Soundtrack Of The Week: HAROLD AND MAUDE

One of the most memorable elements of Hal Ashby’s 1971 classic cult film, HAROLD AND MAUDE, is its profoundly tuneful soundtrack made up of songs written and performed by Cat Stevens. Stevens (latter rebranded Yusuf Islam), who was a popular British artist with a few hits, and platinum albums under his belt, was suggested by Elton John, the original choice of the filmmakers to compose the soundtrack.

Stevens’ songs were a great addition to the movie that concerned a young man (Bud Cort) who was obsessed with death falling in love with an old lady (Ruth Gordon) who is obsessed with living life to its fullest. Much like Simon and Garfunkel’s score for the 1967 classic, THE GRADUATE, Stevens was the principal performer throughout HAROLD AND MAUDE, although there are snatches of works by classical composers such as Johann Strauss II, Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and other bits of incidental music.

But it’s Stevens who dominates and illuminates the movie’s message. Unfortunately the soundtrack wasn’t released in America when the film came out, but A&M put out a version of the material on vinyl in Japan in 1972. It was a flawed collection as it omitted two crucial songs, “Don’t Be Shy” and “If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out,” and featured a few Stevens tunes that aren’t in the movie.

The two songs, “Don’t Be Shy” and “If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out,” were written specifically for the film, but not released until his 1984 compilation, Footsteps in the Dark: Greatest Hits, Vol. 2. That’s a long time to go without two of Stevens’ best songs without being commercially available except on videocassettes of the film.

Much later, in 2007, a limited edition of the soundtrack was released by Vinyl Films Records. It contained all of the Stevens songs that were in the movie, plus five previously unreleased tracks including banjo, instrumental, and alternate versions of “If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out,” and demo, and alternate takes of “Don’t Be Shy.” The icing on the cake is that a 36-page full-color booklet about the making of the film is included. There’s also a picture disc version of the album.

The bad news is that the 2007 release is very pricey as it was a limited edition of only 2,500 copies. The newest edition of the soundtrack was released on Record Store Day (July 17, 2021), and it’s also a limited release, but at 8,000, it’s at least a little bigger of a run.

Dubbed “The Songs From the Original Movie,” the RSD release doesn’t have any of the bonus tracks from the 2007 edition, and at nine tracks, it’s a bit short, but it’s yellow vinyl, and a great listen of the to the songs presented in the order that appeared in the film (the 2007 one does this too, but since that one is out of print and expensive as hell, let’s go with this one).

I was happy to score a copy on RSD, and have been enjoying it since. Of course, by this time, it’s an expensive get – along with every other version of the HAROLD AND MAUDE soundtrack it seems. But if you really want you own copy, you can do what I did decades ago and compile one from the Stevens’ albums, Tea for the Tillerman, Mona Bone Jakon, and Footsteps in the Dark (Greatest Hits, Vol. 2). That’s the best suggestion I have. Otherwise, you can wait for another, more affordable version to come on the scene in the future. Until then, if you want to sing out, sing out.

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My Intro For BEING THERE At The NC Museum Of Art

Last night, I introduced one of my all-time favorite films at the N.C. Museum of Art. Since some friends and family were unable to attend, I decided to post my opening remarks here.

“Now, it’s a clichéd thing to do at a screening of an older movie but – who here has never seen BEING THERE?

That many? Okay, hold on while I cross out the spoilers.

Okay, there used to be a saying – I don’t hear it much these days – that the book is always better than the movie. Now, I think we can all agree that it isn’t always true.

For example, Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, by, is a pulpy airport novel with very little of the gravitas that Francis Ford Coppola and the amazing ensemble brought to the material and made an immortal classic out of it.

There are many movies that are better than the books, but to my mind Hal Ashby’s adaptation of Jerzy Kosinski’s 1970 novel BEING THERE makes for one of the best cases. Not that the book is bad, no it’s a fine, witty, well written narrative that shares much of its dialogue with the movie; it’s just that the lead character is so much of a blank slate that he’s difficult to visualize.

But in the hands of Peter Sellers, the character whose name is Chance became fully formed and thoroughly nuanced, despite that the guy is certainly a blank slate whose life is entirely informed by what he has seen on television.

Now, basically the film is a about a simple minded, illiterate gardener whose talk about planting and the seasons is mistaken by many Washington insiders for political wisdom about shifts in the economy. Without any effort of his own, and aided by others’ perceptions of his persona, Chance the gardener unwittingly becomes Chauncey Gardiner.

Sellers had wanted to play Chance since reading Kosinski’s novel in the early ‘70s – it was his dream role. It took him seven years, in which time he made three Pink Panther movies and a bunch of hit or miss comedies, before he could get the film greenlit.

