# Get Back 11.25 \[Beatles Documentary\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** disney-hulu, documentary-bio, music\ **Created:** [November 20, 2021, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651 "2021-11-20T02:06:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/101 "2021-11-29T02:35:26Z")
Am I the only one who finds it a slog? I’m sure I’ll make it through eventually but it’s been a rough go so far. Overall it is giving me a better appreciation for the group as musicians. I’ve always felt they were some of the best songwriters in history but I never felt they were particularly good musicians until now. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/102 "2021-11-29T02:59:52Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Am I the only one who finds it a slog? I’m sure I’ll make it through eventually but it’s been a rough go so far. No you’re not the only one. > [@blondebear](#): > > I don’t know how well _Get Back_ will go over with the general public–I suspect it’s to long and has too much noodling about to hold the interest of many. > [@blondebear](#): > > Casual fans who aren’t familiar with the myth of those sessions might have a tough time getting through the lack of focus and meandering nature of the early days. > [@alovem](#): > > The Guardian has just published a scathing review: > [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > But, geez, there’s so much wandering around, so much extraneous nonsense, so much of a feeling that they wanted to use every bit of film they had whether or not it added to the story. But it DOES pick up considerably during Part 2, and even more in Part 3. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/103 "2021-11-29T04:00:15Z")
It’s too bad they couldn’t have done a proper goodbye concert. It could have been for a good cause. It may be heretical, but I always thought the rooftop concert was a little self-indulgent/ obnoxious. It must have sounded terrible on the street, plus probably none of the onlookers knew any of the songs, so it would be for them a headscratcher. I like the studio footage. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/104 "2021-11-29T04:44:39Z")
Vimeo ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/105 "2021-11-29T15:26:11Z")
The more I think about it, the more I think John was still the leader of the band. Despite his tardiness and laid back attitude, he seems to be the only one who really understood the mission; a live rock ‘n’ roll album. This kind of explains his rather cruel rejection of “I Me Mine”. He was essentially saying “don’t bring a waltz to a rock fight.”. Certainly George was offended, but it spurred him to bring rockers like “Old Brown Shoe” next time. Pleasing John was still very important to all of the Beatles, especially when George Martin stepped away. And pleasing John was a much easier task than pleasing a control freak like Paul. John was also the first one to realize they didn’t have enough musicians to accomplish a “live” album. He also seemed to be the only one to realize that they needed a real manager. The obnoxious noodling and oldies are probably the same method they used to develop new material in the Hamburg days. They were trying to “get back” to 1962, not 1966. John was a more natural and intuitive leader than Paul, even when he appeared to be “checked out”. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/106 "2021-11-29T15:31:30Z")
I was kind of fascinated by the conversation between John and Paul after George left (the one that was secretly captured by the hidden microphone in the potted plant), in which John at least somewhat admitted that their egos were responsible for George’s feelings (“It’s a wound we’ve allowed to fester,” or something like that). John also seemed to suggest that he felt some of the same resentment toward Paul’s controlling nature. I think that George was the first one to bring up the subject of paying Billy Preston for playing on the album. I hope they did pay him–his contribution to those songs was immense. Edited to add, based on **Jas09** ’s comment: Was it just the waltz tempo that they didn’t like about “I Me Mine”? The Beatles did plenty of slow songs over the years. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/107 "2021-11-29T15:31:56Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Overall it is giving me a better appreciation for the group as musicians. I’ve always felt they were some of the best songwriters in history but I never felt they were particularly good musicians until now. Maybe somebody mentioned it already, but what do we think about how many scenes (particularly in Part 1) seemed to be about George or Paul (largely George) trying to get John to figure out what notes to play? Just an effect of the drugs? One part was the descending line at the end of the Let It Be chorus. John pretty notoriously hated that song, so perhaps he was just protesting in a super passive-aggressive way? And speaking of them slagging off George bringing a waltz to a rock concert why was Let It Be given a pass? That certainly isn’t a rocker. As John once said - that should have been a Wings song. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/108 "2021-11-29T15:35:53Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > And speaking of them slagging off George bringing a waltz to a rock concert why was Let It Be given a pass? They both made it on to the album, but neither made it to the roof. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/109 "2021-11-29T15:50:33Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > And Ringo is the guy who loves his job, loves the people he works with, has his own little niche, but it’s strictly 9 to 5 fior him. He doesn’t live and die for the gig, and if it ends tomorrow, he’ll get another one. Good assessment of all four. Ringo looks the professional, like a session musician who does his job better than anyone else could, but is ego-free. The others are artists; extremely creative but subject to the whims of their muses. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/110 "2021-11-29T15:57:04Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > Ringo looks the professional, like a session musician who does his job better than anyone else could, but is ego-free. Whenever I’ve heard Ringo asked about the situation of replacing Pete Best, his response has always been some fairly matter-of-fact variation on “He had the gig for awhile, then I got the gig.” ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/111 "2021-11-29T16:02:15Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Am I the only one who finds it a slog? I’m sure I’ll make it through eventually but it’s been a rough go so far. It is, but it’s worth slogging through. There’s little gemstones of insight scattered throughout, so you can’t half-watch while doing something else or you’ll miss interesting stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/112 "2021-11-29T16:13:04Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > And speaking of them slagging off George bringing a waltz to a rock concert why was Let It Be given a pass? And John didn’t seem to have a problem with a rock band playing a waltz when he wrote “Baby’s in Black.” ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/113 "2021-11-29T16:31:19Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > > [@Loach](#): > > > > Am I the only one who finds it a slog? I’m sure I’ll make it through eventually but it’s been a rough go so far. > > It is, but it’s worth slogging through. There’s little gemstones of insight scattered throughout, so you can’t half-watch while doing something else or you’ll miss interesting stuff. But I already have a full time job. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2021, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/114 "2021-11-29T16:57:34Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > But I already have a full time job. What’s more important: gainful employment, moderating the SDMB, or watching dead geniuses noodle about? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2021, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/115 "2021-11-30T00:31:26Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > Yes but there are moments where the audio is clearly from the video we’re seeing, but the mouths appear to be moving unnaturally or not moving at all. Are you sure those audio moments are from the video we’re seeing? The mouths not matching the audio seems a clear indication that they aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2021, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/116 "2021-11-30T01:53:59Z")
There were moments when I figured Jackson was just playing audio over some random video footage, but then someone on-camera would visibly join in on what was obviously the same conversation. So I think for the most part the video and audio were in synch. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2021, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/117 "2021-11-30T01:56:27Z")
The video/audio mismatch is partly due to raw material that Peter Jackson had to work with. The audio (“Nagra”) tapes were running the whole time but the cameras were starting and stopping at various times. There were around 150 hours of of audio and 60 hours of video. Jackson had to do his best to sync up the two and often times there simply wasn’t any video that matched up with the audio that he wanted to use. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2021, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/118 "2021-11-30T05:01:38Z")
Looking forward to getting around to seeing this. A lot of interesting comments, some almost like spoilers (but interesting ones!) Like the old t-shirt says: “I’m only here for the harsh John and Yoko home movies!” If there are any. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/119 "2021-12-01T04:20:41Z")
> [@rocking\_chair](#): > > I can’t believe all the smoking! How could anyone sing with all of the smoke?! How did they all not end up with lung cancer? I noticed a smoking warning in the opening. You don’t see that very often. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2021, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651/120 "2021-12-01T08:18:28Z")
I loved the way their faces lit up when they played with Billy the first time. You could see them glance at each other thinking “this sounds good!” The presence of a new face really seemed to invigorate them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/get-back-11-25-beatles-documentary/954651.md?page=7)