Lennon would have been 80 today.

[Rizla]

Beautiful stuff. I watched a few more clips. The Beatles seem to drop into German accents every now and then.

It's remarkable. I love the depiction of the Wings tour of "college cafeterias" - in reality they were playing big rooms like Leeds uni and Hull uni refectory, in the film it's them set up in like a high school cafeteria next to the hot dog machines, just in the middle of the room.

[Hand Solo]

Another cringey one (aren't they all?) is Two Of Us, laughable script.

Two Of Us

"They'll see who was the REAL brain behind The Beatles!"

"Beatle Paul at the controls!"

[Rizla]

Another cringey one (aren't they all?) is Two Of Us, laughable script.

For some reason I have a vague soft spot for that one, despite it being objectively laughable and shit, I think because, like The Hours and Times, it focusses on a specific incident and doesn't attempt any real biographing, and is fairly low-budget and unambitious generally. Backbeat also earns a pass, good attention to detail in that one. "Hangin's too good for it!"

I should make a Beatle film thread but I can't be arsed.

1979's "Birth of the Beatles" is hilarious, Nick Cotton as George, a 45 year old Lennon, 1970s woolworths guitars. Pete Best was the technical advisor and it shows - the scene where he gets the boot is positively shakespearian. Proper moonlit soliloquy.

I'd like to make a supercut of all the depictions of the wooton village fete from all the different films.

THere's a really shit one with Christopher Ecclestone as John isn't there? Don't think I've seen that one all the way through.

[Hand Solo]

The Hours And The Times is the best one simply for the notion can you imagine explaining to 22 year old Lennon that after he was dead they're going to make an entire film about him wanking off Brian Epstein?

[JesusAndYourBush]

Little more than a gutter thug

That's hilarious, I'm assuming it wasn't supposed to be a comedy?

[Rizla]

That's hilarious, I'm assuming it wasn't supposed to be a comedy?

No, it's an entirely serious made-for-tv movie. The scene where she meets Mick Jagger is a belter. Jim Morrison shows up in it too. It must be seen.

I believe the "source material" for at least the beatle stuff in it is the discredited, appallingly written and hacky Blackbird, given that scene with Lennon climbing the gate. Although in that it's claimed that John actually stormed into Macca's pad, ripped down one of his own art school paintings off the wall and put his foot through it, saying "happy fuckin' anniversary, mate!".

John is essentially portrayed in that film as the baddie beatle, he's played all the way through as a grotesque sort of troll. Then when he gets killed, Paul's devastated. It's fucking insane.

[kalowski]

Another cringey one (aren't they all?) is Two Of Us, laughable script.

Two Of Us

"They'll see who was the REAL brain behind The Beatles!"

"Beatle Paul at the controls!"

"You never cared for Yoko, Paul. And you can't say fairer dan dat."

[SpiderChrist]

Sounds like that Chapman bloke did him a favour.

My Mum was convinced it was a set-up job. Her theory:

Lennon's body was fucked cos of booze and fagz and drugz
He was terminally ill "Look how thin he is!" and all the talk of macriobiotic diets was horseypiddles and bunkum - we have had both cancer and AIDS mentioned in the past by Mum
Chapman was hired to assassinate Lennon BY THE LENNONS so no one would know he was so ill and his predictable slide into ill health and mediocrity would be halted

I can't be bothered to argue with her.

[shagatha crustie]

Credible sources have said Lennon was struggling with the smack again in the late 70s and before he carked it, rather than bakin' bread and teachin' Sean to sing Yellow Submarine in the bath. He did look terribly unhealthy in 1980.

[Hand Solo]

Credible sources have said Lennon was struggling with the smack again in the late 70s and before he carked it, rather than bakin' bread and teachin' Sean to sing Yellow Submarine in the bath. He did look terribly unhealthy in 1980.

He and Yoko weren't really together as a couple, either. They were only 'together' as a brand for business and PR reasons, there were rumours he was going to move back to the UK too around the time of his death, I think he talks about the notion on one of his earlier autobiography tapes (also mentions lying on the bed with his mother when he was 14 and accidentally touching her tit, and thinking about fucking her.)

[Ferris]

No, it's an entirely serious made-for-tv movie. The scene where she meets Mick Jagger is a belter. Jim Morrison shows up in it too. It must be seen.

I believe the "source material" for at least the beatle stuff in it is the discredited, appallingly written and hacky Blackbird, given that scene with Lennon climbing the gate. Although in that it's claimed that John actually stormed into Macca's pad, ripped down one of his own art school paintings off the wall and put his foot through it, saying "happy fuckin' anniversary, mate!".

John is essentially portrayed in that film as the baddie beatle, he's played all the way through as a grotesque sort of troll. Then when he gets killed, Paul's devastated. It's fucking insane.

This sounds mega. Love the idea of a "baddie beatle"

[Rizla]

This sounds mega. Love the idea of a "baddie beatle"

I 'ate your stinkin' song

[Satchmo Distel]

"Credible sources" is stretching it. I don't think there's a source from the Dakota in 1980 that isn't tainted in some way. I don't doubt that John and Yoko had issues, having already had one long separation, but they had a kid they deeply loved and they made an album together than seems to have been sincere. John's health: again, we lack definitive sources but I could imagine him being an addictive personality and anorexic. I doubt whether those things would have killed him in the short term but I've already stated above that I think his chances of reaching 60 were doubtful.

OTOH Yoko was allegedly back on the smack in 1980 and she's still around at 87.

[MortSahlFan]

He was also one of the funniest people.

[Golden E. Pump]

Him and Macca would've formed an acoustic double act in the 80s and would've written some of the most enduring hits of the era.

Poor man's Hall & Oates.

[JaDanketies]

Only two of the Beatles made it to 64 despite singing 'When I'm 64'.

Smack doesn't necessarily do you any damage iirc, if you do it properly I don't think it affects your life expectancy. I think it's all the other things that are involved in being a poor heroin addict that cause you to die young - eg not taking care of your diet and exercise, using dirty needles and dirty water, getting adulterated product. For instance, Harold Shipman was 57 when he killed himself, he looked healthy, and he'd been pilfering opiates since 1971; he had at least three decades of addiction under his belt, but he had the means to use it safely.