The 1970 Beatles documentary, “Let It Be”, which has never been available on any streaming service, Blu-ray Disc, or DVD, will finally arrive on Disney+.
The 54-year-old documentary that followed the band as they recorded their 12th and final studio album will be available on the streamer on May 8, Disney announced on Tuesday (16).
The production features a famous scene where Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr perform a concert on the rooftop of Apple Corps in London – only to be stopped by the police.
“Let It Be” was restored by the Beatles’ director, Peter Jackson, who was also responsible for the popular “The Beatles: Get Back”.
Until now, the film had only been officially sold in out-of-print – and grainy – VHS and laserdisc copies.
The reviews for “Let It Be” were not very enthusiastic at the time. “But the most remarkable part of the film is the way it maintains interest, so unexpectedly, during the long session and without all the assists that a written script usually animates entertainments of this kind,” wrote New York Post critic Archer Winsten in May 1970.
Director Michael Lindsay-Hogg, 83, stated in a statement that the documentary’s release was hampered at the time by the Beatles’ breakup.
“‘Let It Be’ was ready to be released in October/November 1969, but it was only released in April 1970,” he said. “A month before its release, the Beatles officially broke up. And then people went to see ‘Let It Be’ with sadness in their hearts, thinking: ‘I will never see the Beatles together again. I will never have that joy again,’ and that darkened the perception of the film a lot.”
But he added that this new version brings new life to the film.
“I was impressed with what Peter was able to do with ‘Get Back’, using all the footage I shot 50 years earlier,” he said.
More than half a century after the Beatles’ breakup, the band is having a big year.
The newly released song “Now and Then”, which was completed with the help of AI, debuted at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.
And it was announced that “1917” director Sam Mendes plans to direct a four-part biographical photo series – one for each Beatle.
Nostalgia or are we living in such a creatively barren time that it leads us to resurrect what was good years ago?
Source: The New York Post