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A Hard Day's Night (film)

A Hard Day's Night is a 1964 musical comedy film directed by Richard Lester and starring the English rock band the BeatlesJohn Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—during the height of Beatlemania. It was written by Alun Owen and originally released by United Artists. The film portrays 36 hours in the lives of the group as they prepare for a television performance.

A Hard Day's Night
UK theatrical release poster
Directed byRichard Lester
Screenplay byAlun Owen
Produced byWalter Shenson
Starring
CinematographyGilbert Taylor
Edited byJohn Jympson
Music byMusical Director:
George Martin
Songs:
Lennon–McCartney[a]
Production
companies
  • Walter Shenson Films
  • Proscenium Films
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release dates
  • 6 July 1964 (1964-07-06) (UK)
  • 11 August 1964 (1964-08-11) (US)
Running time
87 minutes
CountriesUnited Kingdom
United States[1]
LanguageEnglish
Budget£189,000[2]
(~US$245,433)
Box office$11 million[2]

The film was a financial and critical success and was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Original Screenplay. Forty years after its release, Time magazine rated it as one of the 100 all-time great films.[3] In 1997, British critic Leslie Halliwell described it as a "comic fantasia with music; an enormous commercial success with the director trying every cinematic gag in the book" and awarded it a full four stars.[4] The film is credited as being one of the most influential of all musical films, inspiring numerous spy films, the Monkees' television show and pop music videos, and various other low-budget musical film vehicles starring British pop groups, such as the Gerry and the Pacemakers film Ferry Cross the Mersey and John Boorman's vehicle for The Dave Clark Five, Catch Us If You Can.

In 1999, the British Film Institute ranked it the 88th greatest British film of the 20th century.[5]

Plot

The Beatles evade a horde of fans while boarding a train for London to film a televised concert. En route, they meet Paul McCartney's trouble-making grandfather for the first time. The band play cards and entertain some schoolgirls before arriving at the London station, where they are quickly driven to a hotel and begin to feel confined. Their manager Norm tasks them with answering all their fan mail, but they sneak out to party, only to be caught by Norm and taken back. They then find out that Paul's grandfather went to a gambling club using an invitation sent to Ringo, and they bring him back to the hotel.

The next day, the Beatles arrive at a TV studio for a performance. After the initial rehearsal, the producer assumes bad faith in them due to something Paul's grandfather said. After a mundane press conference, they leave through a fire escape and cavort in a field until forced off by the owner. Back in the studio, they are separated when a woman named Millie recognizes John Lennon but cannot recall who he is. George Harrison is lured into a trendmonger's office to audition for an advertisement with a popular model. The band return to rehearse a second song and, after a quick trip to makeup, smoothly go through a third and earn a break.

An hour before the final run-through, Ringo Starr is forced to chaperone Paul's grandfather and takes him to the canteen for tea while he reads a book. The grandfather manipulates Ringo into going outside to experience life rather than reading books, passing a surprised John and Paul on the way out. He tries to have a quiet drink in a pub, takes pictures, walks alongside the river and rides a bicycle along a railway station platform.[b] After nearly injuring a parrot and accidentally causing a woman to fall into a newly dug hole, Ringo is apprehended by a policeman as a troublemaker, and shortly after he is joined by Paul's grandfather who had been attempting to sell Beatles photos with forged signatures. The grandfather runs back to the studio and tells the others about Ringo. Norm sends John, Paul and George to retrieve him. While doing so, the boys wind up in a Keystone Cops-style foot chase before arriving back at the studio, with Ringo, with only minutes to spare before airtime. The televised concert goes on as planned, after which the Beatles are whisked away to another performance via helicopter.

Cast

Songs

The film's credits incorrectly state that all songs are composed by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. In the film, a portion of "Don't Bother Me" can be heard which is a George Harrison composition. The instrumentals are recorded by the George Martin Orchestra.

In addition to the soundtrack album, an EP (in mono) of songs from the film titled Extracts From The Film A Hard Day's Night was released by Parlophone on 6 November 1964, having the following tracks:[7]

  • Side A
  1. "I Should Have Known Better"
  2. "If I Fell"
  • Side B
  1. "Tell Me Why"
  2. "And I Love Her"

Song notes

  • "I'll Cry Instead" was among several songs considered for the film but ultimately not included either as an on-camera performance or for usage as an audio-only track. It was to be used during the "escape/fire escape" sequence of the film, but ultimately director Richard Lester vetoed it because of its downbeat lyrics and it was replaced for that scene by "Can't Buy Me Love".[8] Its status as an early contender for inclusion led to the song being included on the US soundtrack album.[9]
  • In the 1982 US theatrical reissue of the film by Universal Pictures, under licence from Walter Shenson, the song "I'll Cry Instead" was used as the audio track for a prologue sequence to the film which consisted of stills from the film and publicity photographs as a tribute to Lennon consisting of a "Swingin'" early to mid-1960s-style collage of photos of the Beatles in 1964 around the time they were shooting the film. The prologue was assembled without the involvement or knowledge of the film's director Richard Lester, who subsequently expressed his disapproval of the addition.[10]: pp.119–120  The prologue was not included on the 2000 restoration of the film.[11][12]
  • The song "You Can't Do That" was filmed as part of the film's TV concert sequence but was not included in the final cut of the film. At a point before a decision had been made to excise the song from the film, footage of that performance had been sent by the filmmakers and Brian Epstein to be aired on The Ed Sullivan Show as a tease to promote the forthcoming release of the film. The clip aired on the Sullivan show on Sunday, 24 May 1964 in conjunction with an interview with The Beatles specially filmed by Sullivan in London.[13] An extract of the footage of the song performance was included in the 1994 documentary The Making of "A Hard Day's Night".[14]
  • The song "I Call Your Name" was cut from the film for unknown reasons.[10]: p.55 

Screenplay

The screenplay was written by Alun Owen, who was chosen because the Beatles were familiar with his play No Trams to Lime Street, and he had shown an aptitude for Liverpudlian dialogue. McCartney commented, "Alun hung around with us and was careful to try and put words in our mouths that he might've heard us speak, so I thought he did a very good script."[15] Owen spent several days with the group, who told him their lives were like "a train and a room and a car and a room and a room and a room"; the character of Paul's grandfather refers to this in the dialogue.[16] Owen wrote the script from the viewpoint that the Beatles had become prisoners of their own fame, their schedule of performances and studio work having become punishing.

The script comments cheekily on the Beatles' fame. For instance, at one point a fan, played by Anna Quayle, apparently recognises John Lennon, though she does not actually mention Lennon's name, saying only "you are...". He demurs, saying his face is not quite right for "him", initiating a surreal dialogue ending with the fan, after she puts on her glasses, agreeing that Lennon doesn't "look like him at all", and Lennon saying to himself that "she looks more like him than I do".[16] Other dialogue is derived from actual interviews with the Beatles. When Ringo is asked if he's a mod or a rocker, he replies: "Uh, no, I'm a mocker",[17] a line derived from a joke he made on the TV show Ready Steady Go![18][19] The frequent reference to McCartney's grandfather (Wilfrid Brambell) as a "clean old man" sets up a contrast with the stock description of Brambell's character, Albert Steptoe in Steptoe and Son, as a "dirty old man".[20]

Audiences also responded to the Beatles' brash social impudence. Director Richard Lester said, "The general aim of the film was to present what was apparently becoming a social phenomenon in this country. Anarchy is too strong a word, but the quality of confidence that the boys exuded! Confidence that they could dress as they liked, speak as they liked, talk to the Queen as they liked, talk to the people on the train who 'fought the war for them' as they liked. ... [Everything was] still based on privilege—privilege by schooling, privilege by birth, privilege by accent, privilege by speech. The Beatles were the first people to attack this... they said if you want something, do it. You can do it. Forget all this talk about talent or ability or money or speech. Just do it."[21]

Despite the fact that the original working titles of the film were first The Beatles and then Beatlemania, the group's name is never spoken in the film.[22]