What helped is that the great hippy filmmaker Hal Ashby when approached to direct the project said ‘Sure, I’m interested, but only with Peter Sellers.’ You see, the book’s author, Kosinski, wanted Ryan O’Neal to play Chance. That is a version I just can’t imagine.

Now Ashby was just perfect for BEING THERE. He was coming off a run of some of the best movies of the ‘70s. HAROLD AND MAUDE, THE LAST DETAIL, SHAMPOO, BOUND FOR GLORY, COMING HOME. If you haven’t seen these – get on it.

So Ashby and Sellers, along with a great supporting cast including Shirley Maclaine, Richard A. Dysart, Jack Warden, and most importantly former ‘30s matinee idol Melvyn Douglas, who won the Best Supporting actor Oscar here for his role as Ben Rand, the dying rich billionaire whose world Chance gets wrapped up in.

Now Melvyn Douglas’ character owns a lavish, ginormous mansion that we all know is the Biltmore Estate in Asheville. The Biltmore could be considered a star of the movie itself as its exteriors and interiors dominate much of the movie.

But, it should be stressed that in BEING THERE, the Biltmore was the Rand Mansion and its location was in the outskirts of Washington DC. Movie magic!

Before BEING THERE, the Biltmore had only been in one film, a Grace Kelly film called THE SWAN which was made in 1956, so it wasn’t well known to most of the movie going public. But since BEING THERE, the house or the grounds (or both) have been in a bunch of movies including THE PRIVATE EYES, FOREST GUMP, RICHIE RICH, HANNIBAL, and LAST OF THE MOHICANS.

In a TV interview to promote BEING THERE, Gene Shallit asked Sellers to explain what BEING THERE is about. He said,“It’s Jerzy Kosinki’s comment on power and corruption, and the triumph of the innocent man, as Jesus Christ said, you know, the triumph of the simple man over power, over wealth, over corruption and it’s probably a comment on that because you can’t get a person more simple that Chance.”

Sellers’ masterful performance as Chance, which he said to Shalit was vaguely based on Stan Laurel (of Laurel and Hardy for you kids) sadly didn’t win him a Best Actor Academy Award, which was something he really wanted. Damn you Dustin Hoffman!

Sorry, I like Dustin Hoffman. It’s just he has had decades since then to win Oscars! This was Seller’s last chance.

Now as for BEING THERE having more relevance now than in 1979, it’s tempting to see it as a cautionary tale about imbeciles rising into scary positions of power. Comparisons to BEING THERE started during the George W. Bush era, but op eds about how prescient the movie seem to appear daily.

Maybe Daily Show correspondent Lewis Black summed it up best when he said of the current political climate: ‘It’s like BEING THERE, if the guy was an asshole!’

Lastly, there is one controversial element of the movie I need to tell you about. The original theatrical version of this movie, which is what we’re showing, has some bloopers – you know, outtakes of actors flubbing their lines – during the end credits.

There is another version of the movie that we were hoping to get, that has the credits play with only TV fuzz behind them. This version happened because Sellers hated the bloopers – he even thought they ruined his Oscar chances. Again, damn you Dustin Hoffman!

Now these clips are funny on their own but after the beautiful final shot– they have been criticized as breaking the flow of the film. We debated whether or not to cut off the projector, but we’re gonna let them roll as they are a part of the original motion picture. You can leave and not see them – it’s up to you.

So here’s Hal Ashby’s best film, and Peter Sellers’ best too, BEING THERE.”

Thanks to Laura Boyes, Jackson Cooper, and everyone at the N.C. Museum of Art for making this event happen.

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Full Frame 2018: Day Two

I was looking forward to the second day of Full Frame this year because it offered my most anticipated doc at the festival: Amy Scott’s HAL, about the legendary filmmaker Hal Ashby who made some of the greatest movies, and personal favorites of mine, of the ‘70s including HAROLD AND MAUDE, THE LAST DETAIL, SHAMPOO, COMING HOME, and BEING THERE.

The biodoc is the directorial debut of Amy Scott, whose many previous credits as an editor made me think that was one of the many factors that attracted her to Ashby as he started out the same way (even winning an Oscar for editing for IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT in 1968). 

HAL fittingly starts off with Cat Stevens on the soundtrack (singing “Miles from Nowhere,” also fittingly), and goes on to tell the story of the great hippy director via lots of clips from his films, and testimonials by folks he worked with like Jon Voight, Jeff Bridges, and Norman Jewison, and disciples like Alexander Payne, Judd Apatow, and Adam McKay.

I teared up more than a few times because Ashby’s movies are a large part of why I love movies. His comic yet simultaneously tragic depictions of such heavy subjects as love, race, and class spoke to me growing up, and I could tell I was among an audience full of people who could relate. 

