Why go to Danny Boyle's Yesterday

Everything changes after Jack falls under the wheels of a bus during a worldwide power outage. Having come to his senses, the hero discovers that humanity has forgotten about The Beatles, as if it never existed. The guy painstakingly recreates the legendary Beatles' songs from memory, passes off as his own and becomes a star overnight.

Film buffs know Danny Boyle as a filmmaker with a uniquely surreal expressionist style. Almost all of his paintings are very energetic, be it a cult film about young heroin addicts, a tense chamber drama about a mountain climber stuck in the mountains, or the incredible life story of an Indian orphan. That being said, Boyle's characters often find themselves in all sorts of cruel and dark situations. Even the romantic melodrama with Ewan McGregor “Life Less Usual” stands out for its dynamism, rare for this genre.

A light, unhurried comedy about an unlucky musician, to put it mildly, stands apart in the master's filmography. However, here, too, the original details of the director's handwriting are recognized. So, a colorful visual series is Danny Boyle's signature technique: the director often makes his films rich and contrasting.

This is a funny comedy from the writer of "Love Actually" and "Mr. Bean"

But still, the film is much more influenced by the screenwriter Richard Curtis, who shot "Rock Wave", "Love Actually" and "Boyfriend from the Future" (the last two - according to their own scripts). Richard has also written scripts for the romantic comedies Four Weddings and One Funeral, Notting Hill and The Diary of Bridget Jones, and has also worked on the cult comedy series Mr. Bean.

It is Curtis who needs to be thanked for an impressive number of funny scenes. In one of them, Jack tries to play the legendary song Let It Be to his not-too-attentive parents, who are again and again distracted by everyday affairs. In another, the tycoons of the music industry are smashing the album titles suggested by the hero: "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Orchestra" is too wordy, and "White Album" sounds offensive to minorities.

There are many examples of this, purely English humor in the picture. For example, from time to time the main character finds out that the world has erased from memory not only The Beatles, but also some other elements of pop culture. And it's very funny every time.

It's touching to tears

The film manages not only to amuse, but also to move the audience. Take, for example, the scene in which the protagonist's friends “for the first time in their lives” hear the lyric ballad Yesterday.

Probably, many have such a song that they want to erase from memory. Not because it is bad, but on the contrary - to hear it as for the first time and again experience unique impressions. And at this moment you even envy the characters of the picture a little. And at the same time you empathize strongly.

But the highest emotional point was an unexpected meeting, which will greatly delight the fans of The Beatles. Let's not spoil the surprise, let's just say that it is almost impossible to keep from crying while watching.

It's very musical and imbued with love for The Beatles and their fans

Behind the musicality of the picture is the resourcefulness of its creators. The fact is that the music of the Beatles is rarely used in films even by outstanding directors: after all, it is very expensive. Edgar Wright once told Edgar Wright: “I shot every scene to the sound of the song assigned to her,” that the song Drive My Car would ideally fit his tape “Baby on a Drive”, but this idea had to be abandoned.

Much of the budget for Yesterday went to buying musical rights. True, the full cost had to be paid only for Hey Jude, which sounded on the end credits. The rest of the tracks, carefully selected by Danny Boyle and Richard Curtis, were saved, because instead of the originals, the film features covers performed by Himesh Patel.

It is worth appreciating the excellent vocal abilities of the actor: his soft tenor is a bit like Paul McCartney's voice. The musicality of the film was also added by the British pop singer Ed Sheeran, who played himself.

You don't have to be a Beatle fan to appreciate this movie. But fans of the great band will find it easier to solve Easter eggs - for example, in the film, they refer to the last live concert of Liverpudlians. The stage then served as the roof of the building on Savile Row, which was the headquarters of The Beatles.

Yesterday is not a film without flaws. There are enough genre clichés in it, so the script, especially in the last third of the picture, can seem pretty predictable. Still, this is a funny, soulful and truly folk movie about a musical phenomenon that unites people around the world.