Production

The film was shot for United Artists (UA) using a cinéma vérité style in black-and-white. The film was meant to be released in July 1964, and since it was already March when Lester got to filming, the entire film had to be produced over a period of sixteen weeks. It had a low budget for its time of £200,000 ($500,000) (equivalent to £4,311,807 in 2021) and filming was finished in under seven weeks, leaving the rest of the time for post-production.[23] At first, the film itself was something of a secondary consideration to UA, whose primary interest was in being able to release the soundtrack album in the United States before Capitol Records (the American EMI affiliate who had first shot at releasing Beatles music in the States) got around to issuing their material; in the words of Bud Ornstein, the European head of production for United Artists: "Our record division wants to get the soundtrack album to distribute in the States, and what we lose on the film we'll get back on this disc."[8] As film historian Stephen Glynn put it, A Hard Day's Night was intended as "a low-budget exploitation film to milk the latest brief musical craze for all it was worth."[24]

Unlike most productions, it was filmed in near sequential order, as stated by Lennon in 1964.[25] Filming began on 2 March 1964 at Marylebone station in London (sometimes misidentified as Paddington). The Beatles had joined the actors' union, Equity, only that morning.[7] The first week of filming was on a train travelling between London and Minehead.[26] On 10 March, scenes with Ringo were shot at the Turk's Head pub in Twickenham, and over the following week various interior scenes were filmed at Twickenham Studios. From 23 to 30 March, filming moved to the Scala Theatre,[27] and on 31 March, concert footage was shot there, although the group mimed to backing tracks.[7] On the 17 March and the 17 April scenes were shot at the Les Ambassadeurs Club in Mayfair.[28] The "Can't Buy Me Love" segment, which featured creative camera work and the band running and jumping around in a field was shot on 23 April 1964 at Thornbury Playing Fields, Isleworth, West London.[7] The final scene was filmed the following day in West Ealing, London, where Ringo obligingly drops his coat over puddles for a lady to step on, only to discover that the final puddle is actually a large hole in the road.[29]

Before A Hard Day's Night was released in America, a United Artists executive asked Lester to dub the voices of the group with mid-Atlantic accents. McCartney angrily replied, "Look, if we can understand a fucking cowboy talking Texan, they can understand us talking Liverpool."[30] Lester subsequently directed the Beatles' 1965 film, Help!

The film's costumes—except for those of the Beatles themselves—were designed by Julie Harris.[31] The clothes of the Beatles were credited to Dougie Millings & Son.

Casting

Irish actor Wilfrid Brambell, who played Paul McCartney's fictional grandfather John McCartney, was already well known to British television audiences as co-star of the British sitcom Steptoe and Son. The recurring joke that he was very "clean" reflects a contrast to his sitcom role, where he was always referred to as a "dirty old man". For American audiences the comment was more of a spoof on the Beatles continually being referenced as "very clean". Norman Rossington played the Beatles' manager Norm, John Junkin played the group's road manager Shake, and Victor Spinetti played the television director. Brian Epstein, the group's real manager, had an uncredited bit part.[32]

The supporting cast included Richard Vernon as the "city gent" on the train and Lionel Blair as a featured dancer. There were also various cameos. John Bluthal played a car thief and an uncredited Derek Nimmo appeared as magician Leslie Jackson. David Janson (billed as David Jaxon here) played the small boy met by Ringo on his "walkabout". Rooney Massara, who went on to compete in the 1972 Munich Olympics, was the sculler in the river in the "walkabout" scene by the river at Kew (uncredited). Kenneth Haigh appeared as an advertising executive who mistakes George for a "new phenomenon". David Langton also made a cameo appearance as an actor in the dressing room scene.

Mal Evans, one of the Beatles' road managers, also appears briefly in the film—moving an upright bass through a tight hallway as Lennon talks with the woman who mistakes him for someone else.

George Harrison met his wife-to-be, Patricia Boyd, on the set when she made a brief (uncredited) appearance as one of the schoolgirls on the train. His initial overtures to her were spurned because she had a boyfriend at the time, but he persisted and they were married within 18 months.[33] The girl with Boyd in the dining car scene is Prudence Bury.[34] Phil Collins, later a member of the band Genesis, was an uncredited schoolboy extra in the concert audience and would subsequently go on to be a very successful musician in his own right.[35][36] Playing the buxom woman with Paul's grandfather in the casino scene was popular British 1960s pinup model Margaret Nolan (aka Vicky Kennedy), who also appeared as "Dink", the golden girl during the opening credits of the James Bond film Goldfinger, later that same year.[37]

Cut for BBFC

The film had to be edited slightly to obtain the U certificate for British cinemas. The phrase "get knotted" (allegedly in reel 7 of the original submission) was judged inappropriate for a U film and had to be removed.[38] When the film was submitted for release on VHS, the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC) could not locate the phrase and presumed that the clip was "pre-cut", but stated that the phrase was no longer of any concern.[39] The BBFC noted a number of innuendos and one subtle reference to cocaine, but concluded that it was still within the "natural category" for a U certificate.[39]

Reception

The film premiered at the Pavilion Theatre in London on 6 July 1964—the eve of Ringo Starr's 24th birthday—and the soundtrack was released four days later.[40] A Hard Day's Night set records at the London Pavilion by grossing over $20,000 in the first week, ultimately becoming so popular that more than 1,600 prints were in circulation simultaneously.[41]

Critical response

Reviews of the film were mostly positive; one oft-quoted assessment was provided by Andrew Sarris of The Village Voice, labeling A Hard Day's Night "the Citizen Kane of jukebox musicals."[42] When The Village Voice published the results of its first annual film poll, A Hard Day's Night placed second behind Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove.[43] On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 98% based on 113 reviews, with an average rating of 8.5/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "A Hard Day's Night, despite its age, is still a delight to watch and has proven itself to be a rock-and-roll movie classic."[44] It is number four on Rotten Tomatoes' list of the Top Ten Musicals and Performing Arts films.[45] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 96 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[46]

Time magazine called the film "One of the smoothest, freshest, funniest films ever made for purposes of exploitation."[47] Film critic Roger Ebert described the film as "one of the great life-affirming landmarks of the movies", and added it to his list of The Great Movies.[48] In 2004, Total Film magazine named A Hard Day's Night the 42nd greatest British film of all time. In 2005, Time.com named it one of the 100 best films of the last 80 years.[3] Leslie Halliwell gave the film his highest rating, four stars, the only British film of 1964 to achieve that accolade.[4]

The New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther noted the film was a subtle satire on Beatlemania and the Beatles themselves. The Beatles are portrayed as likeable young lads who are constantly amazed at the attention they receive and who want nothing more than a little peace and quiet; however, they have to deal with screaming crowds, journalists who ask nonsensical questions, and authority figures who constantly look down upon them.[49] In fact, their biggest problem is McCartney's elderly, but "clean" grandfather, played by Wilfrid Brambell.[50] The New Yorker critic Brendan Gill wrote: "Though I don't pretend to understand what makes these four rather odd-looking boys so fascinating to so many scores of millions of people, I admit that I feel a certain mindless joy stealing over me as they caper about uttering sounds."[51]

A Hard Day's Night was nominated for two Academy Awards: for Best Screenplay (Alun Owen), and Best Score (Adaptation) (George Martin).[52]

By 1971, the film was estimated to have earned $11 million worldwide (equivalent to $79,485,620 in 2022).[2]

Influence

British critic Leslie Halliwell states the film's influence as "it led directly to all the kaleidoscopic swinging London spy thrillers and comedies of the later sixties".[4] In particular, the visuals and storyline are credited with inspiring The Monkees' television series.[53] The "Can't Buy Me Love" segment borrowed stylistically from Richard Lester's earlier The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film, and it is this segment, in particular using the contemporary technique of cutting the images to the beat of the music, which has been cited as a precursor of modern music videos.[54][55][56][57][58] Roger Ebert goes even further, crediting Lester for a more pervasive influence, even constructing "a new grammar": "he influenced many other films. Today when we watch TV and see quick cutting, hand-held cameras, interviews conducted on the run with moving targets, quickly intercut snatches of dialogue, music under documentary action and all the other trademarks of the modern style, we are looking at the children of A Hard Day's Night".[48] Film theorist James Monroe writes, "The lively 1960s films of Richard Lester—especially his Musicals A Hard Day's Night (1964), Help! (1965), and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966)—popularized jump cuts, rapid and 'ungrammatical' cutting. Over time, his brash editorial style became a norm, now celebrated every night around the world in hundreds of music videos on MTV and in countless commercials."[59] A Hard Day's Night also inspired a 1965 film featuring Gerry and the Pacemakers, entitled Ferry Cross the Mersey.[60][61] In an interview for the DVD re-release of A Hard Day's Night, Lester said he had been labelled the father of MTV and had jokingly responded by asking for a paternity test.

