Martin Scorsese's 4 hour documentary on George Harrison bears very few of Scorsese's fingerprints. It is assembled from familiar Beatles footage, Anthology interview outtakes, previously unseen personal footage and photographs, and fresh interviews with certain individuals (Olivia Harrison, Clapton, and Ringo all have meaty interviews).
For the non-Beatle enthusiast, this will be overkill with a vengeance. For the casual Beatle enthusiast, it is probably just about perfect. For the die-hard, it is an experience which is rewarding and frustrating in equal measure. It is rewarding for two reasons: one, there are some lovely moments (chief among which are two anecdotes, one from Olivia and one from Ringo, which illuminate George's mordant sense of humour in the face of adversity) and, two there are some terrific musical moments which had previously been kept under wraps - indeed, I think I detected some unheard elements in Beatles mixes.
This is also one of the frustrations because, as is so often the case with this sort of project (Anthology was just the same) none of the musical items is seen through to completion - everything is cut short. Also, there are some major omissions, of which the Cloud 9 album is the most notable.
Even so, you come to the end of this feeling George's loss very keenly.
For the non-Beatle enthusiast, this will be overkill with a vengeance. For the casual Beatle enthusiast, it is probably just about perfect. For the die-hard, it is an experience which is rewarding and frustrating in equal measure. It is rewarding for two reasons: one, there are some lovely moments (chief among which are two anecdotes, one from Olivia and one from Ringo, which illuminate George's mordant sense of humour in the face of adversity) and, two there are some terrific musical moments which had previously been kept under wraps - indeed, I think I detected some unheard elements in Beatles mixes.
This is also one of the frustrations because, as is so often the case with this sort of project (Anthology was just the same) none of the musical items is seen through to completion - everything is cut short. Also, there are some major omissions, of which the Cloud 9 album is the most notable.
Even so, you come to the end of this feeling George's loss very keenly.