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The Beatles: Get Back

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The Beatles: Get Back
File:The Beatles, Get Back poster.jpeg
Official release poster
GenreMusic documentary
Directed byPeter Jackson
Starring
Music by
Country of origin
  • United Kingdom
  • New Zealand
  • United States
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes3
Production
Executive producers
  • Jeff Jones
  • Ken Kamins
Producers
EditorJabez Olssen
Running time
  • 157 min (part 1)
  • 173 min (part 2)
  • 138 min (part 3)
  • 468 min (total)[1]
Production companies
Original release
NetworkDisney+
Release25 November (2021-11-25) –
27 November 2021 (2021-11-27)

The Beatles: Get Back is a 2021 documentary series directed and produced by Peter Jackson. It covers the making of the Beatles' 1970 album Let It Be, which had the working title of Get Back, and draws from material originally captured for Michael Lindsay-Hogg's 1970 documentary of the album. Originally conceived as a feature film, The Beatles: Get Back consists of three episodes with runtimes between two and three hours each, resulting in a total runtime of nearly eight hours of material. The series is presented by The Walt Disney Studios in association with Apple Corps and WingNut Films.[2]

Jackson characterised The Beatles: Get Back as "a documentary about a documentary".[3] Commentators have described it as challenging longtime beliefs that the making of Let It Be was marked entirely by tensions between the Beatles, showing a more upbeat side of the production.[4][5] It premiered on Disney+ consecutively on 25, 26 and 27 November 2021.[6][3] The miniseries was met with praise from critics, who highlighted the historical merit of the footage, showing the inner workings of the band.

Production

Production of The Beatles: Get Back employed film restoration techniques developed for Jackson's They Shall Not Grow Old.[7] Sixty hours of film footage and over 150 hours of audio stemming from the original Let It Be film project were made available to Jackson's team.[8] In reference to the long-reported acrimony surrounding the original Get Back project, Jackson wrote in a press statement that he was "relieved to discover the reality is very different to the myth ... Sure, there's moments of drama – but none of the discord this project has long been associated with."[9]

Jackson spent around four years editing the series.[10] It was created with cooperation from Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and the widows of John Lennon (Yoko Ono) and George Harrison (Olivia Harrison),[9] as well as music supervisor Giles Martin (son of George Martin and a regular producer of Beatles projects since 2006).[11] In a news release, McCartney said: "I am really happy that Peter has delved into our archives to make a film that shows the truth about the Beatles recording together", while Starr echoed: "There was hours and hours of us just laughing and playing music, not at all like the Let It Be film that came out [in 1970]. There was a lot of joy and I think Peter will show that."[12]

Unusually for Disney, they were persuaded to allow for the inclusion of swearing. According to Jackson: "The Beatles are Scouse boys and they freely swear but not in an aggressive or sexual way. We got Disney to agree to have swearing, which I think is the first time for a Disney channel."[13]

Content

The final cut covers 21 days in the studio with the Beatles as they rehearse for a forthcoming album, concert and film project, and climaxes with the full 42-minute rooftop concert.[3] Jackson described the series as "a documentary about a documentary", as well as a "tougher" one than Let It Be, since it includes controversial events such as Harrison's brief resignation from the band, which the original film had not covered.[3] With the exception of specific shots where no alternative exists, most of the material that had been featured in Let It Be was not reused in Get Back, and the series primarily used footage captured from alternative camera angles in the case of sequences shared between the two works. According to Jackson, this choice was made out of a desire to "not step on Let It Be's toes so that it is still a film that has a reason to exist, and our [series] will be a supplement to it".[3]

Ben Sisario of The New York Times emphasised opening scenes of the series from January 1969, with McCartney creating the song "Get Back" "out of nothing" while awaiting Lennon who was running late. According to Sisario, Lennon's only aim in the Get Back project was "communication with an audience", McCartney asked the band to "show enthusiasm for the project or abandon it", Harrison openly contemplated "a divorce" (of the band), while the whole band were uncomfortable about Ono's presence at the sessions.[10]

Release

Streaming

The project was announced on 30 January 2019, the fiftieth anniversary of the Beatles' rooftop concert.[8][14] On 11 March 2020, The Walt Disney Studios announced they had acquired the worldwide distribution rights to Jackson's documentary, now titled The Beatles: Get Back. It was initially set to be released as a Walt Disney Pictures film by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures on 4 September 2020 in the United States and Canada, with a global release to follow.[15][16] On 12 June 2020, it was pushed back to 27 August 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[17]