Title

The film's title originated from something said by Ringo Starr, who described it this way in an interview with disc jockey Dave Hull in 1964: "We went to do a job, and we'd worked all day and we happened to work all night. I came up still thinking it was day I suppose, and I said, 'It's been a hard day ...' and I looked around and saw it was dark so I said, '... night!' So we came to A Hard Day's Night."[62]

According to Lennon in a 1980 interview with Playboy magazine: "I was going home in the car, and Dick Lester suggested the title, 'Hard Day's Night' from something Ringo had said. I had used it in In His Own Write, but it was an off-the-cuff remark by Ringo. You know, one of those malapropisms. A Ringo-ism, where he said it not to be funny... just said it. So Dick Lester said, 'We are going to use that title.'"[63]

In a 1994 interview for The Beatles Anthology, however, McCartney disagreed with Lennon's recollections, recalling that it was the Beatles, and not Lester, who had come up with the idea of using Starr's verbal misstep: "The title was Ringo's. We'd almost finished making the film, and this fun bit arrived that we'd not known about before, which was naming the film. So we were sitting around at Twickenham studios having a little brain-storming session ... and we said, 'Well, there was something Ringo said the other day.' Ringo would do these little malapropisms, he would say things slightly wrong, like people do, but his were always wonderful, very lyrical ... they were sort of magic even though he was just getting it wrong. And he said after a concert, 'Phew, it's been a hard day's night.'"[64]

Yet another version of events appeared in 1996; producer Walter Shenson said that Lennon had described to him some of Starr's funnier gaffes, including "a hard day's night", whereupon Shenson immediately decided that that was going to be the title of the film.[65]

Regardless of which of these origin stories is the true one, the original tentative title for the film had been "Beatlemania" and when the new title was agreed upon, it became necessary to write and quickly record a new title song, which was completed on 16 April, just eight days before filming was finished.[8] John Lennon wrote the song in one night, (credited to Lennon-McCartney) writing the lyrics on the back of a birthday card sent to his young son Julian,[66] and it went on to win a Grammy for Best Performance by a Vocal Group.[10]: p.xii 

The film was titled Yeah Yeah Yeah in Germany and Sweden, Tutti Per Uno (All for One) in Italy, Quatre garçons dans le vent (Four Boys in the Wind[c]) in France[67] Yeah! Yeah! Tässä tulemme! (Yeah! Yeah! Here We Come!) in Finland and Os Reis do Iê-Iê-Iê (The Kings of Yeah-yeah-yeah) in Brazil.

Novelisation

In 1964, Pan Books published a novelisation of the film by author John Burke, described as "based on the original screenplay by Alun Owen". The book was priced at two shillings and sixpence and contained an 8-page section of photographs from the film. It is the first book in the English language to have the word 'grotty' in print.[68][69]

Release history

  • 1964: A Hard Day's Night was released by United Artists.
  • 1967: The film premiered on American television on the NBC network on 24 October; the usual Peacock introduction, which preceded all NBC color broadcasts of the era, was replaced by a humorous black-and-white animated cartoon penguin, with cartoon representations of the Beatles jumping out of its stomach, as A Hard Day's Night was not shot in color;[70][71]
  • 1970: The film premiered on UK television on BBC1 on 28 December. John Lennon watched the broadcast at home and was inspired to write the song "I'm the Greatest", which was later recorded by Ringo Starr on his 1973 album Ringo.[72]
  • 1979: Rights to the film were transferred to its producer, Walter Shenson;
  • 1982: Universal Pictures, under license from Shenson, reissued the film in theaters. This release included a prologue consisting of production stills set to the song "I'll Cry Instead", which would remain on subsequent home video editions until 2000;
  • 1984: MPI Home Video, under license from Shenson, first released A Hard Day's Night on home video in the VHS, Betamax, CED Videodisc, and Laserdisc formats, which all included the prologue.[73]
  • 1993: Voyager Company produced a CD-ROM for Mac and PC platforms with video in QuickTime 1 format, containing most of Criterion's elements, including the original script.[75]
  • 1997: MPI Home Video released the first DVD edition. It contains the 1982 prologue and trailer, newsreels, an interview with Richard Lester, and The Running Jumping & Standing Still Film.
  • 2000: Miramax Films reissued the film in theatres in the United States and then as a collector's edition DVD two years later, as well as its final issue in the VHS format. The film had been transferred from the restored 35 mm negative and presented in 1.66:1 Widescreen. The prologue that Universal added in 1982 is absent on the Miramax releases.[76]
    • In addition to the original film, the DVD edition contained a bonus disc with over 7 hours of additional material including interviews with cast and crew members and Beatles associates. The DVD was produced by Beatles historian and producer Martin Lewis, a longtime friend of Walter Shenson.[76]
  • 2009: The film was released on Blu-ray Disc in Canada; however, the disc is region free and will play in any Blu-ray machine. It contains most of the 2000 DVD bonus features.
  • 2010: Miramax was sold by Disney to Filmyard Holdings, LLC, and the home video sub-licence transferred to Lionsgate, although no U.S. Blu-ray release date had been announced.
  • 2011: A new Blu-ray edition was released in Mexico, this version has Spanish subtitles.
  • 2014: Janus Films acquired the rights to the film from Miramax (on behalf of the Shenson Estate, managed by Bruce A. Karsh) and announced a domestic video re-release via The Criterion Collection on 24 June 2014.[77] This dual-format edition (which incorporates the first ever U.S. issue on Blu-ray) contains various supplements from all previous video re-issues. This marks the return of this film to Criterion for the first time in two decades. The film was also released in theaters across the U.S. and in the UK (by Metrodome in the latter region)[78] on 4 July 2014. On 6 July 2014, the film was shown in re-mastered HD on BBC Four in the UK to mark its 50th anniversary. Criterion's DVD/Blu-ray release of A Hard Day's Night was duplicated by Umbrella Entertainment in Australia (released 2 July)[79] and Second Sight Films in the UK (released 21 July).[80]
  • 2015: On 15 December, Criterion re-released their Blu-ray as part of The Rock Box, a collection of rock music-related films that also includes Monterey Pop (1968), Gimme Shelter (1970) and Quadrophenia (1979).[81]
  • 2022: On 11 August 2021, Criterion announced their first 4K Ultra HD releases, a six-film slate, will include A Hard Day's Night. Criterion indicate each title will be available in a 4K UHD+Blu-ray combo pack including a 4K UHD disc of the feature film as well as the film and special features on the companion Blu-ray.[82] A Hard's Day Night was released on 18 January 2022.[83]

40th anniversary cast and crew reunion screening

On 6 July 2004, the 40th anniversary of the film's world premiere, a private cast and crew reunion screening was hosted in London by DVD producer Martin Lewis. The screening was attended by McCartney, actors Victor Spinetti, John Junkin, David Janson and many crew members. In media interviews at the event, McCartney disclosed that while he had seen the film many times on video, he had not seen the film on the "big screen" since its 1964 premiere.[84]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Although the film features George Harrison's song "Don't Bother Me", he did not receive an onscreen credit for writing it.
  2. ^ This scene was filmed at Crowcombe Heathfield on the West Somerset Railway[6]
  3. ^ The expression "dans le vent" means being "in fashion" or "hip".

