Magical Mystery Tour

The problem with most people that don't "get" this little film is that they do not understand the concept of the "day trips to nowhere", which are VERY popular in England. For a small fee, you can hop on a bus and ride around the countryside doing nothing but getting drunk and having fun. And that is all this is about. There are some innovative video segments thrown in for some of the best songs in the Beatles catalog. Rest assured, if you "hated" Yellow Submarine (say wha?), you'll despise this. If you don't mind a half-hour of nonsense, you won't mind this either. Lighten up and dig it.

When this was first released in the '60s, it was critically panned and was called the Beatles' first flop. I really never listen to critics anyway, and thought that while the story was pretty goofy, the camera use was pretty innovative for the time, and, after all, it's another chance to see the Beatles playing their songs. Movies like this make me wonder why MTV thinks they invented the music video. "I Am The Walrus" piece has kind of an odd suspense in the way it is filmed.

This psychadealic story was, without no doubt, a milestone. It's always nice to see John, Paul, George and Ringo acting in a movie, especially when they play the role of wizards. The story is of no importance, but just watch the special effects (like in the song 'Blue Jay Way') and the funny scenes. I can imagine that non-Beatles-fans can find this a very bad movie, but if you have any respect for the fab four of likes their music ('I am the walrus','Fool on the hill','Inner light','Your mother should now')this is a must.

(P.S.: I enjoyed the 'coming-down-the-stairs-scene' a lot at the end of the movie)

hey this a great movie! the songs are wonderful and the whole thing is so much fun! one of my favorite scenes was when john was playing with that little girl and saying HAVE A GUESS! [what a sweetie!]. it was really cool when the beatles sang i am the walrus. george was fantastic when he sang blue jay way. the beatles are naturally fun and they express it to the extreme here! i guess i can dig why almost everyone hates it but true beatles [like me] will show some compassion and appreciate this movie as the classic it is.

The silliness of this film seems to be lost on many Americans as a matter of cultural difference, but to anyone brought up in the British or Australian tradition it's a shambolic delight. There are many moments which stick in the mind, but my favourite is probably the sing-along in the bus, when a drunken Ringo begins singing "I've got a looverly boonch of coconuts..." and, upon getting no reply from his fellow travellers, loudly and stroppily remonstrates, "Coom on, join in! What'sa matter with yer ?!". Magical Mystery Tour has the amateur, string-and-stickytape appeal of the early Gumby series, but with the bonus of Northern English sensibilities and great Beatle songs. The poor boys were shattered after the death of Brian Epstein, John Lennon's marriage was coming to a very unfortunate end, they had had enough of so many things and were moving into a new and frightening phase of their lives : the film can be seen as an expression of all this angst overlaid with nostalgia for the Music Hall, Crazy Gang, Goon Show comedy and tragic sea-side holidays of their, and many of their fans', childhoods, and the sheer, magical power of their creative imaginations always looking forward to new possibilities. I love it.