Scott’s choice is right to give the most screen time to recollections about the seven films Ashby made in the ‘70s (the five I listed above and THE LANDLORD, and BOUND FOR GLORY), what Payne calls “an astonishing string of masterpieces,” then quickly breeze through his less successful run in the ‘80s before his untimely death at 59 in 1989 because even hardcore Ashby fans like me gloss over those sad years. I heard a woman in the row behind me at the screening say during the credits: “I think I’ll have a Hal Ashby film fest of my own when I get home!” I think I’ll be soon doing that too.

Not as big a crowd pleaser as last night’s RBG (how could it be?), but a moving, and highly amusing primer of one of the 20th century’s greatest filmmakers.

For the following film, I spent some more time in the ‘70s with Matt Tyrnauer’s STUDIO 54, which tells a tale that's been told many times about the famous Manhattan nightclub that hosted scores of coked up A-listers enjoying a dance party/orgy-style atmosphere while doormen and bouncers kept the crowds outside at bay.

That is only for a little while as the place was horribly run with so much money skimmed that it was easy for the FBI to shut the establishment down shortly after its founder/co-owner, Steve Rubell, stupidly boasted “only the Mafia made more money.” 

I grew up hearing tales, and seeing tons of photos of celebrities like Mick Jagger (and his wives Bianca, and Jerry Hall), Truman Capote, Farrah Fawcett, Andy Warhol, Sylvester Stallone, Liza Minneli, and just about everyone who was a star during the Carter era, so a lot of the content of the doc wasn't new to me, but to folks who have not a clue about these infamously sordid going-ons it should satisfactorily sum up the what went down. 

All the expected disco hits, and rise and fall tropes of many a doc about a doomed prospect gave me a big case of déjà vu, but hey, I'm old and jaded. Maybe I'm just saying that because I heard some youngin say “I've never even seen a Hal Ashbury movie," on the way out.

Next up, a couple of short (or shorter as one is nearly featurre length) docs that are paired together because they both deal with fake news, albeit under very different circumstances. First up, there's Charlie Lyne’s PERSONAL TRUTH, which deals with his obsession with "Pizzagate," and a home, named Elmm Guest House, in his London neighborhood that's rumored to be a former headquarters to a pedophile network. Lyne’s conspiracy theories about these subjects are tongue-in-cheek (I think), and he scores some solid laughs with his delivery and clever edits, so I found it to be a worthwhile 17 minutes.

Maxim Pozdorovkin’s OUR NEW PRESIDENT, which followed, is a lot more ambitious at looking at the scope of how propaganda proliferates. It's a 77 minute compilation of clips largely from the Russian television network, RT (Russia Today), which overwhelmingly display a pro-Trump, anti-Hillary agenda.

It's funny then terrifying, then funny then terrifying again how these segments outline how fake news spreads with flashy graphics, and taglines like "The longer you watch, the more upset Hillary Clinton becomes." Intersperse that stuff with a lot of video of a smug Putin claiming he had no influence in the 2016 American election, an you've got video essay gold, right? 

Well, not really. While initially the impact of how insane the lengths that such propaganda goes to convince the populous of whatever ridiculous stance is substantial, the effect diminishes upon every news cycle that follows. It ultimately felt like a YouTube rabbit hole playlist that one might mistakenly make a friend to watch. After 30 minutes or so, they'll be like "Okay, I get it - Russian influence is bad and nobody is taking it seriously enough. So what should we get for dinner? Anyway, that’s how I felt, and I could tell that's how the people I saw leaving early probably felt too. I did stick it out until the end though.

So that was Day Two of Full Frame 2018. If you haven’t already, please check out Day One. 

Coming soon: Day Three, which kicks off with Morgan Nevilles’ Mr. Rogers biodoc WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? (another crowd pleasing biodoc, I bet).

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Without A Hitch - 10 Definitive Directors' Cameos In Their Own Movies

As film geeks throughout the blogosphere well know, an appearance by a director in their own film is a tradition established by Alfred Hitchcock. Hitch (or “Cock” as Teri Garr once claimed she called him to Francois Truffaut) had brief but notable appearances in 37 of his 52 films. 

Obviously excluding those who act in sizable roles in their own films (Woody Allen, Sylvester Stallone, Orson Welles, etc.) these are my favorites of the film maker folks that followed in Hitch's footsteps:

1. Martin Scorsese in TAXI DRIVER (1976)

Scorsese has had brief bit cameos in a lot of his movies but it's this appearance credited as "Passenger watching silhouette" that makes the biggest impression. 

As a nervous gun totting cuckolded husband, Scorsese tells his cabbie Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) to pull over and stay parked with the meter running outside the building where his wife is with another man. He talks about his revenge fantasy involving his 44 Magnum in the only scene in the movie in which we are creeped out by somebody other than the title character. 