References

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  2. ^ a b c Alexander Walker, Hollywood, England, Stein and Day, 1974 p. 241
  3. ^ a b Corliss, Richard (12 February 2005). . Time. Archived from the original on 15 July 2010. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
  4. ^ a b c Halliwell, Leslie (1997). Halliwell's Film & Video Guide. Harper Collins. ISBN 0-00-638779-9.
  5. ^ British Film Institute - Top 100 British Films 12 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine (1999). Retrieved 27 October 2017
  6. ^ . Archived from the original on 13 May 2008. Retrieved 3 April 2008.
  7. ^ a b c d Miles, Barry (2001). The Beatles Diary. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-8308-9.
  8. ^ a b c Rybaczewski, Dave. ""A Hard Day's Night" Soundtrack History". Beatles Music History. DKR Products. from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  9. ^ "A Hard Day's Night". The Beatles. Apple Corps. from the original on 4 February 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  10. ^ a b c Morton, Ray (2011). A Hard Day's Night. Milwaukee WI: Limelight Editions. ISBN 978-0-87910-388-0. from the original on 23 December 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  11. ^ "A Hard Day's Night (aka "Beatles No. 1" )". dvdbeaver.com. from the original on 24 April 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  12. ^ Harry, Bill (1994). The Ultimate Beatles Encyclopedia. p. 322.
  13. ^ Winn, John C. (2008). Way Beyond Compare: The Beatles' Recorded Legacy, Volume One, 1957–1965. New York: Three Rivers Press. p. 166. ISBN 9780307452382. from the original on 5 April 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  14. ^ Russell, Deborah (21 January 1995). "PBS Special Examines Beatles' Film". Billboard. from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  15. ^ . Archived from the original on 8 March 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2008.
  16. ^ a b "A Hard Day's Night Script". aella. from the original on 12 February 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2008.
  17. ^ Wiegand, Chris (12 December 2005). "Film and Drama: A Hard Day's Night". BBC Four Cinema. from the original on 7 March 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2008.
  18. ^ Barrow, Tony (2006). John, Paul, George, Ringo & Me: The Real Beatles Story. Da Capo Press. p. 61.
  19. ^ Winn, John C. (2008). Way Beyond Compare: The Beatles' Recorded Legacy, 1957–1965. Three Rivers Press. p. 165. In the original interview Ringo admits he borrowed the line from John.
  20. ^ . Archived from the original on 22 April 2008. Retrieved 4 April 2008.
  21. ^ "The Beatles are pent up prisoners of their own notoriety in A Hard Day's Night". Pop Matters. from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  22. ^ Frebowitz, Jerry. . Talkin' the Oldies. MovieFanFare. Archived from the original on 30 May 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  23. ^ Erickson, Hal. "A Hard Day's Night: Synopsis". AllMovie. from the original on 17 January 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  24. ^ Glynn, Stephen (2005). A Hard Day's Night: The British Film Guide 10. London: I.B.Tauris. p. 9. ISBN 1-85043-587-1. from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  25. ^ The Beatles, The Beatles Anthology (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, LCC, 2000, ISBN 0-8118-2684-8), p. 267
  26. ^ "The Beatles in West Somerset in 1964". from the original on 14 April 2008. Retrieved 3 April 2008.
  27. ^ "Scala Theatre, 58 Charlotte Street". from the original on 6 July 2008. Retrieved 3 April 2008.
  28. ^ Piet Schreuders; Mark Lewisohn; Adam Smith (25 March 2008). Beatles London: The Ultimate Guide to Over 400 Beatles Sites in and Around London. Pavilion Books. pp. 192–. ISBN 978-1-906032-26-5. from the original on 19 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  29. ^ Mark Lewisohn, The Complete Beatles Chronicle (London: Pyramid Books, Hamlyn, 1992, ISBN 0-600-61001-2), p. 158
  30. ^ Harry, Bill. "Beatles Browser Four (p3)". Mersey Beat. from the original on 19 February 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2009.
  31. ^ "Remembering Julie Harris, costume designer for Bond and Hitchcock". British Film Institute. (notice Harris designs for the schoolgirls at the end of the article). from the original on 6 May 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  32. ^ Elyea, Jim (6 May 2006). "'A Hard Day's Night': The Beatles" (PDF). Voice of the Theatre. Alex Film Society. 12 (1). (PDF) from the original on 5 April 2016. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
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External links

