The Best Beatles Films (Not Starring The Beatles)

The Beatles need no introduction, as one of the greatest bands in history, they left a pretty big imprint on the music world. They also made a few films along the way. This list is not about those Beatles movies. This list is full of films that are either movies about the Beatles, or movies that feature the Beatles music on their soundtracks in a way that is above and beyond the norm.

These are films that sometimes go beyond the lives of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. Instead, they may choose to explore 'Beatlemania!' or just use the music to tell a new tale. All of these films were loved by me for one reason or another, so keep in mind that that my reviews come from the point of view of a Beatles nut.

I’m going to start out with the movie on this list that will probably draw the most ire from my fellow Fab Four devotees. It is a film from that magical time known as the late seventies that built a story around selections from the vast Beatles songbook, with plenty of cheese to spare. I’m referring, of course, to SERGEANT PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND featuring Peter Frampton and the kings of disco, The Bee Gees, in the title roles.

The film gets a lot of criticism from most people because of its sheer strangeness and the fact that some feel the leads are not worthy to sing songs that are held in such high regard by (practically) everyone. I, however, have always loved this movie. Where else can you see Steve Martin warble out his version of “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” , or see Frampton and Steven Tyler duel with microphone stands?

The answer - nowhere but here.

I have always thought it interesting that the film chooses to take place in the USA in a stereotypical American town known simply as Heartland instead of in the UK. Sgt Pepper, the film tells us, was from Heartland and led his eponymous band through several wars before returning home, where he donated the band’s instruments to the town so that they could ensure happiness always reigned in the idyllic hamlet.

How do the instruments have this mysterious power? Who knows?

The story starts with Sgt. Pepper’s grandson, Billy Shears, reforming the band with his lifelong friends the Henderson brothers. The band is a success and gets called out to California to cut an album with Big Deal Records, home of other smash acts such as "Lucy and the Diamonds". During their absence, Mr. Mustard (who we all know is a mean old man) steals the instruments from the town and sad days begin for Heartland. It’s up to Billy and his friends to find the instruments and restore happiness.

I’ll admit that the plot is silly. I’ll even admit that some of the songs fall flat. George Burns (as Mr. Kite) couldn’t carry a tune to save his life, and Donald Pleasance just comes off as a creeper. Where the movie shines, though, is in the versions laid out by some of the other guest stars. Aerosmith does a fine job with “Come Together” and Earth, Wind, & Fire knocks “Got To Get You Into My Life” out of the park. My favorite part is when Billy Preston shows up to sing “Get Back“.

Another surprise lay in Sandy Farina, who plays Billy’s girlfriend Strawberry Fields. Her version of “Here Comes The Sun” is one of my favorite covers of the Harrison tune (the others being the offerings from Nina Simone and Richie Havens). Paul Nicholas was also a welcome sight as Dougie Shears, the conniving cousin of Billy. Nicholas played Cousin Kevin in the film version of Tommy and recorded a song called “Heaven On The 7^th Floor” that I have always been partial to.

All in all, SERGEANT PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND is a silly film. However, there are enough great moments to make it a must see for Beatles fans.

Also from 1978 comes this hilarious gem from the mind of Eric Idle. It started as a short bit on SNL and was eventually bankrolled by Lorne Michaels into a full length TV film.

THE RUTLES: ALL YOU NEED IS CASH is an in depth look at The Rutles, a group of mop-tops from Rutland who became the biggest band in the world. Shot in a mockumentary style, the film follows Dirk, Nasty, Stig, and Barry from the early days through the entirety of their amazing career.

Eric Idle serves as the host and also plays Dirk McQuickly, a thinly veiled parody of Paul McCartney. Neil Innes plays Ron Nasty (John Lennon) to great effect and provides a treasure trove of sound alike songs that are amazing in their own right. Also starring in this madcap film are several SNL alums such as Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd , John Belushi and Gilda Ratner. Idle's fellow Python, Michael Palin, also makes an appearance along with musicians Paul Simon, Mick Jagger, and Ron Wood. Most surprising is a turn by George Harrison himself poking fun at his former life as a Beatle.