What puts this at the top of the list is that Scorsese actually shows some acting chops and a persuasive presence. His later performances in other's movies, particularly Akira Kurosawa's DREAMS and Robert Redford's QUIZ SHOW, confirm TAXI DRIVER's hinted at prowess. Incidentally Scorsese can also be seen in a daylight street scene shot earlier in the film.

2. John Huston in THE TREASURE OF SIERRE MADRE (1948) Another American master who appeared in many movies, his own and others', Huston stole a short but sweet scene from star Humphrey Bogart in this undeniable classic. Bogart's down on his luck character Fred C. Dobbs makes the mistake of trying to bum money 3 times from Huston as an "American in Tampico in white suit."

Huston reluctantly complies but warns: "But from now on, you have to make your way through life without my assistance."

Luckily this was nothing but a movie line - Bogart and Huston assisted each other on a couple more classics afterwards (KEY LARGO and THE AFRICAN QUEEN).

3. Roman Polanski in CHINATOWN (1974) Perhaps it's been all the op ed pieces on Polanski lately (Sometimes that have the same screen capture I have here) that helped to inspire this list but whatever the case this is a colossally classic cameo. In less than a minute of screen time, as a thug that Jack Nicholson's Jake Gittes dismisses as a "midget", Polanski convinces us that he actually slices Nicholson's nose with a switchblade. It's a moment that's impossible to forget:

4. George Lucas in STAR WARS: EPISODE III - REVENGE OF THE SITH (2005) This is movie director as extra. For a member of a crowd scene in the last STAR WARS series entry (or the third if you're into the revisionist re-jiggling thing), Lucas got himself decked out in alien garb and gave himself a name: Baron Papanoida. There's an oddly lengthy bio at IMDb. And yes, there's an action figure too.

5. Richard Linklater in SLACKER (1994) Linklater's role as "Should Have Stayed at Bus Station" sets into motion the stream of self consciousness exercise that he geared the movie to be:






It's quite a loose likable persona that Linklater affects - one that kicks off his film career and also appears in animated form in WAKING LIFE (2001) - a sort of sequel (or at least spiritual follow-up) to SLACKER.

6. Hal Ashby in HAROLD AND MAUDE (1971)

Film babble blog favorite Ashby also does the "movie director as extra" thing as a hippy freak at a carnival in his counter culture cult classic. Of course, he was just dressed as usual and it's not really a cameo; more of a brief shot that captures the director as a random passerby watching a mechanical toy train with Harold (Bud Cort) and Maude (Ruth Gordon).

Ashby also shows up doing the extra thing again in a newsroom in BEING THERE (1980) - something I noticed just recently after missing it for years on many repeated viewings.

7. Francis Ford Coppola in APOCALYPSE NOW (1979) So he's the "Director of TV Crew" who barks orders at the soldiers as they run through his shot - is it an exaggeration of Coppola's ego or the real thing? You decide:

 

8. David Lynch in TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME (1992) Lynch has done a number of walk on parts in his films but here he gives himself an actual character: FBI Regional Bureau Chief Gordon Cole who Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle Machlachlan) reports to. Lynch's Gordon appeared on the TV series a few blink and miss them times and his bit for the prequel/origin story/whatever movie is pretty meager. So what gets him on this list? I guess it's that a normal office scenario is skewed by the likes of David Bowie and flashes of a white faced pointy nosed circus wack job or whatever dancing around and this time Lynch himself is in the midst of it. Welcome to my nightmare, indeed:







9. Oliver Stone in WALL STREET (1987)

Yet another director that has taken bit or extra roles in multiple movies, Stone does a split screen sound bite appearance as a broker on the phone in one of the film's many frenetic montages. No word whether he'll reprise the role for the sequel.

10. Sam Raimi in THE EVIL DEAD TRILOGY (1981-1992) As documented by AMC Filmsite, Sam Raimi appeared: 1981: as a Hitchhiking Fisherman and the Voice of the Evil Force 1987: as a Medieval Soldier; and 1993: as a Knight in Sweatshirt and Sneakers, who assured Ash (Bruce Campbell): "You can count on my steel."

Peter Jackson pulled the same stunt by appearing in all 3 LORD OF THE RINGS movies.

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IN BRUGES & More Film Babble Follow-up Fun!

In the spirit of continuing the pre-Spring cleaning I started last post I thought I'd go through my email bag and follow-up on some past threads but first let me tell you about another fine film that is in limited release and unfortunately being overlooked:

IN BRUGES (Dir. Martin McDonagh, 2008)

When I saw the trailer I feared that this would be one in a long line of Quentin Tarentino/Guy Ritchie ripoffs - you know, with wisecracking pop culture savvy figures of the underworld caught up in a series of crafty quirky possibly silly scenarios but IN BRUGES is so much better than that.

