How the Beatles Changed the World (2017 Video) User Reviews

Very interesting, and surprisingly so

[grantss · 8/10 · 18 November 2018]

The history of The Beatles and their influence on everything from music, art, and culture to fashion and politics.

Very interesting, and surprisingly so. I was expecting your average documentary on the Beatles, with hardly anything I didn't know before. For the first 20-30 minutes or so I wasn't dissuaded from this view.

However, from a point the film departs from the usual Beatles coverage and shows how they influenced everything of their age. Their musical innovations are incredibly interesting, as are some of their other influences. Just as interesting is seeing what and who influenced them, and how they absorbed these influences and synthesized these into their music.

All this gives a good view of how revolutionary and evolutionary the times were and how The Beatles had a large hand in that revolution and evolution.

On the downside, it would have been good to hear from famous people who were actually influenced by The Beatles. None of the interviewees are anybody important, so we either have minor people from The Beatles social circle or outsiders, e.g. journalists, music critics, giving their views. It all feels so B-grade, which is disappointing as it reduces the credibility of the narrator's point.

Interesting to watch but occasionally I wonder if they were over-thinking things.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 26 February 2018]

This documentary about the Beatles is quite different to previous one's I've seen. Instead of a chronological discussion of the band, it's more about the influence that the band had on culture...and vice-versa. So, it follows the band from the rather innocent early days to an awakening to world events to an eventual cultural civil war. Sadly, the Beatles themselves say very little other than in a few video clips from the era...nor do the two surviving Beatles have anything to say in the film. Instead, it's their friends and associates who talk and talk about them. In many ways, this was an exciting look at the Beatles in context....though occasionally I thought the folks in the film over-thought things and over-analyze them. Overall, quite interesting and at least it is different and not just another Beatles bio-documentary.

Solid account of the Beatles as cultural icons

[idyll-35072 · 7/10 · 8 January 2022]

This documentary deals with the Beatles as a product of, and reaction against, repressive post-war England, and goes on to show how they revolutionised perceptions of pop stars, and later became major figures in the swinging counter-culture before Lennon's new life with Yoko and political activism were the most obvious sign that the band was no longer a unit.

Nothing much you don't know probably, and far from a comprehensive account -- no single film (or book) could be -- but this film is literate and coherent with well placed talking heads offering memories and analysis.

The story is familiar, but it's a great story worth telling again.

They were the soundtrack of the '60s and '70s

[bettycjung · 9 February 2018]

2/8/18. A decent documentary that explores the importance of the Beatles, their contributions to the music world and pop culture. They were making history as they were living their lives, making beautiful music and challenging the culture of the day. While this was interesting to watch, it is really their music that makes what they have achieved worthwhile. Listen to all their records, in sequence, and live the '60s and '70s as they were meant to be lived. They were the soundtrack of those two decades.

Not that bad at all

[alta1-854-12372 · 7/10 · 8 January 2019]

Not being British and not being a fan I have not known a lot about the Beatles. This film gave me a good idea of their immense influence and also of the changes in societies during the sixties of the previous century.

Nothing new, but enjoyable all the same

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 13 January 2022]

I really enjoyed this Beatles documentary. Plenty of toe-tapping songs cover the chronological narrative exploring their early clean-cut days through to their psychedelic climax. Nothing new learned here, but seeing plenty of footage of the guys performing and being interviewed counts for a lot.

Great eye opener

[andreaaradu · 10/10 · 25 December 2021]

People very close to the Beatles are disclosing in a warm and kind manner what was behind the music. It made me understand why they have split. But until the split they showed how they changed the world. Must see it.

Excellent

[albertosemo · 10/10 · 24 February 2018]

Probably the best documentary I have seen from The Beatles

Congratulations!!!

