Entertainment

Martin Scorsese to tell The Beatles’ story 50 years after band’s first visit to the US

Renowned filmmaker Martin Scorsese will tell the story of British iconic band The Beatles’ first visit to the US in 1964 in a new documentary.

Produced by Scorsese and directed by David Tedeschi, Beatles ’64 captures the electrifying moment of The Beatles’ first visit to America that year.

The doccie features never-before-seen footage of the band and the legions of young fans who helped fuel their ascendance, the film gives a rare glimpse into when The Beatles became the most influential and beloved band of all time.

Advertisement

Beatles ’64 will stream exclusively on Disney+ beginning 29 November 2024.

ALSO READ: ‘Chris Brown has an audience of assault deniers’ – Documentary to premiere as star heads to SA

Scorsese the music man

US publication Variety recently reported that Scorsese will direct the filming of a Robbie Robertson tribute concert in L.A.

Advertisement

Robertson is a Canadian musician who died in August last year.

The filming of Life Is A Carnival: A Musical Celebration Of Robbie Robertson may provide a kind of bookend to the first movie Scorsese did with Robertson. In the first movie, he directed the concert film The Last Waltz which commemorated the last concert the singer-songwriter-guitarist did with his group, the Band, in 1976.

Robertson acted as either music supervisor or scorer for Scorsese films in the decades from The Last Waltz through his death in 2023.

Advertisement

The last of which was the score for Killers of the Flower Moon. Robertson’s posthumous nomination for best original score for that film was his first.

Earlier this month, Scorsese received the Premio Della Mole Award at Museo Del Cinema in Italy.

The award is a life achievement award by Italy’s National Cinema Museum in the northern city of Turin.

Advertisement

ALSO READ: How film director pays homage to Afrikaaps language in Brasse Vannie Kaap doccie [WATCH]

Beatles ‘64

The Beatles arrived in New York City to unprecedented excitement and hysteria. From the instant they landed at Kennedy Airport, met by thousands of fans, Beatlemania swept New York and the entire country.

Their thrilling debut performance on The Ed Sullivan Show captivated more than 73 million viewers, the most-watched television event of its time.

Advertisement

Beatles ’64 presents the spectacle, but also tells a more intimate behind-the-scenes story, capturing the camaraderie of John, Paul, George, and Ringo as they experienced unimaginable fame.

The film includes rare footage filmed by pioneering documentarians Albert and David Maysles, beautifully restored in 4K by Park Road Post in New Zealand.

 The live performances from The Beatles’ first American concert at the Washington, DC Coliseum and their Ed Sullivan appearances were demixed by WingNut Films and remixed by Giles Martin.

Spotlighting this singular cultural moment and its continued resonance today, the music and footage are augmented by newly filmed interviews with Paul and Ringo, as well as fans whose lives were transformed by The Beatles.

Beatles ’64 is also produced by Margaret Bodde, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Olivia Harrison, Sean Ono Lennon, Jonathan Clyde, and Mikaela Beardsley, with Jeff Jones and Rick Yorn serving as executive producers.

Coinciding with the film’s Disney+ release, seven American Beatles albums have been analogue cut for 180-gram audiophile vinyl from their original mono master tapes for global release on 22 November by Apple Corps Ltd./Capitol/UMe.

Originally compiled for a United States release between January 1964 and March 1965 by Capitol Records and United Artists, these mono albums have been out of print on vinyl since 1995.

Meet The Beatles!; The Beatles’ Second Album; A Hard Day’s Night (Original Motion Picture Sound Track); Something New; The Beatles’ Story (2LP); Beatles ’65; and The Early Beatles are available now for pre-order in a new vinyl box set titled The Beatles: 1964 U.S. Albums In Mono, with six of the titles also available individually.

NOW READ: Disney+ releases Elton John documentary trailer after it receives critical review [VIDEO]

For more news your way

Download our app and read this and other great stories on the move. Available for Android and iOS.

Published by
Compiled by Bonginkosi Tiwane