Sure, it does have those elements but the restraint in flash and the edgy funny screenplay fuels a sweetly character driven piece that expertly balances dark comedy with a solid suspense yarn.

Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell are two hitmen who after botching a job in London are sent to the medieval city of Bruges in Belgium to lie low. Gleeson makes the best of the situation to take in some of the local sights but Farrell, in one of his best performances as the daft put-upon Ray, grumbles "If I'd grown up on a farm and was retarded, Bruges might impress me, but I didn't, so it doesn't." He even remarks: "Maybe that's what hell is, an entire eternity spent in Bruges."

As they wait for further instructions from their boss Harry (an energized and hilariously intense Ralph Fiennes) their lives become intertwined with a few colorful characters including French actress Clémence Poésy as Farrell's love interest and Jordan Prentice as a racist dwarf actor named Jimmy.

It would be wrong to spill any more about the plot - the swift surprises in the film's crafty construction should not be spoiled. Everything seems to have nicely aligned in every department for this sure to be a future cult film.

Even the score by Coen Brothers regular Carter Burwell should be noted as exceptional. It is incredibly encouraging that a new filmmaker can take the tired stale crime caper and reinvigorate it into something as satisfyingly fresh and vital as IN BRUGES.

As the new to the scene writer/director Martin McDonagh is definitely a name to remember. I'm sure that as word of mouth spreads his next movie-film will have a much wider release. You would have had to grown up on a farm or be retarded to dismiss this as another PULP FICTION wannabe or a LOCK, STOCK... look-alike - this is no such pretender.

Okay, so now it's time to look back over Film Babble Blog past and follow-up on some of those much commented on lists. In my post 10 Movie Moments That Broke The 4th Wall (August 22, 2007) I told by many fine film loving folk that I missed a really crucial and much loved Movie Moment:
                                                                   

HAROLD AND MAUDE (Dir. Hal Ashby, 1971)

I can't believe I left this one off! It's one of my favorite films ever and it's such a wonderful example of "breaking the frame". Harold (Bud Cort) having successfully scared off another computer dating candidate by staging another of his phony suicide attempts looks directly at us in a "see what I just did?" manner. His sly satisifaction is short lived however as he recoils into timid submission upon turning and see his Mother's disapproving glare. The passionate piano plucking intro of Cat Steven's "I Think I See The Light" perfectly punctuates the shot and takes us into the next scene. Just about as good as film making gets.

I got a lot of feedback about my post 20 Great Modern Movie Cameos (June 5, 2007) - so much that I already did a follow-up - The Cameo Countdown Continues (June 20, 2007) but there was one delicious guest appearance that a bunch of people have called me on - Frank Zappa in the beautifully bizarre Monkees movie HEAD (Dir. Bob Rafelson, 1968). It's another favorite of mine so boy is my face beet red! 

After Davy Jones's "Daddy's Boy" dance number Zappa, who for some reason is walking a cow on a leash, appears (credited as "The Critic") from out of a crowd of extras on the studio back lot to offer his comments: "That song was pretty white." Davy responds: "So am I; what can I tell you?" Zappa continues "You've been working on your dancing though...doesn't leave much time for your music. You should spend more time on it because the youth of America depends on you to show the way." 

To this, Zappa's cow with an imposed cartoon mouth says in a weird accent: "Monkees is the craziest people!" That aside was to the camera so the scene counts as both a cameo and a moment that broke the 4th wall. Thanks to Sarah R., Stephanie W., Tim Murcer, George F., and especially Everette K. for not letting this issue go!

This one came from a recent email from Michael E. of Illinois referring to a post I did last summer called Those Damn DirecTV Movie Tie-In Ads - Offensive To Film Buffs? (July 19, 2007). Michael alerted me to a new DirecTV ad that 

features Kathy Bates reprising her Oscar winning role as Annie Wilkes from MISERY. Depicting the setup to the most horrific scene in the movie - the one where Bates cripples James Caan (who only appears from the original footage) with a sledgehammer - this commercial is the most misguided by far. Bates must have felt some hesitation to exploit her breakthrough performance for a satellite dish outfit. I guess on the other hand it was just another day's work and one that most likely got her an awesome high def TV hook-up. 

For my post 10 Self Referential Moments In The Films Of George Lucas/Steven Spielberg (Oct. 18th, 2007) I really missed a doozey! In RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK on the wall in the background of the Egyptian temple that Indian Jones finds the Ark in you can see C3PO and R2D2 illustrated in Hieroglyphic form - like Club Obi Wan in TEMPLE OF DOOM this definitely ties together the...hey, wait! 

I never did a post about self referential moments in Lucas/Spielberg movies! Hmm, maybe I should.

That new INDIANA JONES and the long ass title nobody will use * is going to be out soon so it may be a good idea...

