Rating: 
Summary: GREAT FUN
Review: I am big fan of the beatles. since i am 22 years old and olbvisoly wasnt around when it came out. i recenlty saw the realese in theartes. i thought it was a great flim. it very funny. trust me if you have seen it ever get ready to laugh.In some parts you feel sympatehic for the beatles because they can not go anywhere with out getting mobbed. it a great movie all the way thru. i wil buy my own copy soon.
Rating:
Summary: Good to see it released but some extras would be welcome.
Review: Surely we could have a trailer and a documentry on this DVD.And what about a commentary?With all the interviews and the information on "the making of a hard days night",they could cobble together a commentary easily.
Rating: 
Summary: This is why they will always be the Fab Four!
Review: My dad's a grouchy sort of guy, but when he listens to the Beatles he just smiles and he's a kid again. I think the Beatles were the last great "pop" band -- they weren't afraid of pretty melodies, funny lyrics, and hip countercultural references. From "She Loves You" to "A Day in the Life" you could always hum along to a Beatles tune. This movie shows us why the Beatles were so lovable -- they really win you over. Richard Lester succeeds in making them look "cool" without any of the pretentiousness that usually accompanies rock stars. The personalities of the Fab Four are so endearing that their later breakup becomes all the more heartbreaking. John is sarcastic, witty, Paul amiable and "cute," George (always IMO the best looking Beatle) quietly funny, and Ringo accepts his position as the "other" Beatle with such good-natured humor. One of the best scenes shows Ringo chatting it up with a boy who has deserted school for the day. They both bond about being "deserters." The musical performances are remarkable if you consider a Metallica concert, where the stage is so "busy" no wonder James Heffield was was injured by fire onstage. Back then, it was just four guys, a few guitars, and some drum sets. One of my favorite things about the Beatles was that, unlike today's boy bands, their voices were not slick and polished: they always sounded a little thin, a little overexerted, even occasionally a little off-pitch. You can actually hear them straining to reach the high notes. Makes them so much more real, IMO.
Rating:
Summary: MADCAP, WONDERFUL, PURE "CLEAN" FUN, YEAH, YEAH, YEAH!
Review: I love this movie. I really do. It is truly a rock classic. As a child, I knew practically every line in the movie by heart. (This was in the days before videos and internet). "A Hard Day's Night" was released early in 1964 and supposedly chronicles "A Day in the Life" (wrong song -- that was 1967 from Sgt. Pepper)! of the Beatles. At the opening of the film, we see them dodging their adoring public. In one memorable scene, Paul dons a fake beard (it is interesting to note that this beard showed the world at large how Paul would look a few years later) and hides behind a paper. Sharing the bench with Paul is the "clean old man" identified as Paul's grandfather. A feisty, sharp old man, the man playing Paul's grandfather certainly adds a fair share of mischief and fun to the film. He is not too different from his "young charges" in that he is able to get up to some serious mischief. When Paul says HE is the old man's grandfather, one cannot help thinking that Paul is saying the roles of responsibility have been reversed as the old man is certainly a handful! Each of the Beatles is a distinct personality. John is delightfully wicked and has an evilly delicious satirical wit! I love it! George is more or less the straight man, Paul the more cerebral and Ringo, the lovable, basset hound eyed drummer who feels underappreciated in this film. Ringo clearly has a flair for acting. He is genuine, sympathetic and believable. As a child, I adored Ringo. The movie is truly hilarious! I love the way the Beatles dodge their fans by using a car as a decoy while they race to make their train. Once on board, Paul's grandfather is so unruly that he is forced to ride in the baggage car. John cheers up the man's somber tone by having the band play, "I Should Have Known Better." Funnier hijinks occur throughout the movie. The Beatles sneak out of their hotel room to go dancing. Irate at being left behind, the grandfather steals the clothes off of a hotel worker and follows the Beatles to the club. Norm and Shake who play straightmen to their more lighthearted counterparts are managers who also trail the Beatles to the club. They are upset because the Beatles dodged responding to fan mail and took Ringo's embossed invitation to go to the club. The music is flawless. Brilliant lyrics, excellent playing and well thought intervals for the songs in the film all worked. My personal favorites are the lovely, haunting ballads of "And I Love Her," "If I Fell" (that one used to bring tears to my eyes when I was little) and the delightful, fun, "I'm Happy Just to Dance With You." I just love it! My favorite part was when Ringo, riled into action by the acerbic old man, takes him at his word and decides to "go out parading." Ringo befriends a young boy who is ditching school for the day. These two "deserters" commiserate with each other about being abandoned by their fellows. On his stroll, Ringo fails at dart throwing, fails at helping a lady cross a mudpuddle (his Raleighesque gesture got him arrested when the dear lady fell into a manhole)and fails at convincing the arresting officer he meant no harm. Once at the police station, the grandfather enlists the aid of Ringo's young friend and, as you might have guessed, gets past the iron guard and has the other 3 Beatles rushing to the precinct house. Ringo is sprung and the show closes with a delightful concert replete with great songs. The Beatles leave the concert hall via helicopter and the grandfather, never able to leave well enough alone, drops out a bag full of Beatles' photographs which he [the grandfather] personally autographed. This is truly a fun, delightful movie.
