2025 marks the 60th anniversary of the release of The Beatles’ film Help! and the Opera House is celebrating. Riding the vibe of 1964’s A Hard Day’s Night, Help! was released the very next year. The premiere in London’s West End was attended by that season’s royal celebrities: Princess Margaret and the Earl of Snowdon.
Departing from the autobiographical exaggerations of their successful debut musical, A Hard Day’s Night, the Beatles once again offer up a melding of song and slapstick. After Ringo stumbles upon a valuable gem, the band starts getting harassed by a fringe religious group. To escape their sudden stalkers, the boys hit the road traveling the globe.
No one could accuse the new film of adherence to reality. However, film director Richard Lester had a much larger budget than for the previous film; and Help! was shot in color, not only in London, but in exotic locales such as the Austrian Alps and the Bahamas. According to some accounts, it was during the shoot that George Harrison discovered the sounds of Indian music, a major influence in later compositions and recordings of the Beatles.
John Lennon felt that the band had less artistic input than for A Hard Day’s Night, but he acknowledged that after the first film, he and the others “were smoking marijuana for breakfast,” and “nobody could communicate with us.” They also were exhausted from their latest round of non-stop touring, writing, and recording.
Fortunately, Help! was a satirical take on James Bond films; it also borrowed from the Marx Brothers in 1933’s Duck Soup, and from the abstract humor of Peter Sellers in The Goon Show of the 1950s. The newest Beatles hits from the soundtrack included You’re Going to Lose That Girl, Ticket to Ride, and of course, Help!
Though the film received mixed reviews from established critics, fans of the Beatles filled local theatres, including Fredonia’s Winter Garden, now the Opera House. As for 21st century reviews, Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an 86 percent rating, declaring “the Fab Four display their infectious charm in this madcap adventure.” Who could resist?
Rated G, 92 mins.
According to 24/7 Wall St., the average movie ticket price in 1965 was $1.01! So, tickets to our screening of Help! will be $1 (you keep the penny)! Tickets sold at the door only.
Help! is sponsored by The Wretched Group and the Fredonia High School Class of 1970