footage and photos | You Can't Do That: The Making
of A Hard Day's Night, a documentary by producer Walter Shenson, including
an outtake performance by The Beatles | Things They Said Today, a documentary
about the film featuring director Richard Lester, music producer George Martin,
screenwriter Alun Owen and cinematographer Gilbert Taylor | Picturewise: a new
piece about Richard Lester's early work, featuring a new audio interview with
the director | Anatomy of a Style: A new piece on Richard Lester's methods |
New Interview with Author Mark Lewisohn | Audio Commentary Featuring Cast and
Crew.
"A Hard Day's Night… [an] incredible film with terrific music is still
hugely visual; hilarious, thoroughly entertaining and fun, fun, fun! —Maggie Woods
"Great band, great music, great film. Not only that, it remains a fascinating
portrait of Britain on the cusp of change" —Empire
"A fascinating picture of this country in 1964, with the Beatles as our cheerfully
anarchic heroes, leading us out of austerity-era Britain with its stuffiness
and complacency" —
The Guardian
"A relentlessly entertaining film that is not only the best film to feature
The Beatles, but one of the finest British comedies of all time" —Den of Geek
Favourite quote from the film A Hard Day's Night: "Ringo's drums loom
large in his legend"
“The
amazing phenomenon that was