Rating:
Summary: Fun enough; the trials and tribulations of a pop band
Review: The Beatles' first movie, allegedly chronicling a typical day in their lives. As a film, it's jumpy enough to give you a headache; director Richard Lester only calms down when the boys are playing, and some of the numbers are textbook examples of how musical performances should be shot and edited (with as little trickery and pizzazz as possible). As a high-spirited, energetic lark, though, it's invaluable for fans, who won't care if Paul, John, George, and Ringo can't really act (though John does toss off a few good barbs). There is a small streak of meanness, though: Lester treats the Beatles' fans the way the boys themselves probably saw them -- as mindless, shrieking girls who chase them everywhere and force them to use intricate strategies just to get from a car to a building. (You get the feeling that if the mob of girls ever got their hands on the boys, they'd simply rip the poor lads to shreds.) And the last shot is of pieces of paper falling from the Beatles' helicopter -- fan mail, perhaps? None of this bothered the millions who flocked to the movie, though. As Paul's "grandfather," who is "very clean" and also a hell of a lot of trouble, Wilfrid Brambell steals the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Deserters, all of them
Review: This is one wild script. In fact it didn't really surprise me when I discovered that it had been nominated for an Oscar for screenplay. Apparently the film was made in only seven or eight weeks, primarily to cash in on the Beatles' "trendiness" which was assumed wasn't going to last that long. Whilst I was watching it I thought of a great double feature: a year or so ago a film came out called The Road To God Knows Where. It's a documentary of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds 1989 tour of America that is a great illustration of just how monotonous and repetitive life on the road is, and that one of the reasons why rock shows seem overly dramatic is because THAT is the most important (and fun) thing that the band gets to do ALL day, from city to city, coast to coast, country to country, continent to continent. I was thinking about this while watching A Hard Day's Night because the script really goes out of it's way to demonstrate through surreal exaggeration just what BS your average phenomenal band from Liverpool has (had) to put up with strictly because it's a part of the media. I mean, as far as a plot is concerned, you're not ever really SURE that the old guy is Paul's grandfather. It's just assumed for the entire length of the film. At one point in a great Freudian slip Paul even says "I'm his grandfather." It's also really fascinating to watch how the concept of femininity in the individual Beatles is bandied about in the script. I believe John was the only one who was married (to Cynthia) when the film was made, but the lads really play up willingly the overriding suspicion of their sexual orientation by defending, nurturing and supporting each other in order to keep the teeming hordes out AND as a result very coyly (this IS 1964 still) show coquetry to be such silly BS. (I've had this conversation quite a few times with some friends about how these days a band is either word of mouth, or else they are MEGA. There doesn't seem to be any sort of gradation of fame anymore. No time for artists to develop. I think both extremes would be Nirvana and The Beatles. Kurt Cobain never fully developed a thick hermetical seal that an artist needs in order to separate one's self from the world's concept of you, and The Beatles were probably the very first band who ever had to deal with the paparazzi on such relentless terms). It's just so fascinating that an innocent little bit of fluff like this film was designed to be should still hold up some thirty years later. I think one of my favorite parts is when Ringo starts to think that maybe he IS underappreciated and heads down to the water where he starts talking to the 11 year old about his friends Ginger, Eddie Falon and Ding- Dong. "Deserters, all of them." And Ringo admits that he was a "deserter" in school as well and now realizes, all these years later, just how proud he is of it. I mean, after all is said and done, that was/is the underlying moral of the Beatles: a working class hero is something to be.
Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: This is a charming, hilarious film. For anyone who debates whether the Stones or the Beatles are better: Could the Stones have given such charming performances as the Beatles do here? NO! The script is wonderfully written, and was even nominated for an Academy Award (though it didn't win.) What Elvis movie ever got a best script nomination? It was quickly shot (three months after the Beatles started filming it, it was in the theaters!), and Phil Collins was a child extra in the concert scene (in the audience). And anyone who thinks the Beatles would have been as good without Ringo, you'll see in this movie that they just wouldn't have been. (Pete Best in interviews comes across as very bland and boring.) And I really like Paul's grandfather. He's very clean!
Rating:
Summary: One of my faves
Review: This film is one of my favorite movies of all time. I am a big time Beatles fan, and searched for this movie. I found a copy at a music store that only had one copy of this movie, "Magical Mystery Tour", and "Help!"...I now have all three. A Hard Day's night is an awesome movie, chronicling what it would be like to be the most sought-after band in the world. I wish they would re-release this in theaters, because I sadly never saw it there.
Rating:
Summary: I wish I could give it 10 stars!
Review: I adore this movie. It is funny, witty, and original. The fab four are hilarious, as is Paul's grandfather (a villian, a real mixer). You must own the CD in order to appreciate the movie even more. I am lucky to own this movie since it is no longer available. I taped it off a friend of mine, and it came out great. An essential for any Beatles fan, if you haven't seen it just buy it, you will love it!
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: Of course I saw this film when it came out, but now my 4 year old daughter wants to see it over and over. It actually gets better the more you watch it- there's quite a bit of dialog that goes unnoticed at first (especially if you're American) that is really quite clever. The Beatles themselves are surprisingly good, considering they are not actors. My only regret is that the songs are lip-synched, not performed live. Of course, the REAL tragedy is that it is no longer available. Get a DVD copy while you still can (some copies are still around, usually an online auction item). Relive the excitement of early Beatles!
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