Directed by:
Tony PalmerScreenplay:
Tony PalmerCast:
Neville Chamberlain (a.f.), Winston Churchill (a.f.), Adolf Hitler (a.f.), David Essex, Peter Gabriel, Elton John, Jeff Lynne, Helen Reddy, Rod Stewart (more)Plots(1)
War footage meets the Bee Gees, Elton John, Tina Turner, Peter Gabriel, Bryan Ferry and others as they belt out new arrangements of Beatles songs. It's an unlikely and bizarre concept for a film that closed before it ever opened in 1976. Tony Palmer had been briefly involved in an early cut but had to leave to make the All You Need Is Love series. An alternate cut was rejected by the studio and the film languished on a shelf. Forty years on, Palmer saw potential that had eluded others. He re-imagined and recut the soundtrack and visuals, then added more music - including classical compositions from Vaughan Williams and Shostakovich. New visuals were brought in, such as archival footage of Roosevelt, Churchill and Hitler, as well as current scenes from war-torn Syria. The result is a truly original anti-war musical. Here's a rare opportunity to catch it on the big screen. (Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival)
(more)Cast
Neville Chamberlain (a.f.)
UK
Best movies:
Arch of Triumph (1948) - a.f.
Canaris: Master Spy (1954) - a.f.
The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (1974) - a.f.
Winston Churchill (a.f.)
UK
Best movies:
Anne Frank: The Whole Story (2001) (TV movie) - a.f.
And Now for Something Completely Different (1971) - a.f.
A Bridge Too Far (1977) - a.f.
Adolf Hitler (a.f.)
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
Dangerous: The Short Films (1993) (video compilation) - a.f.
The King's Speech (2010) - a.f.
Anne Frank: The Whole Story (2001) (TV movie) - a.f.
David Essex
UK
Best movies:
Journey of Honor (1991)
Assault (1971)
The Guvnors (2014)
Peter Gabriel
UK
Best movies:
Live 8 (2005) (concert)
New York Stories (1989)
Elton John
UK
Best movies:
The Freddie Mercury Tribute: Concert for AIDS Awareness (1992) (concert)
Billy Elliot the Musical (2014) (theatrical recording)
Live 8 (2005) (concert)
Jeff Lynne
UK
Helen Reddy
Australia
Best movies:
Airport 1975 (1974)
Rod Stewart
UK
Best movies:
Rod Stewart: One Night Only – Live At The Royal Albert Hall (2004) (concert)
The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee (2022) (concert)
Play It to the Bone (1999)
Frankie Valli
USA
Best movies:
Bee Gees: One Night Only (1997) (concert) - a.f.
Witness to the Mob (1998) (TV movie)
Modern Love (1990)