hard, night, film, hard, night, 1964, musical, comedy, film, directed, richard, lester, starring, english, rock, band, beatles, john, lennon, paul, mccartney, george, harrison, ringo, starr, during, height, beatlemania, written, alun, owen, originally, release. A Hard Day s Night is a 1964 musical comedy film directed by Richard Lester and starring the English rock band the Beatles John Lennon Paul McCartney George Harrison and Ringo Starr during the height of Beatlemania It was written by Alun Owen and originally released by United Artists The film portrays 36 hours in the lives of the group as they prepare for a television performance A Hard Day s NightUK theatrical release posterDirected byRichard LesterScreenplay byAlun OwenProduced byWalter ShensonStarringJohn Lennon Paul McCartney George Harrison Ringo Starr Wilfrid BrambellCinematographyGilbert TaylorEdited byJohn JympsonMusic byMusical Director George MartinSongs Lennon McCartney a ProductioncompaniesWalter Shenson Films Proscenium FilmsDistributed byUnited ArtistsRelease dates6 July 1964 1964 07 06 UK 11 August 1964 1964 08 11 US Running time87 minutesCountriesUnited KingdomUnited States 1 LanguageEnglishBudget 189 000 2 US 245 433 Box office 11 million 2 The film was a financial and critical success and was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Original Screenplay Forty years after its release Time magazine rated it as one of the 100 all time great films 3 In 1997 British critic Leslie Halliwell described it as a comic fantasia with music an enormous commercial success with the director trying every cinematic gag in the book and awarded it a full four stars 4 The film is credited as being one of the most influential of all musical films inspiring numerous spy films the Monkees television show and pop music videos and various other low budget musical film vehicles starring British pop groups such as the Gerry and the Pacemakers film Ferry Cross the Mersey and John Boorman s vehicle for The Dave Clark Five Catch Us If You Can In 1999 the British Film Institute ranked it the 88th greatest British film of the 20th century 5 Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Songs 3 1 Song notes 4 Screenplay 5 Production 5 1 Casting 5 2 Cut for BBFC 6 Reception 6 1 Critical response 7 Influence 8 Title 9 Novelisation 10 Release history 10 1 40th anniversary cast and crew reunion screening 11 See also 12 Notes 13 References 14 External linksPlot EditThe Beatles evade a horde of fans while boarding a train for London to film a televised concert En route they meet Paul McCartney s trouble making grandfather for the first time The band play cards and entertain some schoolgirls before arriving at the London station where they are quickly driven to a hotel and begin to feel confined Their manager Norm tasks them with answering all their fan mail but they sneak out to party only to be caught by Norm and taken back They then find out that Paul s grandfather went to a gambling club using an invitation sent to Ringo and they bring him back to the hotel The next day the Beatles arrive at a TV studio for a performance After the initial rehearsal the producer assumes bad faith in them due to something Paul s grandfather said After a mundane press conference they leave through a fire escape and cavort in a field until forced off by the owner Back in the studio they are separated when a woman named Millie recognizes John Lennon but cannot recall who he is George Harrison is lured into a trendmonger s office to audition for an advertisement with a popular model The band return to rehearse a second song and after a quick trip to makeup smoothly go through a third and earn a break An hour before the final run through Ringo Starr is forced to chaperone Paul s grandfather and takes him to the canteen for tea while he reads a book The grandfather manipulates Ringo into going outside to experience life rather than reading books passing a surprised John and Paul on the way out He tries to have a quiet drink in a pub takes pictures walks alongside the river and rides a bicycle along a railway station platform b After nearly injuring a parrot and accidentally causing a woman to fall into a newly dug hole Ringo is apprehended by a policeman as a troublemaker and shortly after he is joined by Paul s grandfather who had been attempting to sell Beatles photos with forged signatures The grandfather runs back to the studio and tells the others about Ringo Norm sends John Paul and George to retrieve him While doing so the boys wind up in a Keystone Cops style foot chase before arriving back at the studio with Ringo with only minutes to spare before airtime The televised concert goes on as planned after which the Beatles are whisked away to another performance via helicopter Cast EditJohn Lennon as himself Paul McCartney as himself George Harrison as himself Ringo Starr as himself Wilfrid Brambell as John McCartney Paul s grandfather Norman Rossington as Norm the Beatles manager John Junkin as Shake the Beatles road manager Victor Spinetti as the TV director Anna Quayle as Millie Deryck Guyler as police sergeant Richard Vernon as Johnson the gentleman on the train Edward Malin as the hotel waiter Robin Ray as the TV floor manager Lionel Blair as the TV choreographer Alison Seebohm as Dolly Simon Marshall s secretary David Janson as David Jaxon as Charley a young boy Ringo encounters Uncredited Kenneth Haigh as Simon Marshall Julian Holloway as Adrian Simon s assistant John Bluthal as a car thief Michael Trubshawe as the casino manager Margaret Nolan as the buxom girl at the casino Pattie Boyd as Jean a blonde schoolgirl on the train Prudence Bury as Rita a brunette schoolgirl on the train Jeremy Lloyd as a nightclub dancer Charlotte Rampling as a nightclub dancer Phil Collins as a schoolboy watching the Beatles TV performance Marianne Stone as Society Reporter at theatre Derek Nimmo as Leslie Jackson the magician Terry Hooper as casino croupierSongs EditThe film s credits incorrectly state that all songs are composed by John Lennon and Paul McCartney In the film a portion of Don t Bother Me can be heard which is a George Harrison composition The instrumentals are recorded by the George Martin Orchestra A Hard Day s Night opening credits I Should Have Known Better I Wanna Be Your Man sample Don t Bother Me Harrison sample All My Loving sample If I Fell Can t Buy Me Love And I Love Her I m Happy Just to Dance with You Ringo s Theme This Boy instrumental A Hard Day s Night sample instrumental Can t Buy Me Love reprise Tell Me Why If I Fell reprise I Should Have Known Better reprise She Loves You A Hard Day s Night reprise closing credits In addition to the soundtrack album an EP in mono of songs from the film titled Extracts From The Film A Hard Day s Night was released by Parlophone on 6 November 1964 having the following tracks 7 Side A I Should Have Known Better If I Fell Side B Tell Me Why And I Love Her Song notes Edit I ll Cry Instead was among several songs considered for the film but ultimately not included either as an on camera performance or for usage as an audio only track It was to be used during the escape fire escape sequence of the film but ultimately director Richard Lester vetoed it because of its downbeat lyrics and it was replaced for that scene by Can t Buy Me Love 8 Its status as an early contender for inclusion led to the song being included on the US soundtrack album 9 In the 1982 US theatrical reissue of the film by Universal Pictures under licence from Walter Shenson the song I ll Cry Instead was used as the audio track for a prologue sequence to the film which consisted of stills from the film and publicity photographs as a tribute to Lennon consisting of a Swingin early to mid 1960s style collage of photos of the Beatles in 1964 around the time they were shooting the film The prologue was assembled without the involvement or knowledge of the film s director Richard Lester who subsequently expressed his disapproval of the addition 10 pp 119 120 The prologue was not included on the 2000 restoration of the film 11 12 The song You Can t Do That was filmed as part of the film s TV concert sequence but was not included in the final cut of the film At a point before a decision had been made to excise the song from the film footage of that performance had been sent by the filmmakers and Brian Epstein to be aired on The Ed Sullivan Show as a tease to promote the forthcoming release of the film The clip aired on the Sullivan show on Sunday 24 May 1964 in conjunction with an interview with The Beatles specially filmed by Sullivan in London 13 An extract of the footage of the song performance was included in the 1994 documentary The Making of A Hard Day s Night 14 The song I Call Your Name was cut from the film for unknown reasons 10 p 55 Screenplay EditThe screenplay was written by Alun Owen who was chosen because the Beatles were familiar with his play No Trams to Lime Street and he had shown an aptitude for Liverpudlian dialogue McCartney commented Alun hung around with us and was careful to try and put words in our mouths that he might ve heard us speak so I thought he did a very good script 15 Owen spent several days with the group who told him their lives were like a train and a room and a car and a room and a room and a room the character of Paul s grandfather refers to this in the dialogue 16 Owen wrote the script from the viewpoint that the Beatles had become prisoners of their own fame their schedule of performances and studio work having become punishing The script comments cheekily on the Beatles fame For instance at one point a fan played by Anna Quayle apparently recognises John Lennon though she does not actually mention Lennon s name saying only you are He demurs saying his face is not quite right for him initiating a surreal dialogue ending with the fan after she puts on her glasses agreeing that Lennon doesn t look like him at all and Lennon saying to himself that she looks more like him than I do 16 Other dialogue is derived from actual interviews with the Beatles When Ringo is asked if he s a mod or a rocker he replies Uh no I m a mocker 17 a line derived from a joke he made on the TV show Ready Steady Go 18 19 The frequent reference to McCartney s grandfather Wilfrid Brambell as a clean old man sets up a contrast with the stock description of Brambell s