This isn't The Beatles best moment. That belongs to A HARD DAY'S NIGHT (and YELLOW SUBMARINE might have the edge on this picture innovation-wise). But there's no denying that The Beatles' charisma carries HELP! to levels other rock musicals can only aspire to.
Which is the picture's only detriment. When the Fab Four aren't on screen, HELP! feels a little flat. They're such commanding presences that anyone would suffer by comparison, let alone the fine character actors who populate this comic fantasy.
But this is a minor quibble. Try to resist the great songs, every one of which is a gem. Try not to laugh at some of the broader sight gags (like the contents of their shared flat). Try to suppress a smile at director Richard Lester's manic pacing. He is the guy who invented the music video, for better or worse. In effect, HELP! and A HARD DAY'S NIGHT are the blueprints for everything that has come since and I'm not speaking of musicals, but of all contemporary cinema (its cutting, its pacing, its self-reference).
If HELP! seems at all dated, it's only because the gags and techniques have been so endlessly cannibalized by lesser productions. But this is a small price to pay for such sunny hopefulness. In a world where rock seems to epitomize whiny, self-absorption, I wish I could have been around for the real deal.
Which is the picture's only detriment. When the Fab Four aren't on screen, HELP! feels a little flat. They're such commanding presences that anyone would suffer by comparison, let alone the fine character actors who populate this comic fantasy.
But this is a minor quibble. Try to resist the great songs, every one of which is a gem. Try not to laugh at some of the broader sight gags (like the contents of their shared flat). Try to suppress a smile at director Richard Lester's manic pacing. He is the guy who invented the music video, for better or worse. In effect, HELP! and A HARD DAY'S NIGHT are the blueprints for everything that has come since and I'm not speaking of musicals, but of all contemporary cinema (its cutting, its pacing, its self-reference).
If HELP! seems at all dated, it's only because the gags and techniques have been so endlessly cannibalized by lesser productions. But this is a small price to pay for such sunny hopefulness. In a world where rock seems to epitomize whiny, self-absorption, I wish I could have been around for the real deal.