'Beatles '64' Revisits an Iconic Time

         On November 29, 2024, Disney+ released 'Beatles '64', which has earned rave reviews from critics, earning a score of 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. In the documentary, "On February 7, 1964, The Beatles arrived in New York City to unprecedented excitement and hysteria. From the instant they landed at Kennedy Airport, met by thousands of fans, Beatlemania swept New York and the entire country. Their thrilling debut performance on The Ed Sullivan Show captivated more than 73 million viewers, the most watched television event of its time. Beatles '64 presents the spectacle, but also tells a more intimate behind the scenes story, capturing the camaraderie of John, Paul, George, and Ringo as they experienced unimaginable fame." But what did the critics say?

       Owen Gleiberman of Variety says, "The powerful pull of Beatles 64... is that it takes this fabled, high-swoon moment of pop-music history, almost all of which we now view through a mythological lens, and humanizes it in an exhilarating way." Adding, "Another thing that sets “Beatles ’64” apart is that the film is full of incisive commentary: latter-day reminiscences by several of those fans, as well as meditations on the meaning of it all by figures like David Lynch, Joe Queenan, Jamie Bernstein, and Smokey Robinson, who speaks with fierce perception about the nature of women’s unguarded emotionalism in dictating the shape of pop-music culture. Whether it’s Jamie Bernstein (Leonard’s daughter) talking about how she dragged the family TV into the dining room to watch the Sullivan show, or David Lynch evoking what it is that music like that of the early Beatles does to you, or Betty Friedan, in an old TV clip, speaking with daunting eloquence about how the Beatles incarnated a new vision of masculinity that threw over the old clenched model, these testimonials color in the consuming quality of our collective passion for the Fab Four."

       David Ehrlich of indieWire notes, "Though it’s much shorter than [The Beatles: Get Back], Tedeschi’s 106-minute film operates on much the same principle: It never feels the least bit new or necessary, and yet almost every second of it sparks the joy of a genuine revelation."

Photo by Minha Baek on Unsplash

        Pat Mullen of POV Magazine praises the film, stating, Tedeschi and Scorsese, a regular presence in the contemporary footage, underscore the positive impact of the Beatles through concerts. Shows in Washington D.C. and Miami Beach that followed the Ed Sullivan appearance offer more screaming fans wailing in ecstasy at the sight of four dapper dudes bopping on stage. Sound engineer Giles Martin mixes and restores this material especially well. The high-pitched frequency of fans’ delight benefits from contemporary remastering. Moreover, the consideration of fandom resonates especially as Taylor Swift winds down her Eras tour, evoking memories of Beatlemania wherever she goes. This doc’s a reward for all the parents who braved The Eras Tour in person or on film. Both docs could bridge generational divides and inspire parents and their kids to be more forgiving of musical tastes. Call 1964 “The Beatles Era.” Where Beatles ’64 proves most interesting, though, is in its look outside Beatlemania. An interview with Ronnie Spector early in the film sees the Ronettes’ singer remember the event. She tells how the Ronettes visited the Beatles’ hotel and helped them escape the throngs of fans. Spector says she brought them to Harlem where they could chow down on ribs and barbeque without worry. Nobody in Harlem, Spector says, recognized the Beatles or cared if they did. It’s a nice humanising story about these young celebrities. But it’s also a telling account of the racial divides in cultural consciousness. Like many music docs, Beatles ’64 considers how music bridges races and cultures. Interviewees like Smokey Robinson, for example, talk about shared influences and visibility. But especially humorous is 16mm footage of interviews on the streets of Harlem being asked about the Beatles. Some of the girls love them, but most of the passersby say they don’t give a toot about the Beatles. They prefer Coltrane." Adding, "Lennon grasps this complexity of Beatlemania in an archival interview that closes the film. No one band defines a generation. He says the Beatles were on the same ship as the Rolling Stones and company—they just spotted America first. The rest is history—toe-tapping, ageless history."