character Albert Steptoe in Steptoe and Son as a dirty old man 20 Audiences also responded to the Beatles brash social impudence Director Richard Lester said The general aim of the film was to present what was apparently becoming a social phenomenon in this country Anarchy is too strong a word but the quality of confidence that the boys exuded Confidence that they could dress as they liked speak as they liked talk to the Queen as they liked talk to the people on the train who fought the war for them as they liked Everything was still based on privilege privilege by schooling privilege by birth privilege by accent privilege by speech The Beatles were the first people to attack this they said if you want something do it You can do it Forget all this talk about talent or ability or money or speech Just do it 21 Despite the fact that the original working titles of the film were first The Beatles and then Beatlemania the group s name is never spoken in the film 22 Production EditThe film was shot for United Artists UA using a cinema verite style in black and white The film was meant to be released in July 1964 and since it was already March when Lester got to filming the entire film had to be produced over a period of sixteen weeks It had a low budget for its time of 200 000 500 000 equivalent to 4 311 807 in 2021 and filming was finished in under seven weeks leaving the rest of the time for post production 23 At first the film itself was something of a secondary consideration to UA whose primary interest was in being able to release the soundtrack album in the United States before Capitol Records the American EMI affiliate who had first shot at releasing Beatles music in the States got around to issuing their material in the words of Bud Ornstein the European head of production for United Artists Our record division wants to get the soundtrack album to distribute in the States and what we lose on the film we ll get back on this disc 8 As film historian Stephen Glynn put it A Hard Day s Night was intended as a low budget exploitation film to milk the latest brief musical craze for all it was worth 24 Unlike most productions it was filmed in near sequential order as stated by Lennon in 1964 25 Filming began on 2 March 1964 at Marylebone station in London sometimes misidentified as Paddington The Beatles had joined the actors union Equity only that morning 7 The first week of filming was on a train travelling between London and Minehead 26 On 10 March scenes with Ringo were shot at the Turk s Head pub in Twickenham and over the following week various interior scenes were filmed at Twickenham Studios From 23 to 30 March filming moved to the Scala Theatre 27 and on 31 March concert footage was shot there although the group mimed to backing tracks 7 On the 17 March and the 17 April scenes were shot at the Les Ambassadeurs Club in Mayfair 28 The Can t Buy Me Love segment which featured creative camera work and the band running and jumping around in a field was shot on 23 April 1964 at Thornbury Playing Fields Isleworth West London 7 The final scene was filmed the following day in West Ealing London where Ringo obligingly drops his coat over puddles for a lady to step on only to discover that the final puddle is actually a large hole in the road 29 Before A Hard Day s Night was released in America a United Artists executive asked Lester to dub the voices of the group with mid Atlantic accents McCartney angrily replied Look if we can understand a fucking cowboy talking Texan they can understand us talking Liverpool 30 Lester subsequently directed the Beatles 1965 film Help The film s costumes except for those of the Beatles themselves were designed by Julie Harris 31 The clothes of the Beatles were credited to Dougie Millings amp Son Casting Edit Irish actor Wilfrid Brambell who played Paul McCartney s fictional grandfather John McCartney was already well known to British television audiences as co star of the British sitcom Steptoe and Son The recurring joke that he was very clean reflects a contrast to his sitcom role where he was always referred to as a dirty old man For American audiences the comment was more of a spoof on the Beatles continually being referenced as very clean Norman Rossington played the Beatles manager Norm John Junkin played the group s road manager Shake and Victor Spinetti played the television director Brian Epstein the group s real manager had an uncredited bit part 32 The supporting cast included Richard Vernon as the city gent on the train and Lionel Blair as a featured dancer There were also various cameos John Bluthal played a car thief and an uncredited Derek Nimmo appeared as magician Leslie Jackson David Janson billed as David Jaxon here played the small boy met by Ringo on his walkabout Rooney Massara who went on to compete in the 1972 Munich Olympics was the sculler in the river in the walkabout scene by the river at Kew uncredited Kenneth Haigh appeared as an advertising executive who mistakes George for a new phenomenon David Langton also made a cameo appearance as an actor in the dressing room scene Mal Evans one of the Beatles road managers also appears briefly in the film moving an upright bass through a tight hallway as Lennon talks with the woman who mistakes him for someone else George Harrison met his wife to be Patricia Boyd on the set when she made a brief uncredited appearance as one of the schoolgirls on the train His initial overtures to her were spurned because she had a boyfriend at the time but he persisted and they were married within 18 months 33 The girl with Boyd in the dining car scene is Prudence Bury 34 Phil Collins later a member of the band Genesis was an uncredited schoolboy extra in the concert audience and would subsequently go on to be a very successful musician in his own right 35 36 Playing the buxom woman with Paul s grandfather in the casino scene was popular British 1960s pinup model Margaret Nolan aka Vicky Kennedy who also appeared as Dink the golden girl during the opening credits of the James Bond film Goldfinger later that same year 37 Cut for BBFC Edit The film had to be edited slightly to obtain the U certificate for British cinemas The phrase get knotted allegedly in reel 7 of the original submission was judged inappropriate for a U film and had to be removed 38 When the film was submitted for release on VHS the British Board of Film Censors BBFC could not locate the phrase and presumed that the clip was pre cut but stated that the phrase was no longer of any concern 39 The BBFC noted a number of innuendos and one subtle reference to cocaine but concluded that it was still within the natural category for a U certificate 39 Reception EditThe film premiered at the Pavilion Theatre in London on 6 July 1964 the eve of Ringo Starr s 24th birthday and the soundtrack was released four days later 40 A Hard Day s Night set records at the London Pavilion by grossing over 20 000 in the first week ultimately becoming so popular that more than 1 600 prints were in circulation simultaneously 41 Critical response Edit Reviews of the film were mostly positive one oft quoted assessment was provided by Andrew Sarris of The Village Voice labeling A Hard Day s Night the Citizen Kane of jukebox musicals 42 When The Village Voice published the results of its first annual film poll A Hard Day s Night placed second behind Stanley Kubrick s Dr Strangelove 43 On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 98 based on 113 reviews with an average rating of 8 5 10 The website s critics consensus reads A Hard Day s Night despite its age is still a delight to watch and has proven itself to be a rock and roll movie classic 44 It is number four on Rotten Tomatoes list of the Top Ten Musicals and Performing Arts films 45 On Metacritic it has a weighted average score of 96 out of 100 based on 24 critics indicating universal acclaim 46 Time magazine called the film One of the smoothest freshest funniest films ever made for purposes of exploitation 47 Film critic Roger Ebert described the film as one of the great life affirming landmarks of the movies and added it to his list of The Great Movies 48 In 2004 Total Film magazine named A Hard Day s Night the 42nd greatest British film of all time In 2005 Time com named it one of the 100 best films of the last 80 years 3 Leslie Halliwell gave the film his highest rating four stars the only British film of 1964 to achieve that accolade 4 The New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther noted the film was a subtle satire on Beatlemania and the Beatles themselves The Beatles are portrayed as likeable young lads who are constantly amazed at the attention they receive and who want nothing more than a little peace and quiet however they have to deal with screaming crowds journalists who ask nonsensical questions and authority figures who constantly look down upon them 49 In fact their biggest problem is McCartney s elderly but clean grandfather played by Wilfrid Brambell 50 The New Yorker critic Brendan Gill wrote Though I don t pretend to understand what makes these four rather odd looking boys so fascinating to so many scores of millions of people I admit that I feel a certain mindless joy stealing over me as they caper about uttering sounds 51 A Hard Day s Night was nominated for two Academy Awards for Best Screenplay Alun Owen and Best Score Adaptation George Martin 52 By 1971 the film was estimated to have earned 11 million worldwide equivalent to 79 485 620 in 2022 2 Influence EditBritish critic Leslie Halliwell states the film s influence as it led directly to all the kaleidoscopic swinging London spy thrillers and comedies of the later sixties 4 In particular the visuals and storyline are credited with inspiring The Monkees television series 53 The Can t Buy Me Love segment borrowed stylistically from Richard Lester s earlier The Running Jumping amp Standing Still Film and it is this segment in particular using the contemporary technique of cutting the images to the beat of the music which has been cited as a precursor of modern music videos 54 55 56 57 58 Roger Ebert goes even further crediting Lester for a more pervasive influence even constructing a new grammar he influenced many other films Today when we watch TV and see quick cutting hand held cameras interviews conducted on the run with moving targets quickly intercut