Beatles: First Us Visit [Import]

Description

Brand: MPI Home Video

Format: NTSC

Release Date: 29-07-1998

Details: Amazon.caAny fan of Richard Lester’s A Hard Day’s Night won’t want to miss the documentary The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit by Albert and David Maysles. The Maysles brothers were given extraordinary access to the Beatles during their first trip to the U.S., in February 1964, for several concerts and their seminal first appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show. Like Hard Day’s Night, which came out later that year, this film (also known as What’s Happening! The Beatles in the U.S.A.) shows lots of spontaneous cheekiness with the press and fans; the Beatles’ wide-eyed bemusement at the hysteria they caused; as much cutting up as a tiny hotel room allows; and even specific scenes–goofing off on a commuter train, mod dancing in a nightclub–that would later appear in Lester’s film. The only thing missing is Paul’s grandfather.The performance segments alone are a must for fans. The three Ed Sullivan appearances show a great cross section of their hits at the time, including « All My Loving, » « I Saw Her Standing There, » a beautifully delivered « This Boy » by John Lennon, and a wobbly « I Saw Her Standing There » so out of tune George Harrison nearly cracks up as he listens to Lennon and Paul McCartney struggle for harmony. The blurry, badly mic’d footage of the concert at the Washington Coliseum shows the Beatles acting as their own roadies, setting up their instruments; the platform Ringo Starr drums on lurches ominously with each downbeat. It was a more innocent, exuberant time, to be sure, and this sweet documentary lets the Beatles phenomenon speak for itself. –Anne HurleyFrom the Back CoverIt was one of the great moments in the history of show business: It was 1:20 p.m., the 7th of February 1964, and Pan Am Yankee Clipper flight number 101 taxied down the runway at New York’s Idlewild airport, carrying a human cargo of four young British musicians who were destined to conquer Great Britain’s former colony, the U.S.Within 48 hours, the Beatles were performing on the Ed Sullivan Show, capturing 73,000,000 viewers, thus making television history.This is The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit, a day-by-day audio visual account of the group’s arrival on American shores. This full-length film takes us on an historic, musical ride back in time.This is the real Hard Day’s Night, culled from hours of footage shot at the time, some of which has never been seen before, and the Ed Sullivan appearances will give audiences of all ages an opportunity to relive a time of glorious, innocent mayhem. People will be able to see and hear what happened, as it happened. Such a time will never come again.Ed Sullivan secured as many segments as negotiations would permit–three–and so these historic performances are preserved intact. And the Maysles Brothers, American filmmakers of great distinction, secured the wondrous realities off-stage.The 83-minute film contains more than 13 performances, which have been visually restored to near perfection. The tracks have been digitally remastered to produce a superb hi-fi sound. Between performances, the viewer will join the Beatles in their limos, hotel rooms, and on their trip from New York to Washington, D.C., to Miami, Florida.If you were there, this is a fabulous journey back into a glorious time of youthful joy. If you weren’t, this is the way to catch up fast.Includes the hits: « I Wanna Hold Your Hand, » « She Loves You, » « I Saw Her Standing There, » « Please Please Me, » and many more.

UPC: 030306621821

EAN: 9780788600197

Languages: English

Binding: DVD

Item Condition: UsedVeryGood