Magical Mystery Tour

Although a great album,MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR was definitely not among The Beatles best works as far as movies are concerned, albeit a made for tv movie. The story does not seem to go in any particular direction and there is nothing tying any of the segments together. This movie which was first shown in black & white was a flop in England and only did a little better when shown in colour.

With that said, it is still worth a look just because it is the ONLY place you will get see a performance of I AM THE WALRUS. The other music video type segments include FOOL ON THE HILL, George Harrison's BLUE JAY WAY, YOUR MOTHER SHOULD KNOW and FLYING. In conclusion, it is a must have for the die hard Beatle fan but, don't expect a HELP! or A HARD DAYS NIGHT kind of performance. Just sit back, enjoy the music and don't even try to figure out the rest.

I was but a mere babe in arms when this film originally played on BBC Television in 1967 (and was trashed by both critics & audiences), so I didn't actually see it until years later, when I attended a Beatles convention, where it was screened with a batch of other Beatle related films. All I can say is...YOWZA! I guess I can see why our British cousins detested it. It was originally slated for a cinematic release, but was brought up by BBC for screening as a Xmas holiday feature (it was actually screened on the 26th of December,1967...and in black & white,no less). It fared so badly that NBC, who had American TV rights for screening it,backed out (no big surprise). It did turn up some years later in the early to mid 1970's, on the midnight movie circuit, playing to mostly stoned out potheads. I guess looking at it some years later, I would say that it is a period piece (check out the costumes that they wore back then). Maybe if I saw it, tripping balls, I would probably appreciate it all the more. Seeing it stone cold sober, it's a pretty lame attempt at a Beatles movie (although I admit, I do like some of the music in it).

Such sourpusses out there! Anyone telling you that Beatles fans should pass this movie up is, well...NOT A BEATLES FAN. They are what John Lennon would refer to as a "day tripper". A part-timer. Not in it for the long-haul. Anyone truly fascinated with the Beatles' music and legacy, especially after thirty years hindsight, ought to be downright thrilled that these four amateur filmmakers could pull off such an original, amusing and tuneful homemovie (not to mention long-form video WAY before it's time) on their spare time between recording Sgt. Pepper and the White Album, no less. They got drunk, got on a bus and filmed away. They were free spirits with tons of love, and it shows. They obviously knew exactly what they were doing, and rough edges and all, it's quite charming after all these years. My father took me to see a double feature of Yellow Submarine and Magical Mystery Tour when I was eight, and I just can't believe how it holds up. Love them warts and all. Just as they made "Hey Jude" and "She Loves You", so did they make "Revoluton #9" and "Within You, Without You". Just as they made tight, economical movies, so did they make experimental ones like this. Four Stars(****), if not just because there's nothing like it, and never will be again.

'Magical Mystery Tour' presents the best band ever in the world (guess who) at their most creative period. During the phase that started from November 1966 with recording of Strawberry Fields Forever to spring 1968 with recordings of the Yellow Submarine soundtrack that one band did most of their best material ever. The six songs presented in the 'Magical Mystery Tour' are however alone better than what the group did with the movie.

At times the movie is even hilarious but perhaps too permissive adaptation of some scenes makes the overall atmosphere a bit too lame to be wholly enjoyable. It is sad that people will usually just remember the lame scenes only and forget funny ones. Therefore the overall impression will become negative to many viewers.

My score of this film is actually a combination of two separate categories: people who don't consider themselves as a Beatles fans they will get nothing more than just few cute tunes and for them this is a 4/10 movie. For Beatles fans this is about 7/10 for they will find many scenes and references certainly as entertaining as ever. Still even the fans can't be subjugated to enjoy everything and therefore not full score for even them.

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.