* Actually INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL - but c'mon! Nobody is gonna to use it - it'll be like "2 tickets to Indy 4."

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The Beatles Music In The Movies (Not their own movies, mind you)

"My dear girl, there are some things that just aren't done, such as drinking Dom Perignon '53 above the temperature of 38 degrees Fahrenheit. That's just as bad as listening to the Beatles without earmuffs!" - James Bond (Sean Connery) in GOLDFINGER (Dir. Guy Hamilton, 1964)


As it has been well reported all over the internets the soon-to-be released ACROSS THE UNIVERSE (Dir. Julie Taymor, 2007) is fully comprised of Beatles music - all cover versions sung by the actors who all have names (Jude, Lucy, Lovely Rita, Jo Jo, Sadie, etc. - wait where's Michelle?) based on Beatles songs in scenes thematically suggested by Beatles material - yep, the Fab Four through and through. I know Beatle fans who are opposed to the project - and yeah it looks like it could be cringe-inducingly cheesy but I'll reserve judgement for now. In the meantime let's take a look at the Beatles music as it has appeared in soundtracks in the almost 40 years since they disbanded.

The catalogue is mostly owned by Michael Jackson who after famously outbidding Paul McCartney for ownership of ATV Music Publishing in 1985 has angered hoards of Beatle purists time and time again. First with his licensing of "Revolution" for the Nike spots of the late 80's and most recently for the currently running "All You Need Is Love" Luvs diaper ads. 

The use of an original Beatles recording in a movie can be incredibly expensive - that's why so many cover versions have appeared throughout the years. Even the Simpsons had to resort to using a sound-alike cover band for a HARD DAY'S NIGHT parody scene. Actual Beatles music has appeared sporadically over these last several decades but that have been some notable uses in the movies starting with:
SHAMPOO (Dir. Hal Ashby, 1975) Set in 1968 with a soundtrack full of 60's gold (Beach Boys, Jefferson Airplane, The Monkees, Simon & Garfunkel) 2 major Beatles tracks appear - “Sgt.Pepper's Lonely Heart Club Band” and “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds”. I guess the rights weren't as expensive pre-Jackson era. Either that or Warren Beatty and Hal Ashby had more clout than previously believed. Check out this Shampoo Montage somebody made on YouTube to get some of the flavor of said film.

I WANNA HOLD YOUR HAND (Dir. Robert Zemekis, 1978) There's more than a little of that coming-of-age in a single day AMERICAN GRAFFITI thing going on here. With the premise that the single day in question is February 9th, 1964 - the Beatles' Ed Sullivan American TV debut. An ensemble cast of teenage fans (including Nancy Allen, Wendie Jo Sperber, Bobby Di Cicco and Marc McClure) all scheme to get into CBS-TV Studio 50 to see the historic broadcast. The soundtrack of the film contains 17 Beatles songs (including "She Loves You" twice) and since, of course, none of the actual Beatles were involved - stand-ins were used as Wikipedia best puts it:

"Stand-in Beatle-look alike doubles, dressed in identical attire and holding the same type of musical instruments in a similar manner, were seen mimicking the group's performance of the song from that show while being shown on the stage floor, albeit from a distance so as not to see their identities, while the actual footage of The Beatles on The Sullivan Show of 02/09/1964 was revealed from the camera operator's point-of-view. These two elements were combined together, along with reactions from the studio audience to recreate a brilliant moment in time."

A brilliant moment in time indeed. Sorry, just became James Lipton there. Incidently the IMDb doesn't give credit to the stand-ins but this cool UHM post revealed that the "George" was filled in by monster mask-maker (he designed the Captain Kirk mask used in the HALLOWEEN movies), actor, and horror-movie director Bill Malone - seen above between director Zemekis on the right and an unknown "Lennon" on the left.


THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP (Dir. George Roy Hill, 1982) In the opening credit sequence as "When I'm 64" plays a baby is bounced upwards into the clear blue sky in slow motion. McCartney's soothing nursery rhyme vocal is perfectly suited here to the baby's (Infant Garp credited to Brandon Roth - not to be confused with Brandon Routh - the new Superman) happy expressions. This may be the best and most original scene in the canon of Beatles-synched cinema. But, wait what about:

FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF (Dir. John Hughes, 1986) After somehow commandeering a parade float in downtown Chicago to lip synch to Wayne Newton's "Danke Schoen" Ferris (Matthew Broderick) gets down to the Beatles cover of Phil Medley and Bert Russell's immortal "Twist And Shout". The entire crowd dances as a marching band provides horns that weren't on the original recording. Despite the fact the song re-entered the charts at #21 that summer (also because of its use in the Rodney Dangerfield college comedy BACK TO SCHOOL) McCartney criticized the addition of horns to the track. Pretty picky Sir Paul - I mean it was a parade!

