“Yesterday” Review by Tristan Brown
June 30, 2019 3:44 pm |
The Music, Heart, and Nostalgia of “Yesterday” Subdues its Lack of Sense
When Paul McCartney wrote the culturally acclaimed song “Yesterday” in 1964, the melody was so good that McCartney initially thought he had subconsciously stolen the song from someone else. Sir Paul carried this guilt for a short time before he realized the song was indeed his own. Ironically, Jack Malik carries similar guilt when he becomes a music superstar after fooling the entire world into believing he created the Beatles’ biggest hits.
“Yesterday” is the latest offering from Danny Boyle (“Slumdog Millionaire”) and tells the story of Jack, a struggling musician who becomes an overnight sensation after he discovers the Beatles no longer exist and takes credit for their songs. It seems that Jack is the only person in the entire world who has any recollection of John, Paul, George, Ringo, and their extensive catalog. How does this happen exactly? Apparently, because Jack gets hit by a damn bus. Richard Curtis’ screenplay has a few “WTF” moments of weakness, but most glaringly is “Yesterday” failure to explain exactly how the Beatles (and a few other pop culture phenoms) randomly cease to exist after Jack’s bus accident.
Despite a plot hole big enough to fit a yellow submarine, Curtis’ script can be clever at times. In fact, the dialogue evokes a few laugh out loud moments and the film does an accurate job of depicting the realistic struggles of a starving artist who may have the talent, but still lacks opportunity. Even with the Beatles catalog at his disposal, Jack initially struggles to be heard. Also, he doesn’t magically remember the words to every Beatles song and struggles to re-write the lyrics (who the hell actually knows the opening to “Eleanor Rigby” word-for-word?).
The overall film manages to stay engaging in the first two acts. This is largely thanks to “Yesterday” having the legal rights to some of the greatest songs ever made. I’m still not entirely sure if you have to be a Beatles’ fan to enjoy this film, but as a Fab Four fanatic, I personally had a big dumb grin on my face during Jack’s renditions of “Yesterday,” “Let it Be,” and “In My Life.” The songs are woven into the narrative of the story in a way that doesn’t turn the movie into a cheesy Broadway musical.
Another shining point is a breakout performance by the lead, Himesh Patel. It’s clear to see why he was chosen for the role of Jack Malik. Patel’s is a solid singer with a tonality that respectfully mimics Lennon and McCartney’s. He exudes the warm charm required to make an audience root for a plagiarizing fraud. Furthermore, Patel gets strong support from Lily James (Jack’s best friend) Joel Fry (Jack’s road manager, Rocky), and, surprisingly, Ed Sheeran (playing himself). I promise you Sheeran’s guest role isn’t as jarring as his Game of Thrones cameo.
Unfortunately, the weakest link in the cast is Kate McKinnon, who plays an animated caricature of a greedy talent manager seemingly from an entirely different movie (or SNL sketch). Still, you can’t entirely blame McKinnon for… “McKinnoning.” Boyle could have done a better job of reining her in to adjust to the movie’s overall tone.
The film’s final act is its weakest. There’s one very unexpected scene near the end that could come across as sweet and endearing in written form, but when you actually see this scene depicted on film, it’s… well… eerie as fuck. Additionally, the ending of “Yesterday” is sorely predictable and the trajectory of the love story plays out exactly as you would expect. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the heart of the film well enough to buffer its troubled conclusion.
Despite a problematic script, the music and charming performances in “Yesterday” will strike a chord with general audiences and serve as an homage to one of the world’s greatest bands.
PCL Rating: High Taste It
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: FRESH 🍅
Share this:
Tags: Beatles Yesterday Movie, Danny Boyle, Himesh Patel, Lily James, pop culture leftovers, Yesterday 2019, Yesterday Movie
Categorised in: Movie Reviews
This post was written by Leftover Brian
Comments are closed here.