On 17 June 2021, it was announced that The Beatles: Get Back would instead be released as a three-part documentary series on Disney+ on the Thanksgiving weekend of 25, 26 and 27 November 2021, with each episode being over two hours in length.[6][3] On 16 November 2021, McCartney attended the UK premiere of The Beatles: Get Back.[18]

Marketing

On 21 December 2020, a five-minute preview montage from the reproduced film, presented by Jackson, was released on YouTube and Disney+.[19][20] The video features the band members dancing, doing impersonations, laughing, Lennon reading a newspaper article about Harrison's encounter with a photographer, as well as Lennon and McCartney "jokingly singing 'Two of Us' through gritted teeth".[21] A one-minute clip of the film was released on YouTube on 12 November, containing a scene with the Beatles working on the song "I've Got a Feeling".[22]

The release was preceded by the publication of a book of the same name – the first official book credited to the band since The Beatles Anthology (2000) – featuring an introduction by Hanif Kureishi.[23] The book was initially scheduled for 31 August 2021 to coincide with the initial August release of the documentary,[23] but was ultimately released on 12 October, ahead of the documentary.[6] The documentary was also preceded by the release of a remixed, deluxe edition box set of the Let It Be album on 15 October by Apple Records.[24]

Reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 89% based on 47 reviews, with an average rating of 8.6/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "It may be too much of a good thing for some viewers, but The Beatles: Get Back offers a thrillingly immersive look at the band's creative process."[25] Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 88 out of 100 based on 14 critic reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[26]

Sheri Linden of The Hollywood Reporter called the documentary an "immersive, in-the-moment chronicle of a generation-defining band in the act of creating, offering an up-close look at the quartet's alchemy" and concluded that it "offers ample evidence that necessity is in the eye of the beholder."[27] Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the miniseries a score of four out of four stars, calling it "one of the most entertaining, compelling and important chapters in filmed music history" and praising the quality of the footage of the rooftop performance.[28]

Owen Gleiberman, writing for Variety, gave a glowing review of the miniseries, saying that while it "meanders" and gets "bloated" in Part Three, it is an "addictive" portrait of a "transcendent" band that goes above "both the hype and fan anxiety".[29] Similarly, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone complimented the miniseries' intimacy, highlighting its poignant and "quiet moments" as "the heart of the film", including the scenes where Starr offers Ono a piece of gum, Linda McCartney and Ono whisper as the band plays "Let It Be", Harrison impresses the band with a Bob Dylan cover, McCartney covers "Strawberry Fields Forever" with Lennon's sly approval, and McCartney defends Ono while grieving for the band's end.[30]

However, Alexis Petridis, writing for The Guardian, called the series "aimless", with repetition that was a "threat to the viewer's sanity", and said that while it had "fantastic moments", they were too few and far between.[31]

Episodes

No.TitleDirected by [32]Original release date [32]
1"Part 1: Days 1-7"Peter Jackson25 November 2021 (2021-11-25)
The Beatles begin rehearsing at Twickenham Studios for what is at first meant to be a television special about the recording of their next album leading up to a live show at a location to be determined. During the sessions, Paul McCartney and George Harrison play some songs that would later appear on their respective solo albums. After seven days of rehearsals, Harrison abruptly leaves the group.
2"Part 2: Days 8-16"Peter Jackson26 November 2021 (2021-11-26)
After Harrison's departure, rehearsals at Twickenham briefly resume. The live show is ultimately scrapped and the television special is changed to a documentary film. Following a productive meeting with Harrison, the Beatles agree to resume rehearsal and recording at their Apple Corps studio location. Billy Preston, a musician the group met in Hamburg, joins in on the sessions on electric piano.
3"Part 3: Days 17-22"Peter Jackson27 November 2021 (2021-11-27)
After a week of recording at the Apple Corps studio, the Beatles perform an unannounced live performance on the roof of their Apple Corps headquarters, bringing about a crowd of London passersby as well as the attention of the London police.

