YESTERDAY: A Feel Good Love Letter To The Fab Four

The Beatles had a huge impact on music, but they also made their mark in film as well. Whether it be films they starred in (A Hard Day’s Night), films about them (Nowhere Boy) or films inspired by them (Across The Universe), their influence is undeniable.

Yesterday, directed by Danny Boyle, follows a down on his luck singer-songwriter named Jack (Himesh Patel), who wakes up after a worldwide blackout to find that he is the only person who remembers The Beatles. He passes their music off as his own and ends up becoming a worldwide sensation. While Yesterday has a fairly simple love story as it’s backdrop, the strong performances and heartfelt tone make the film extremely enjoyable; especially if you love The Beatles.

Working With The Premise

The plot of the movie is an instant hook. But when the trailer came out, some complained that it didn’t make sense for the world to go on the same way if The Beatles had never existed. For example, how could Coldplay still exist if The Beatles hadn’t? The film actually does address this with some artists making it through the blackout and others not (some shade may have been thrown at Oasis). There are other references to the impact the blackout had on the world that made the film even more interesting than it originally seemed.

An unexpected aspect of Yesterday were the satirical comments on today’s music industry. There’s a boardroom scene with New Girl’s Lamorne Morris that shows how little artists have say in something like an album title and cover. Once Jack makes it big, people are awed by the fact that he “wrote” the songs himself. Today, most pop songs are written by 16 people and feature vibey electronic beats. The movie brings up an interesting idea; simplicity is an anomaly. It would have been interesting to see more of what the filmmakers think millenial and gen z reactions to Beatles songs would be if they came out now.

Part of the reason the movie works so well are the fantastic performances of the two leads. Newcomer Patel led the film with his charisma and wonderful singing voice. At the beginning, when he’s a struggling musician, his subtle cynicism helped the audience sympathize with him. He seems like an actor with a lot of promise. Lily James plays Ellie, Jack’s best friend since childhood and manager until he hits it big. She was the heart of the movie. As Ellie, she’s adorably bubbly and always there for Jack, who she’s also desperately in love with. Her dedication to him despite him refuting his own feelings towards her was played in a way that was extremely relatable.

Love & Humor

The B-plot of Yesterday is the love story between Jack and Ellie. Written by Richard Curtis, known for romantic-comedy films such as Love Actually and Bridget Jones’s Diary, the couple’s journey does feel a bit basic at times. There are some sacharinne lines that could cause some viewers to roll their eyes (“I’ve waited half my life for you to wake up and love me”), but the relationship does ground the film, creating a real human story. Both Patel and James play their roles with such sincere emotion that you can’t help but root for them.

The humor in this film is also very strong. Jack’s friends besides Ellie (who I could have used a little more of) and his parents had some fantastic moments. The comedic stand out was Joel Frey as Rocky, Jack’s acquaintance who becomes his sidekick on the road. Well-meaning, but kind of a mess, Frey was a great complement to Jack’s mild mannered nervousness. Ed Sheeran plays a fictionalized version of himself to perfection. He wasn’t afraid to make fun of things that the general public makes fun of him for. Not only did his performance positively add to the movie, but it made him more likeable.

Kate McKinnon of Saturday Night Live fame appears as Jack’s money hungry manager, Debra. While McKinnon herself is a hilarious actress, she seemed out of place in the film. Yesterday has such a bizarre plot that was grounded in reality by most of the main characters. Yet, she was such a caricature that she did not feel like a real person. Boyle has to be blamed for some of that. Another thing he could be blamed for is the end of the movie. Of course, it all wraps up in a nice bow, but it seemed a little bit rushed.

Will Beatles Fans Approve?

The hardest crowd to please with this film are the people it’s aimed at: fans of The Beatles. Anytime someone covers any of the band’s songs, there’s immense pressure. Patel had the pressure of covering 16 of their most famous songs, including “I Want To Hold Your Hand” and “Here Comes The Sun.” Luckily, he stuck the landing. It’s amazing that Boyle was able to use so many songs, as getting the rights to any of The Beatles music is an expensive endeavor. However, it would have been nice to get some deeper cuts from their catalogue, as they have so many underrated songs.

In a similar fashion to comic book films, this movie features some references only fanatics would get. For example, there are characters named for Beatles songs: Rocky (“Rocky Racoon”) and Lucy (“Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds”). At one point, Jack visits the Fab Four’s hometown of Liverpool, and sees the famous Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields. When Debra asks Jack what is special about Liverpool, he references Cilla Black, another artist managed by The Beatles manager, Brian Epstein. Even the picture Jack ends up using for his album cover is likely a photoshopped version of a famous photo of Paul McCartney. Many fans also speculated that there might be some cameos in the movie. And while there is a big, emotional, cameo, it’s not one that could easily be guessed.

As a big fan of The Beatles, I thought the movie lived up to what it promised in the trailers. Other fans will probably agree.

Yesterday: Conclusion

Overall, Yesterday was the lighthearted, fun, summer movie that we need right now. While the romance aspect of the movie wasn’t anything new and the ending could have been more succinct, the performances and humor definitely make up for it. There’s no way one can watch this movie and not feel infinitely happier at the end. The unexpectedly high box office returns are a good sign that people want to see more than blockbusters.

It’s clear based on the work put in behind the scenes that Boyle and Curtis love the band as much as anyone else. That work translated to a film that serves as a love letter to one of the most important bands of all time. So, if you love The Beatles, you have to see this movie.

What did you think of Yesterday? Let us know in the comments!

Yesterday was released in theatres in the U.S. and the U.K. on June 28.