WITHNAIL & I (Dir. Bruce Robinson, 1987) Now is a good time to bring up George Harrison's Handmade Films. Formed in the late 70's to back Python related projects, Handmade made a handfull of interesting films in the 80's and 90's. One of the best was WITHNAIL & I - a hilarious cult classic mostly taking place around a country cottage with Richard E. Grant and Paul McGann at their tawdry best. At one point a portion of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is heard - it's safe to assume that since George was one of the producers it seems like this was probably given some kind of significant discount.

BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE (Dir. Michael Moore, 2002) Can see why Moore would pay the extra buck to get the original song - no other would do the same job. As I wrote in a post about Moore's movies as a baby-boomer era hit song "The Beatles' 'Happiness Is A Warm Gun' made an obvious point". Lennon's vicious vocal snarls in such a manner that benefits a montage of kids with guns, a blind man with an assault rifle, and a smattering of public execution-style killings.

Some Other Honorable Mentions in the Beatles Music in the Movies Sweepstakes:

COMING HOME (Dir. Hal Ashby, 1978) - "Hey Jude" and "Strawberry Fields Forever".
MASK (Dir. Peter Bogdanavich, 1985) Although the soundtrack in this under rated biopic about Roy L. "Rocky" Denis (played by Eric Stoltz) who suffered from a cranial enlargening disease was dominated by Americana like Springsteen, Bob Seger, Gary U.S. Bonds, and even 4 Little Richard songs - there were 2 seminal Beatles standards present - "I Want To Hold Your Hand" and "Girl".

FIVE CORNERS (Dir. Tony Bill, 1987) "In My Life" plays during the end credits - again, Harrison's Handmade hook-up helped out. He was executive producer to be more exact.

PRICK UP YOUR EARS (Dir. Stephen Frears, 1987) - "A Day in the Life."

CAN'T BUY ME LOVE (Dir. Steve Rash, 1987) Can't remember what song was featured in this one but man I bet it was effective!

A BRONX TALE (Dir. Robert Deniro, 1993) An impressive - obviously Scorsese influenced (as if that's a bad thing) soundtrack to Deniro's directorial debut includes the Kinks, Wilson Pickett, Miles Davis, various Rat Packers, etc. But the inclusion of the original "Come Together" gives it full cinematic cred.

So - that's all for now. One day I'll get around to the Beatles covers in the movies - especially since ACROSS THE UNIVERSE adds to the universe of soundtracks full of Beatles covers like the infamous flop - SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND (I've given many shout outs to Nathan Rabin of the AV Club's Year Of Flops series but particularly his entry on Sgt. Pepper's should not be ignored) and I AM SAM - a horrible movie but a good Beatles cover oriented soundtrack all the same.

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HAROLD AND MAUDE: Soundtrack Breakdown

Yet again, I take another movie notable for its soundtrack, in this case Hal Ashby's 1971 classic HAROLD AND MAUDE, and give you a musical play by play: 

This particular film, an all-time favorite of mine, is especially notable because it features just one artist (Cat Stevens) much like Mike Nichols’ THE GRADUATE had Simon and Garfunkel guiding the way through its narrative. For some reason, HAROLD AND MAUDE's excellent soundtrack wasn't released in America, but there was a 1972 Japanese release on A & M Records.

The film begins with Harold Chasen (Bud Cort) preparing to hang himself in the elegant din of his mother’s mansion.

With his face hidden from view, Harold puts on a record on an old-style phonograph. It is "Don't Be Shy" by Cat Stevens. As this a song not on any Cat Stevens record - written for the film no less - Harold is very privileged.

Next up, "On The Road To Find Out" accompanies and introduces Harold's funeral fetish - we see him purchase a new hearse and attend a stranger's service at a large cemetery where he first takes note of Maude (Ruth Gordon) who's eating an apple.

Following that, "I Wish, I Wish" takes us from the film's first funeral scene to Harold screeching his hearse into the driveway of his family's mansion to the disapproving looks from his mother (Vivian Pickles) and her guests.

"Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto #1" (performer unknown according to IMDB) plays as another Haorld suicide attempt - drowning face down in a pool as his mother nonchalantly swims laps.

Stevens' stirring "Miles From Nowhere" sets another funeral scene - this one rain drenched. 

As that tune fades, the congregation exits the cemetery with Maude and her bright yellow umbrella leading the way while "Tea For The Tillerman" plays. 

Another spiritual Stevens song - "I Think I See The Light" lifts us away from Harold's successful sabotage of his mother's dating set-up to Maude's artistic nude modeling.

 As Harold and Maude (Ruth Gordon) get acquainted "Where Do The Children Play" - another passionate Cat tune sets the tone.