References

  1. ^ King, Jack (19 November 2021). "'The Beatles: Get Back' Runtime Revealed for Peter Jackson Documentary". Collider. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  2. ^ Parker, Ryan (13 October 2021). "'The Beatles: Get Back' Trailer Dazzles With In-Depth Look at Legendary Band's Final Live Performance". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 26 November 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Hagan, Joe (17 June 2021). "The Beatles: Get Back – An Exclusive Deep Dive Into Peter Jackson's Revelatory New Movie". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  4. ^ Deloss, John (13 October 2021). "The Beatles: Get Back Trailer Teases 60 Hours of Unseen BTS Footage". Screen Rant. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  5. ^ Grelard, Philippe; Randolph, Eric (14 October 2021). "The Beatles are back with a happier ending". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b c "'The Beatles: Get Back,' a Disney+ Original Documentary Series Directed by Peter Jackson, to Debut Exclusively on Disney+". TheBeatles.com. 17 June 2021. Archived from the original on 17 June 2021. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  7. ^ Trumbore, Dave (30 January 2019). "Peter Jackson Follows Up on 'They Shall Not Grow Old' with 'The Beatles' Documentary". Collider. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  8. ^ a b Smith, Sophie (17 April 2020). "The Beatles' 'Get Back' Documentary: Everything You Need to Know". uDiscover Music. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  9. ^ a b Bote, Joshua (30 January 2019). "Peter Jackson To Direct Documentary On The Beatles Recording 'Let It Be'". NPR. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  10. ^ a b Sisario, Ben (11 November 2021). "Know How the Beatles Ended? Peter Jackson May Change Your Mind". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  11. ^ Graff, Gary (12 October 2021). "Giles Martin talks 'Let It Be' archival re-issues, Peter Jackson's "The Beatles: Get Back' documentary & more". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 27 October 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ Deriso, Nick (11 March 2020). "Peter Jackson's 'Beatles: Get Back' Set for Theatrical Release". UltimateClassicRock. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  13. ^ "Peter Jackson had to convince Disney to break 'non-swearing rule' for Beatles doc". Irish Examiner. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  14. ^ Aridi, Sara (30 January 2019). "Peter Jackson to Direct Beatles Film". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  15. ^ Guzmán, Rafer (11 March 2020). "Disney to release Peter Jackson's Beatles documentary". Newsday. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  16. ^ White, Peter (11 March 2020). "Disney Sets Release Date For Peter Jackson's Beatles Documentary". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
  17. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (12 June 2020). "'The One And Only Ivan' Heads To Disney+; 'Beatles: Get Back' Moves To 2021 & More: Disney Release Date Changes". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  18. ^ Wang, Jessica. "Paul McCartney, 79, & Daughter Mary, 52, Pose For Rare Photos At 'Beatles: Get Back' Premiere". Hollywood Life. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  19. ^ "The Beatles: Get Back – A Sneak Peek from Peter Jackson". The Beatles. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  20. ^ Grater, Tom (21 December 2020). "Peter Jackson Unveils Intimate First Footage From His Beatles Documentary". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  21. ^ Aswad, Jem (22 December 2020). "The Beatles' 'Get Back' Preview: Peter Jackson Rewrites the Ending of Rock's Greatest Fairy Tale". Variety. Retrieved 3 June 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ^ "Watch the first clip from The Beatles: Get Back – which premieres on Disney+ from November 25". The Beatles. 12 November 2021. Retrieved 12 November 2021 – via YouTube.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  23. ^ a b Monroe, Jazz (21 December 2020). "Watch a Preview of New Beatles Documentary Get Back". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  24. ^ "The Beatles / Let It Be reissue". SuperDeluxeEdition.
  25. ^ "The Beatles: Get Back: Season 1 (2021)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  26. ^ "The Beatles: Get Back Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  27. ^ Linden, Sheri (25 November 2021). "Disney+'s 'The Beatles: Get Back': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  28. ^ Roeper, Richard (25 November 2021). "'The Beatles: Get Back': Candid documentary captures frustrations — and fun — of 'Let It Be' sessions". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  29. ^ Gleiberman, Owen (25 November 2021). "Peter Jackson's Documentary Epic Is an Addictive Look at Who the Beatles Were". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  30. ^ Sheffield, Rob (25 November 2021). "Meet the Beatles Once Again, Courtesy of the Most Emotional Fab Four Doc Ever". Rolling Stone. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  31. ^ Petridis, Alexis (25 November 2021). "The Beatles: Get Back review – eight hours of TV so aimless it threatens your sanity". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 November 2021.
  32. ^ a b "The Beatles: Get Back – Listings". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
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