Polite and formulaic

[cheurtra · 3/10 · 8 April 2019]

Making a movie about the Beatles without mentioning the releases of Abbey Road and Let It Be or using the word "heroin" is quite a feat. or If you're familiar with the fab four, you won't learn nothing new in this documentary, but you'll have a lot of commentators telling how amazing they were. You won't ear a single critic word about Yoko neither. In conclusion, a very lukewarm movie perfectly designed to be sold on TV.

What about the drummer?

[Xeress · 3/10 · 25 November 2018]

Being 45 min in and still no mention of the drummer in the background; who can take this seriously?

If you want to hear words like mania , influence and succes, this will be your documentary. Other wise, let it be.

Oh Puh-Leeze

[arfdawg-1 · 3/10 · 13 November 2018]

This is a documentary you'd expect to see on cable TV. It's a bunch of know nothing stuffed shirts who are given the task of fitting their commentary into the treatise of the documentary -- in this case, how the Beatles changed the world. Truth is, the world changed the Beatles. They were just early adopters.

Hands down, the Beatles are the best main stream rock group ever. Their tunes can be enjoyed by any generation. Unfortunately, this doc over thinks and over analyzes everything.

Watch it for the archival clips. The commentary is moronic.

Unwatchable

[bofecalith · 1/10 · 2 April 2018]

Ghastly. The title should tell you how overwrought the content is. You cannot even enjoy the familiar and -- well-worn -- archival clips, because the voice over commentary intrudes with cringe-worthy banalities.Try 'The Beatles Anthology" or 'What's Happening! The Beatles in the U.S.A.' ... anything else, really.

Boring

[maxybonbonsweet · 1/10 · 4 November 2018]

Boring, not a word I would of previously associated with The Beatles, but yep "How the Beatles Changed the World" took me there. I lasted 5 minutes and maybe it would of improved, but the magic of technology I moved onto the next documentary.

Did Yoko Produce This?

[helenahandbasket-93734 · 1/10 · 27 January 2022]

I always thought Yoko received too much blame for the final parting of the band- but to say she was responsible for the massive successes. Is grossly unreasonable and completely unhinged.

This doc just rambles on and on, covers nothing but the already well known facts and uses a lot of supposition and guessing without any evidence to support.

What a waste of time.

Intrigueing But Flawed Documentary.

[herodotus2007 · 5/10 · 26 February 2024]

Just a quick review after watching this documentary, to express enjoyment and dissatisfaction.

Initially, there are loads of moments to enjoy. The insights by friends, associates, and a couple of American writers appears insightful. Until you realise everyone is just telling their own story from rubbing shoulders with The Fab Four, having a book store frequented by them, being a chum in the case of one, or talking about them in general terms. It is the footage that is compelling, and there are better documentaries out there that include these, such as "The Beatles: The Touring years".

So, why the lower score?

There is no mention of Pete Best, even though he can be seen clearly playing the drums at The Cavern. There is no mention of the one Beatle who initially outshone all the rest, until he suffered a head injury, attributed to a physical argument with John Lennon, one documentary focused on the Hamsburg years, and his then partner claim. An injury which he was to later die from - Stuart Sutcliffe. Everyone wanted Sutcliffe on the magazine covers, and he was recognised as the most photographed, until he left to pursue his art career till his death.

They gloss over the films The Beatles made, light comic musical romps, but failed to say how the band hated them, and refused to do another, though pressured.

Finally, for me the biggest problem I have with this documentary, is one of the 'talking heads' mentions the last concert played in America, and we are told this is the last time The Beatles ever played live together. Rubbish! The story then skips to McCartney's marriage to Linda Eastman and the formation of Wings.

What about "Let It Be", one of the best of the band's later albums and where they DO play together live for the last time, on the roof of Abbey Road studios with keyboardist Billy Preston? Where the very song "Let It Be" is later claimed by Lennon to be McCartney launching his solo career, feeding a bitter relationship between the two until Lennon's murder.

Take it for what it is - some friends and associates sharing their recollections and narratives, but missing a lot of important information, and just plain omitting m important stuff.