snatches of dialogue music under documentary action and all the other trademarks of the modern style we are looking at the children of A Hard Day s Night 48 Film theorist James Monroe writes The lively 1960s films of Richard Lester especially his Musicals A Hard Day s Night 1964 Help 1965 and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum 1966 popularized jump cuts rapid and ungrammatical cutting Over time his brash editorial style became a norm now celebrated every night around the world in hundreds of music videos on MTV and in countless commercials 59 A Hard Day s Night also inspired a 1965 film featuring Gerry and the Pacemakers entitled Ferry Cross the Mersey 60 61 In an interview for the DVD re release of A Hard Day s Night Lester said he had been labelled the father of MTV and had jokingly responded by asking for a paternity test Title EditThe film s title originated from something said by Ringo Starr who described it this way in an interview with disc jockey Dave Hull in 1964 We went to do a job and we d worked all day and we happened to work all night I came up still thinking it was day I suppose and I said It s been a hard day and I looked around and saw it was dark so I said night So we came to A Hard Day s Night 62 According to Lennon in a 1980 interview with Playboy magazine I was going home in the car and Dick Lester suggested the title Hard Day s Night from something Ringo had said I had used it in In His Own Write but it was an off the cuff remark by Ringo You know one of those malapropisms A Ringo ism where he said it not to be funny just said it So Dick Lester said We are going to use that title 63 In a 1994 interview for The Beatles Anthology however McCartney disagreed with Lennon s recollections recalling that it was the Beatles and not Lester who had come up with the idea of using Starr s verbal misstep The title was Ringo s We d almost finished making the film and this fun bit arrived that we d not known about before which was naming the film So we were sitting around at Twickenham studios having a little brain storming session and we said Well there was something Ringo said the other day Ringo would do these little malapropisms he would say things slightly wrong like people do but his were always wonderful very lyrical they were sort of magic even though he was just getting it wrong And he said after a concert Phew it s been a hard day s night 64 Yet another version of events appeared in 1996 producer Walter Shenson said that Lennon had described to him some of Starr s funnier gaffes including a hard day s night whereupon Shenson immediately decided that that was going to be the title of the film 65 Regardless of which of these origin stories is the true one the original tentative title for the film had been Beatlemania and when the new title was agreed upon it became necessary to write and quickly record a new title song which was completed on 16 April just eight days before filming was finished 8 John Lennon wrote the song in one night credited to Lennon McCartney writing the lyrics on the back of a birthday card sent to his young son Julian 66 and it went on to win a Grammy for Best Performance by a Vocal Group 10 p xii The film was titled Yeah Yeah Yeah in Germany and Sweden Tutti Per Uno All for One in Italy Quatre garcons dans le vent Four Boys in the Wind c in France 67 Yeah Yeah Tassa tulemme Yeah Yeah Here We Come in Finland and Os Reis do Ie Ie Ie The Kings of Yeah yeah yeah in Brazil Novelisation EditIn 1964 Pan Books published a novelisation of the film by author John Burke described as based on the original screenplay by Alun Owen The book was priced at two shillings and sixpence and contained an 8 page section of photographs from the film It is the first book in the English language to have the word grotty in print 68 69 Release history Edit1964 A Hard Day s Night was released by United Artists 1967 The film premiered on American television on the NBC network on 24 October the usual Peacock introduction which preceded all NBC color broadcasts of the era was replaced by a humorous black and white animated cartoon penguin with cartoon representations of the Beatles jumping out of its stomach as A Hard Day s Night was not shot in color 70 71 1970 The film premiered on UK television on BBC1 on 28 December John Lennon watched the broadcast at home and was inspired to write the song I m the Greatest which was later recorded by Ringo Starr on his 1973 album Ringo 72 1979 Rights to the film were transferred to its producer Walter Shenson 1982 Universal Pictures under license from Shenson reissued the film in theaters This release included a prologue consisting of production stills set to the song I ll Cry Instead which would remain on subsequent home video editions until 2000 1984 MPI Home Video under license from Shenson first released A Hard Day s Night on home video in the VHS Betamax CED Videodisc and Laserdisc formats which all included the prologue 73 The film was also released by Janus Films as part of The Criterion Collection in both a single disc CLV and a DualDisc CAV Laserdisc format The additional features section on the CAV edition include the original theatrical trailer an interview with Richard Lester and his The Running Jumping amp Standing Still Film 74 There were notable pitch problems with the songs in this version precisely one semitone lower than the original recordings This was fixed in subsequent releases 1993 Voyager Company produced a CD ROM for Mac and PC platforms with video in QuickTime 1 format containing most of Criterion s elements including the original script 75 1997 MPI Home Video released the first DVD edition It contains the 1982 prologue and trailer newsreels an interview with Richard Lester and The Running Jumping amp Standing Still Film 2000 Miramax Films reissued the film in theatres in the United States and then as a collector s edition DVD two years later as well as its final issue in the VHS format The film had been transferred from the restored 35 mm negative and presented in 1 66 1 Widescreen The prologue that Universal added in 1982 is absent on the Miramax releases 76 In addition to the original film the DVD edition contained a bonus disc with over 7 hours of additional material including interviews with cast and crew members and Beatles associates The DVD was produced by Beatles historian and producer Martin Lewis a longtime friend of Walter Shenson 76 2009 The film was released on Blu ray Disc in Canada however the disc is region free and will play in any Blu ray machine It contains most of the 2000 DVD bonus features 2010 Miramax was sold by Disney to Filmyard Holdings LLC and the home video sub licence transferred to Lionsgate although no U S Blu ray release date had been announced 2011 A new Blu ray edition was released in Mexico this version has Spanish subtitles 2014 Janus Films acquired the rights to the film from Miramax on behalf of the Shenson Estate managed by Bruce A Karsh and announced a domestic video re release via The Criterion Collection on 24 June 2014 77 This dual format edition which incorporates the first ever U S issue on Blu ray contains various supplements from all previous video re issues This marks the return of this film to Criterion for the first time in two decades The film was also released in theaters across the U S and in the UK by Metrodome in the latter region 78 on 4 July 2014 On 6 July 2014 the film was shown in re mastered HD on BBC Four in the UK to mark its 50th anniversary Criterion s DVD Blu ray release of A Hard Day s Night was duplicated by Umbrella Entertainment in Australia released 2 July 79 and Second Sight Films in the UK released 21 July 80 2015 On 15 December Criterion re released their Blu ray as part of The Rock Box a collection of rock music related films that also includes Monterey Pop 1968 Gimme Shelter 1970 and Quadrophenia 1979 81 2022 On 11 August 2021 Criterion announced their first 4K Ultra HD releases a six film slate will include A Hard Day s Night Criterion indicate each title will be available in a 4K UHD Blu ray combo pack including a 4K UHD disc of the feature film as well as the film and special features on the companion Blu ray 82 A Hard s Day Night was released on 18 January 2022 83 40th anniversary cast and crew reunion screening Edit On 6 July 2004 the 40th anniversary of the film s world premiere a private cast and crew reunion screening was hosted in London by DVD producer Martin Lewis The screening was attended by McCartney actors Victor Spinetti John Junkin David Janson and many crew members In media interviews at the event McCartney disclosed that while he had seen the film many times on video he had not seen the film on the big screen since its 1964 premiere 84 See also Edit1964 in filmNotes Edit Although the film features George Harrison s song Don t Bother Me he did not receive an onscreen credit for writing it This scene was filmed at Crowcombe Heathfield on the West Somerset Railway 6 The expression dans le vent means being in fashion or hip References Edit A Hard Day s Night 1964 Archived from the original on 29 December 2018 Retrieved 11 January 2019 a b c Alexander Walker Hollywood England Stein and Day 1974 p 241 a b Corliss Richard 12 February 2005 All Time 100 Movies Time Archived from the original on 15 July 2010 Retrieved 7 July 2010 a b c Halliwell Leslie 1997 Halliwell s Film amp Video Guide Harper Collins ISBN 0 00 638779 9 British Film Institute Top 100 British Films Archived 12 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine 1999 Retrieved 27 October 2017 Crowcombe Heathfield Archived from the original on 13 May 2008 Retrieved 3 April 2008 a b c d Miles Barry 2001 The Beatles Diary London Omnibus Press ISBN 0 7119 8308 9 a b c Rybaczewski Dave A Hard Day s Night Soundtrack History Beatles Music History DKR Products Archived from the original on 22 December 2015 Retrieved 9 September 2012 A Hard Day s Night The Beatles Apple Corps Archived from the original on 4 February 2018 Retrieved 9 September 2012 a b c Morton Ray 2011 A Hard Day s Night Milwaukee WI Limelight Editions ISBN 978 0 87910 388 0 Archived from the original on 23 December 2016 Retrieved 15 March 2016 A Hard Day s Night aka Beatles No 1 dvdbeaver com Archived from the original on 24 April 2012 Retrieved 9 September 2012 Harry Bill 1994 The Ultimate Beatles Encyclopedia p 322 Winn