Instrumental snatches from it play over the next few scenes. 

Back at her place - after an emotional moment concerning Maude’s mysterious past our protagonists engage in a sing-a-long of “If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out” on Maude’s player piano which amusingly plays after she gets up to dance. Like "Don't Be Shy" this song was written for the movie and is definitely its unofficial theme song. A piano version sans vocal decorates the next scene as Harold’s mother presents him with a new Jaguar.

Johann Strauss’s "On The Beautiful Blue Danube” (again, performer unknown) accompanies a sweet night time close dance by Harold and Maude again at her place. “If You Want To Sing Out…” again serenades our movie couple in a montage involving Harold’s Jaquar, which is now souped-up Hearse-style, tooling down roads through the countryside, our charming couple dancing and frolicking in the sun, then nicely concluding with a tender moment in a junk-yard at dusk. 

The energetic jamming finish of "I Think I See The Light" which faded out earlier now emerges again to illustrate Harold's now consumated relationship with Maude.

In morning light coming through the window of Maude's abode Harold, in a love-daze blows bubbles while she sleeps. Another instrumental of "If You Want To Sing Out..." now played on a banjo punctuates Harolds confident walk away from his Mother's bedroom after telling her that he intends to marry Maude. 

"Trouble" powerfully fills out the final sequence which cuts back and forth from Harold in Jaquar/Herse recklessly driving the winding roads of previous scenes and the ambulance drive and Maude's admittance to the hospital on the night of her death - unbearably untimely in Harold's eyes.

A reprise of “If You Want To Sing Out...” takes us through the end credits right after a now newly inspired Harold plucks a few chords on his Banjo - a gift from Maude - right after discarding the Herse/Jaquar - a gift from his mother - in a particularly dramatic fashion.

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5 Cult Classics That Roger Ebert Didn't Get

Here at Film Babble Blog, film critic Roger Ebert is a well respected legend with his wealth of writings referred to often. 

Even when I’ve disagreed with Ebert, his well thought out and cleverly crafted reviews still make powerful points. However, there a number of times that I’ve felt that Mr. Ebert tragically missed the point so here are:

The Top 5 Cult Classics That Roger Ebert Didn't Get:

1. HAROLD AND MAUDE (Dir. Hal Ashby, 1971) Can this be right? Can Ebert truly be among the out-of-it straight laced critics that horribly misjudged this undeniably influential beyond words cult classic? Yep, he only rewards a movie that many friends, collegues, and family have considered one of the best movies ever with one and a half stars. For shame.

2. FIGHT CLUB (Dir. Peter Fincher, 1999) Two stars. Roger loves the first couple of acts but hates the concluding act. This is from a guy who wouldn't know the Pixies if they were stuck on the same elevator. Whatever Ebert, watch it again and tell me how what is set up in the first third would work better done another way and you and me will be square. 

3. BEETLEJUICE 
(Dir. Tim Burton, 1988) 

Again 2 stars. Where's the love for Tim Burton's maniacal masterpiece? It’s times like this that you just have to remember this is the guy who gave COP AND A HALF and HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE rave reviews.

4. HEATHERS (Dir. Michael Lehmann, 1989) Two and a half stars. I mean COME ON! This is a bonafide classic and Ebert's baffled review is painful to read. He writes "Is this a black comedy about murder or just a cynical morality play?" Jesus, Roger - if you have to ask... 

5. DON'T LOOK BACK 
(Dir. D.A. Pennebaker, 1967) 

Okay, so he gave this rock doc three stars, but don't let that fool you. He disses Bob Dylan to such a degree in his review that it's hard to take. I mean, read this sample: “What a jerk Bob Dylan was in 1965. What an immature, self-important, inflated, cruel, shallow little creature, lacking in empathy and contemptuous of anyone who was not himself or his lackey. Did we actually once take this twirp as our folk god?”

Can you believe that? Is Ebert, who wrote two separate reviews of this flick (first in '68 on the movie's original run and then again in '98 on its re-release) that out of touch? I thought it was pretty much accepted that Dylan was putting on those who were asking him square questions and having fun with the media juggernaut. I mean just a couple years before DON’T LOOK BACK was filmed (yes, I’m looking back) Newsweek wrongly accused him of plagiarizing his classic song “Blowing In The Wind,” and countless bandwagon jumpers had co-opted Bob's simple plaintive messages for their own cynical purposes. 

I can't imagine Dylan at that age and time reacting any other way, but to Ebert he's a self serving twirp. I can't quite process this judgement (or lack of). To Ebert's credit he nailed Bob's self indulgent MASKED AND ANONYMOUS monstrosity last year in a scathing review, but that doesn't make right his insulting remarks about one of the most influential film portraits of an artist at his prime in existence.

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