Rating: A-
Imagine a world where something you love dearly vanishes overnight. You're now the only one that remembers Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, or Harry Potter, or Mozart, or Beethoven. The greatest of Shakespeare never discovered or saved. Nobody has tried a twinkies or hot dog. What if Walt Disney's famous creation went by his original name of Mortimer Mouse over Mickey? What if the computer was never invented? What if Apollo 11 failed? What if, what if, what if . . .
Little things you take for granted. Little things that have enriched your life, a mere memory, and no ones the wiser for it. Gone. And you're the only one left who remembers.
What if The Beatles never became The Beatles?
Jack Malik, played by Himesh Patel, is a struggling musician who plays and sings cover songs, mainly classics from The Beatles. There's little fanfare for his honest efforts, and in the corner cheering him on is his manager Ellie Appleton, played by Lily James, who has believed in his talent since they were in school together. Then one night, while Jack gets in an accident, there's a global light outs, and when Jack wakes up in the hospital he discovers he's the only one who knows about The Beatles. From this springs a scheme, pretending to be the author of The Beatles songs, passing them off as his own. These brilliant songs catch the attention of many. Instead of being ignored Jack is now embraced, and as he ventures from one success to the next he begins to feel guilty. How far will Jack let his stolen fame grow?
Yesterday is this movie, a love letter to The Beatles. Honestly, even though I have a music degree, I don't know much about The Beatles music! Shameful, I know. All I knew was from this old karaoke tape I had as a kid, singing Penny Lane and When I'm 64 over and over again, because they're fun songs, but I didn't seek out anything beyond this. By the end of the movie I found myself truly understanding why The Beatles are so loved and the brilliance of their music. True geniuses. And how sad it would be if our world lost their beloved tunes.
Even though Yesterday came out a few months ago--It's coming to DVD and Blu-ray next week--I often find myself thinking about this movie. Rarely does a movie leave an impression on my mind. My Dad has randomly mentioned many times how much he liked Yesterday and wants to see it again. In an age of remakes, sequels, and prequels it seems rare these days to find an original movie that plays off of an intriguing idea. The movie is fun. The music great. The cast has chemistry. I can't wait to again watch Yesterday.
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for suggestive content and language.
No comments:
Post a Comment