The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

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dumbchops
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The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by dumbchops »

This is for educational purposes, I want to know if I have the best copies of each of the 5 main Beatles movies as my family want to watch them in order for a little binge. I have the 1988 VHS + laserdisc plus the 2012 DVD set of Magical Mystery Tour and the best version of Let It Be is in my New Blue Soap thread (picture and some sound from HMC-035 and the rest mixed in stereo). But what about A Hard Day's Night, Help! and Yellow Submarine? I recorded the first two back in 1996 when they were aired on AMC but unfortunately in 6 hour speed. I still often hear good things about those particular versions but my copy is garbage now. I also understand that AHDN has some bits at 24 fps and others at 25 fps. Has there been a compromise or correction to get that worked out?

So in short, what are the best versions of those 3 movies? Is the 1999 version of Yellow Submarine better than later releases? Are the official releases better than what has been shared freely in some places? Does Roger have a
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The Milky Bar Kid
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by The Milky Bar Kid »

The 1999 DVD of Yellow Submarine has an option on the menu that allows for a viewing/listening experience free of dialogue and foley effects. Highly recommended.
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by Golem »

Y'know I just realized this, but if Let it Be does release this fall, and it's covered in DNR, then there's gonna be a lot of debate over what the best version is
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by bobzilla »

Golem wrote: Wed May 12, 2021 5:11 am and it's covered in DNR
It's been covered in Do Not Resuscitate for YEARS. That's why it hasn't been released officially yet.
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by DVWerks »

The 90s Paul Rutan restoration of A Hard Day's Night (as aired on American Movie Classics) is a solid option. The audio is not 100% authentic, though it was done with care; the same video was used on an MPI DVD but stereo music was overdubbed.

The Criterion Collection Blu-ray/DVD of A Hard Day's Night is high quality, but some question whether the film should be viewed at a 16x9 aspect ratio rather than 4x3 (the Rutan restoration was 4x3). Criterion has a stereo remix and another not-authentic mono track. I personally would choose this version for the image (I'm in the 16x9 aspect ratio camp).

The 24/25 fps issue with A Hard Day's Night is that the sequences filmed in the television studio were done at 25 fps to match the 25 fps PAL video monitors. The film as released is 24 fps throughout, so sequences with video cameras/monitors present slower than normal. The only versions that attempt to change this are fan edits.

To the best of my knowledge, the 90s Paul Rutan restoration of Help! is the only version with a mono soundtrack. I'm suspecting the music was "enhanced" (as it was on A Hard Day's Night), and therefore not completely accurate. The 90s restoration and subsequent DVD and Blu-ray releases have always looked a little darker and muddier to me than the first release MPI did in the 80s (available on Criterion laserdisc), but I'm not sure which look is more accurate to the original release.

The Help! Blu-ray isn't perfect (and only has stereo audio), but the picture quality is very good. The aspect ratio question comes into play here as well. Again, I'm of the belief the 16x9 version represents how the film would have been shown in theaters and is therefore accurate.

Yellow Submarine is a fairly easy choice - the Blu-ray is very good image-wise and has both a fun 5.1 remix and the original mono audio. There are only negatives if you don't agree with the 16x9 aspect ratio or you want to see the US theatrical version of the film (which hasn't been available since the MGM/UA VHS and laserdisc in 1988).
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by Eric_Manchester »

DVWerks is accurate in saying that the intended viewing aspect ratio for The Beatles theatrical films (A Hard Day's Night, Help!, and Yellow Submarine) is wide screen, and not 4x3. It can be hard to explain for those not in the business of movies, but there's no question that they were composed to be seen at a 1.75:1 aspect ratio (AHDN & Help!) and probably that or 1.66:1 for Yellow Submarine. The theatrical version of Let It Be was 1.85:1. The ratio for HD television is 16x9, or approximately 1.78:1, which is pretty close to all of those.

I was preparing to dive into all this on the BootlegZone Forum a couple of years ago when a personal issue arose that kept me from it. That issue is mostly resolved now, so I think I have the time to get into it now. If people are interested, once I have a few more posts under my belt here I'll start a thread to try to demonstrate it.

One of the problems is that so many people have seen those movies presented in the wrong way for so long that they understandably believe that's the way they were meant to be seen. Improper video transfers and 16mm presentations showing the full 4x3 frame became a lot more common than 35mm theatrical presentations of the movies shown properly. Correcting that deeply embedded but mistaken belief may take some time. I'm willing to take the trip if others are.
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by dumbchops »

Count me in on the ride. And thank you both (DVWerks and Eric_Manchester) for all of the useful information. I would like to see the best possible versions of these 3 movies in particular.
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by Eric_Manchester »

Cool! I'll put some supporting images and documents together and post in a new topic in a couple of weeks. And just to set expectations, the regular demands of life are such that I generally check the forum every two to three days, so I hope people won't be frustrated if I don't reply to questions immediately.
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by RunoutGroove »

EricManchester sounds an interesting authority on the subject. I'm not, however I do own Yellow Sub on VHS, DVD and Blu Ray. I was so looking forward to being blown away by the Blu Ray, but ultimately found the viewing of it difficult to endure to the end. It seemed very juddery (made up word), as if the technology was too much for whatever fps the original was produced in. The VHS is a far more natural watch, and as noted above the DVD has the audio isolation option.
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Re: The Beatles Movies (Not a request for links)

Post by The Milky Bar Kid »

RunoutGroove wrote: Tue May 18, 2021 5:56 pm I do own Yellow Sub on VHS, DVD and Blu Ray. I was so looking forward to being blown away by the Blu Ray, but ultimately found the viewing of it difficult to endure to the end. It seemed very juddery (made up word), as if the technology was too much for whatever fps the original was produced in. The VHS is a far more natural watch, and as noted above the DVD has the audio isolation option.
Yeah, having the 1999 DVD is like having the music from the soundtrack on CD. There's lots of silent passages, though.
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