John C 2008 Way Beyond Compare The Beatles Recorded Legacy Volume One 1957 1965 New York Three Rivers Press p 166 ISBN 9780307452382 Archived from the original on 5 April 2014 Retrieved 15 March 2016 Russell Deborah 21 January 1995 PBS Special Examines Beatles Film Billboard Archived from the original on 21 May 2021 Retrieved 9 September 2012 A Hard Day s Night Film Summary and comments from The Beatles Archived from the original on 8 March 2008 Retrieved 27 February 2008 a b A Hard Day s Night Script aella Archived from the original on 12 February 2008 Retrieved 27 February 2008 Wiegand Chris 12 December 2005 Film and Drama A Hard Day s Night BBC Four Cinema Archived from the original on 7 March 2008 Retrieved 27 February 2008 Barrow Tony 2006 John Paul George Ringo amp Me The Real Beatles Story Da Capo Press p 61 Winn John C 2008 Way Beyond Compare The Beatles Recorded Legacy 1957 1965 Three Rivers Press p 165 In the original interview Ringo admits he borrowed the line from John Television Heaven Steptoe and Son Archived from the original on 22 April 2008 Retrieved 4 April 2008 The Beatles are pent up prisoners of their own notoriety in A Hard Day s Night Pop Matters Archived from the original on 15 July 2015 Retrieved 12 July 2015 Frebowitz Jerry A Hard Day s Night Ten Things To Know About The Movie Talkin the Oldies MovieFanFare Archived from the original on 30 May 2012 Retrieved 9 September 2012 Erickson Hal A Hard Day s Night Synopsis AllMovie Archived from the original on 17 January 2018 Retrieved 16 January 2018 Glynn Stephen 2005 A Hard Day s Night The British Film Guide 10 London I B Tauris p 9 ISBN 1 85043 587 1 Archived from the original on 21 May 2021 Retrieved 15 March 2016 The Beatles The Beatles Anthology San Francisco Chronicle Books LCC 2000 ISBN 0 8118 2684 8 p 267 The Beatles in West Somerset in 1964 Archived from the original on 14 April 2008 Retrieved 3 April 2008 Scala Theatre 58 Charlotte Street Archived from the original on 6 July 2008 Retrieved 3 April 2008 Piet Schreuders Mark Lewisohn Adam Smith 25 March 2008 Beatles London The Ultimate Guide to Over 400 Beatles Sites in and Around London Pavilion Books pp 192 ISBN 978 1 906032 26 5 Archived from the original on 19 November 2020 Retrieved 11 November 2020 Mark Lewisohn The Complete Beatles Chronicle London Pyramid Books Hamlyn 1992 ISBN 0 600 61001 2 p 158 Harry Bill Beatles Browser Four p3 Mersey Beat Archived from the original on 19 February 2019 Retrieved 4 July 2009 Remembering Julie Harris costume designer for Bond and Hitchcock British Film Institute notice Harris designs for the schoolgirls at the end of the article Archived from the original on 6 May 2020 Retrieved 23 June 2020 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint others link Elyea Jim 6 May 2006 A Hard Day s Night The Beatles PDF Voice of the Theatre Alex Film Society 12 1 Archived PDF from the original on 5 April 2016 Retrieved 16 January 2018 Crowther Bosley 2008 A Hard Day s Night 1964 Movies amp TV Dept The New York Times Archived from the original on 7 March 2008 Retrieved 27 February 2008 Prudence Bury in French Ouest france fr Archived from the original on 6 March 2010 Retrieved 17 January 2012 Walsh John 20 June 2014 Phil Collins The King Lear of pop music The Independent London Archived from the original on 30 June 2014 Retrieved 30 June 2014 Lumenick Lou 11 June 2014 10 things you didn t know about A Hard Day s Night The New York Post Archived from the original on 7 July 2014 Retrieved 30 June 2014 Warner Sam 12 October 2020 Margaret Nolan A Hard Day s Night actress has died aged 76 NME Archived from the original on 17 October 2020 Retrieved 17 October 2020 A Hard Day s Night BBFC Archived from the original on 8 July 2017 Retrieved 4 January 2020 a b A Hard Day s Night BBFC notes for VHS release PDF BBFC 13 December 1984 Archived PDF from the original on 19 April 2015 Retrieved 4 January 2020 A Hard Days Night Archived from the original on 20 October 2006 Retrieved 4 April 2008 Slide Anthony 1985 Fifty Classic British Films 1932 1982 A Pictorial Record London Constable p 118 ISBN 0 486 24860 7 Archived from the original on 23 December 2016 Retrieved 15 March 2016 Sarris Andrew 2004 A Hard Day s Night In Elizabeth Thomson David Gutman eds The Lennon Companion New York Da Capo Press ISBN 0 306 81270 3 The fact remains the A Hard Day s Night has turned out to be the Citizen Kane of jukebox musicals the brilliant crystallization of such diverse cultural particles as rock n roll The Second Annual Village Voice Film Poll Bonus The First Poll Too Village Voice 10 February 1966 Archived from the original on 21 May 2021 Retrieved 17 March 2016 A Hard Day s Night at Rotten Tomatoes Tim Ryan Jeff Giles Ryan Fujitani David Chung Luke Goodsell Alex Vo 6 July 2010 RT s Top Ten Certified Fresh Musicals Rotten Tomatoes Archived from the original on 9 July 2010 Retrieved 7 July 2010 A Hard Day s Night re release Reviews Metacritic Archived from the original on 10 May 2019 Retrieved 26 January 2020 Yeah Yeah Yeah Time 24 August 1964 Archived from the original on 2 March 2008 Retrieved 27 February 2008 a b Ebert Roger 27 October 1996 Review of A Hard Day s Night RogerEbert com Archived from the original on 6 March 2008 Retrieved 27 February 2008 Crowther Bosley 12 August 1964 Screen The Four Beatles in A Hard Day s Night The New York Times Archived from the original on 10 March 2018 Retrieved 16 January 2018 A Hard Day s Night Archived from the original on 2 April 2008 Retrieved 3 April 2008 This is a running gag in which various characters describe him as clean Gill Brendan 22 August 1964 A Hard Day s Night review The New Yorker Academy Awards Search Academy of Motion Picture Arts amp Sciences Archived from the original on 26 June 2020 Retrieved 23 June 2020 Massingill Randy 2005 Total Control The Monkees Michael Nesmith Story Las Vegas Nevada FLEXQuarters ISBN 0 9658218 4 6 Beatles film A Hard Day s Night still makes you feel all right Seattle Post Intelligencer Retrieved 3 April 2008 dead link History of Music Video Mistakes Archived from the original on 24 February 2008 Retrieved 3 April 2008 Blow Up Your Video Archived from the original on 5 April 2014 Retrieved 3 April 2008 100 Most Daring Movies Ever Made Archived from the original on 11 April 2008 Retrieved 3 April 2008 10 Ways A Hard Day s Night the Movie Changed the World Vulture com 7 July 2014 Archived from the original on 8 July 2014 Retrieved 7 July 2014 Monroe James 2009 How To Read a Film Movies Media and Beyond Fourth ed Oxford University Press p 543 Farber Jim 4 January 2021 Gerry Marsden a Hitmaker With the Pacemakers Dies at 78 The New York Times Archived from the original on 4 January 2021 Retrieved 5 January 2021 Singing Pictures Ferry Cross The Mersey is NOT a film by The Beatles Loud And Quiet Archived from the original on 8 January 2021 Retrieved 5 January 2021 Badman Keith 2000 The Beatles Off The Record Music Sales Corporation p 93 ISBN 978 0 7119 7985 7 cited in Dowlding William J 1989 Beatlesongs Fireside ISBN 978 0 671 68229 3 Miles Barry 1997 Paul McCartney Many Years From Now New York Henry Holt amp Company p 164 ISBN 0 8050 5249 6 Campbell Mary 1 July 1996 Restored Hard Day s Night Help part of AMC festival South Coast Today Archived from the original on 4 December 2008 Retrieved 4 April 2008 A Hard Day s Night The Beatles Bible 14 March 2008 Archived from the original on 28 September 2012 Retrieved 9 September 2012 200 Things You Didn t Know About The Beatles Q 1 279 58 63 2009 Museum of Applied Arts amp Sciences A Hard Day s Night book Museum of Applied Arts amp Sciences Australia Archived from the original on 21 May 2021 Retrieved 23 June 2020 Smith Carole 8 August 2019 Remember the time July 1964 Purple Conversations Archived from the original on 26 June 2020 Retrieved 23 June 2020 NBC animation created for Beatles Movie YouTube Billy Ingram 20 September 2008 2007skaterpunk 29 January 2007 NBC Promo Montage archived from the original on 28 July 2018 retrieved 5 June 2018 via YouTube intro to A Hard Day s Night begins at 3 13 Badman Keith 2009 The Beatles Diary Volume 2 After The Break Up 1970 2001 Ominbus Press p 19 ISBN 9780857120014 Harry Bill 1985 Beatlemania the history of The Beatles on film An illustrated filmography New York Avon Harper Collins ISBN 978 0 380 89557 1 Beatles Laserdiscs Archived from the original on 22 April 2008 Retrieved 4 April 2008 Hard Days Night Audio CD ISBN 1559402652 a b A Hard Day s Night DVD Archived from the original on 21 December 2007 Retrieved 4 April 2008 A Hard Day s Night 1964 The Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection Archived from the original on 3 September 2014 Retrieved 3 September 2014 FILM REVIEW A Hard Day s Night Metrodome Second Sight Films In cinemas 4th July Stafford FM Archived from the original on 13 September 2014 Retrieved 3 September 2014 Umbrella Entertainment HARD DAY S NIGHT A BLU RAY Umbrella Entertainment Archived from the original on 3 July 2014 Retrieved 3 September 2014 A Hard Day s Night UK Blu ray Release Detailed Blu ray com Archived from the original on 3 September 2014 Retrieved 3 September 2014 The Rock Box Blu ray Blu ray com Archived from the original on 23 August 2017 Retrieved 19 July 2017 Machkovech Sam 11 August 2021 Criterion announces support for 4K UHD Blu ray beginning with Citizen Kane Ars Technica Retrieved 12 August 2021 Hunt Bill 15 October 2021 Criterion s January slate has A Hard Day s Night amp The Piano in 4K The Digital Bits Retrieved 10 December 2021 Exclusive The Making of the A Hard Day s Night DVD a Behind The Scenes Report Beatle News Archived from the original on 22 June 2007 Retrieved 27 February 2008 External links Edit Wikiquote has quotations related to A Hard Day s Night film A Hard Day s Night at IMDb A Hard Day s Night at the TCM Movie Database A Hard Day s Night at AllMovie A Hard Day s Night at the American Film Institute Catalog A Hard Day s Night at Box Office Mojo A Hard Day s Night at Metacritic A Hard Day s Night at Rotten Tomatoes Literature on A Hard Day s Night I Wanna Hold Your Hand All Perfectly Normal an essay by Scott Tobias at the Criterion Collection Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title A Hard Day 27s Night film amp oldid 1162192797, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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