The jokes come fast throughout the film, and any Beatles fan will thrill at how well they parody famous moments in Beatles history, such as The Rutles playing "Che Stadium" or Ron Nasty and his girlfriend Chastity holding a "Bath In" for peace. I don't want to get to much into the jokes for fear of ruining them, so suffice it to say that if you like Monty Python style humor, you will love this.

One thing this film does right where so many lesser films would have failed is in the songs. They sound so close to real Beatles songs that some of them have mistakenly made it onto bootlegs of the fab four over the years. "Cheese and Onions" (from The Rutles film "Yellow Submarine Sandwich") has been mislabeled as a Lennon outtake more than once.

The film isn't long, but it's great. There is a sequel floating around, but I have been warned by many Rutles fans that it is not really worth the time. The original, however, is definitely a must see.

Before he directed BACK TO THE FUTURE, WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT, or FORREST GUMP, Robert Zemeckis helmed this gem about the time the Beatles first landed in the USA. Instead of focusing on the Fab four themselves, the film follows a group of teenagers who are determined to get to New York City to see the lads play on the "Ed Sullivan Show".

The film is definitely a comedy and is funny throughout. I like the fact that the youths all have their own reasons for wanting to get to NYC. They want to either touch The Beatles, sleep with The Beatles, protest The Beatles, or take the Beatles off the air.

Zemeckis does a very good job of capturing Beatlemania at it's peak, even if the folks he cast as the famous moptops (or at least their voices) do a pretty poor job impersonating their real life counterparts.

TWO OF US was a VH1 movie that imagined a day in the mid seventies when Paul McCartney and John Lennon "buried the hatchet" and just hung out. Supposedly, there was a day somewhat like this, but the film is fiction.

Aidan Quinn plays the puppy eyed Paul, and Jared Harris ably plays Lennon. It's fun to watch these two legends come to life in a "what if" story like this. It is especially entertaining to see the fan interactions when the pair step out on the town.

For a Beatles fan like myself, this movie was a nice sort of daydream of a film. I would love to think that before Lennon was murdered, he and Paul got together and let bygones be bygones.

ACROSS THE UNIVERSE is the most recent attempt to make a full length musical film from the Beatles catalog. Overall, it succeeds in many of the places where "Sgt. Pepper" failed. The director, Julie Taymor, has a background in Broadway, notably bringing Disney's "The Lion King" to the stage. She also directed the films "Titus" and "Frida" . She was also originally attached to the troubled Spider-Man musical.

The first thing I noticed when promotional material for this film started showing up was how lush everything seemed to be visually. Modern computer effects are used with great success to create a psychedelic vibe throughout the film. I couldn't help but get acid flashbacks as I watched the scenes unfold. Set to the music of the Fab Four, it really is a treat to behold.

The film follows a young man from England named Jude (Jim Sturgess) as he travels to America and survives the turbulent sixties. Vietnam, drugs, the sexual revolution, and other aspects of the decade all come into play. Overall, it's a successful melding of the times and the music, with few outright failures. I was particularly happy to see Joe Cocker's version of "Come Together" and the almost uncomfortably trippy "For The Benefit of Mr. Kite" as performed by Eddie Izzard.

This one is less about the beatles than most of the others, but it features a soundtrack full to the brim with some of the better Beatle's covers out there. The film itself is somewhat of a tearjerker, but an endearing one, with a complex problem at its core.

Sean Penn turns in a brilliant performance as Sam, a mentally challenged man who finds himself a father after sleeping with a drug addict using him for a roof over head. Soon after his daughter, Lucy (as in 'in the sky'), is born, the mother of the child leaves into the world. Sam has a hard time adapting to life as a dad, but is eventually a very good, if flawed, father to young Lucy, played as an older child by Dakota Fanning in her breakout role.

Sam's life with Lucy is interesting to watch, and it is very obvious he is into The Beatles from the way he talks ceaselessly about them with his friends and his helpful neighbor (Dianne Weist). Everything seems pretty rosy until the authorities become aware of the situation, and take Lucy into custody. Sam bungles everything from their on out, but picks a high power lawyer (Michelle Pfeiffer) to serve him well as it all goes to trial.

The movie is heartwrenching at times, but is overall very good, with lots of nice moments for Beatles fans.