Your Favorite Beatles Movie? | Page 5 | Fab Forum | The Beatles Bible

Billy Rhythm said

meanmistermustard said
‘The Compleat Beatles’ is a fabulous documentary. Official Beatles recordings, really good interviews and some great archive footage – certainly the go to if the ‘Anthology’ series is too long.

I agree…  to fit their legacy inside two hours wasn’t no easy challenge but this one succeeds…  the bit where the narrator states that Paul’s glooming Spring 1970 announcement “made it official” that “The Beatles…  The Greatest Pop Group of All-Time were No More” against the backdrop of ‘I’m So Tired ‘ always gave me chills…  it’s prefaced by how they had all privately threatened to quit while the visuals saw each of them fading into the white…  ‘The Compleat Beatles’ is a lost classic for sure…:-)  

Well Billy, we know the person who made The Compleat Beatles unavailable.  Send your thank you cards to Sir Paul McCartney .  He bought the rights to the film, including the negative. He wanted it gone so Anthology would be the only documentary on the Beatles. Trust me, he made megabucks from Anthology.  Once again, this shows his __________ (fill in the blank with your own word).  Enough said. A great guy, eh? 

Ron Nasty said
That said, @Emmett, Apple could have had the film banned on copyright grounds in that it featured much music and footage that court cases decided Apple had the final say on its use. It could be said that Paul was generous in that he was only really buying the interviews and narration.

I do notice in your posts that you seem very anti-McCartney but he isn’t the villain you seem to regard him as, no more than John or Yoko are, for those who like to paint them that way.

Apple, that is Yoko, Paul, George (now Olivia) and Ringo block the release of the film on DVD and via streaming, and why shouldn’t they when they consider Anthology the superior product?

I have much love for it, was behind my school film club showing it in 1983, but always knew it was unofficial and had many copyright problems. Had Paul not bought the rights, it still couldn’t be released anew without Apple’s permission.

Nor do I think you can really compare it to Anthology. The Complete Beatles is a documentary film while Anthology is a documentary series. Yes, one is more concise, and has benefits from that, while the other is more expansive, and benefits from that. I would never put Anthology into a discussion about favourite Beatles movie because it isn’t a movie.

It’s like comparing Lewisohn’s standard and expanded Tune In, both do the same job but in different ways, and both are equally valid. Horses for courses, you know?  

Ron, I’m laughing as I type this reply.  You only make my argument stronger without realizing it.  Yes, perhaps Apple could have stopped it.  But…THEY DIDN’T!!!  It was a good product and had George Martin’s cooperation.  All concerned knew this.  Apple or the Beatles themselves could’ve sued if they objected to The Compleat Beatles.  They didn’t.  Malcolm McDowell, the narrator, was a fairly big star at the time.  All was fine until…

Thirteen years go by and then, just when Anthology is about to come out, Paul stops it?!  It was available for years.  I bought it on VHS in about 1986 or 1987.

As for my opinion on Paul, I loved him as a Beatle and he was a great composer, musician, and singer.  It’s his conduct that I don’t like. Right is right and wrong is wrong.  I’m just so tired of fans defending Paul out of their adoration.  This is yet another case of it. 

I’ll not post on this topic again.  I’ve made my point.