User reviews

I believe this candid look inside the troubled world of the later Beatles is a good account of why the world's greatest musical force ultimately broke up. I wouldn't easily recommend it to a "casual" Beatles listener, and certainly not at all would I suggest it for clueless "non-fans". But for the serious fan such as myself, this is fascinating to watch. Paul McCartney was the only Beatle at this point who was interested in trying to keep the band together; George Harrison was too busy getting fed up with Paul for telling him how to play his own guitar; Ringo Starr was lethargic and resigned to being the solemn background drummer; and John Lennon was so in love with Yoko Ono that he couldn't care less what the other three were doing anyway. So, it's this grim reality creeping into the once magical world of the Beatles' recording sessions that is tense and uncomfortable to watch here. But there is no denying that it's all frank, in-your-face, and well captured.

But it's not all ugliness. When Billy Preston is invited in for an inspired jam session, for example, everything seems like fun and games again. And the impromptu rooftop concert at the end of the movie displays The Fab Four at their best, playing great music together and having a lot of fun one last time as a unit, almost in spite of themselves. Of course, even with all its warts, there's always the music. Classic songs like "Two of Us," "I've Got a Feeling," "Don't Let Me Down," The Long and Winding Road," "Get Back," and the appropriate title tune itself are always there to make us feel good again. *** out of ****

The Beatles were not only a group that challenged the recording industry, and of course, the world of entertainment. They acted also as avant-gardè multi-media artists.

Not only they helped improving the pop music marketing with their innovative LP packages and stuff but also created new kind of media that would become a mania in the XXI century: the reality show. Yes, almost 100% of the scenes shown on Let It Be are cine realitè - the bare truth captured by the lens of cameras directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg.

In fact, although the band was working on the edge of their break-up, almost 90% of the scenes are cheerful and enjoyable. The main bulk of the footage shows Paul McCartney trying to find ways of enhance the Beatles performing and figuring out what to do in the future. Although John Lennon seems to be distracted by his future wife presence, Yoko Ono, he also looks to be happy playing and having fun - even dancing around to the sound of I Me Mine, sung by George.

By the way, George Harrison the most "unhappy" character also appears on the film having a ball singing rock and roll tunes. The lowest point (or highest, depending on the way you look at it) seems to be a row he had with Paul, but it only consumes about 5 minutes of the whole picture.

At last but not the least, Ringo Starr is shown for the first time ever playing a song - Octopus's Garden - that would later take part of Abbey Road - the LP that marked the end of the Fab Four as a group, but the begining of the Beatles as an universal legend.

I watched this Beatles documentary for the first time when it was released for the second time in the Spanish theaters in 1980.

I enjoyed it very much in spite of being 10 years old, because a friend of mine had the "Let it be" tape and we used to listen to it very often and we both knew all the songs pretty well. We had a splendid time.

Now I have a copy in VHS of the film and I use to watch it from time to time.

I know it´s mostly a documentary about The Beatles break-up which is kind of sad, but it would be unfair to say the film is not most enjoyable and besides the rehearsals and the arguments, it ends with the very last Beatles concert, (the famous rooftop concert).

The Beatles were four guys who spent some six years together 24 hours a day, "eight days a week" as they would say, working very hard, dealing with all kind of stressing events and it´s logical they split up in the end. Fame is very expensive. George Harrison explains it very well in the last chapter of The Beatles Anthology: "The fans gave the money and the screams, and The Beatles kind of gave their nervous systems...". And I agree with him. It had to be hell!.

None of the four Beatles was to blame for their break-up, that´s something that just had to happen.

If you ever have the chance of watching this film, just do it. It´s a must for all the Beatles fans and all the music lovers.

I hope this gem is released in DVD with lots of extras in the near future!!. Please, release it!!.

Long live the Beatles!.

The Beatles is probably the most famous musical act ever that has been on the ground of this Earth. That said the movie 'Let It Be' presents the group at a stage where they were about to break-up. They were not at their best during the filming, but what is shown in the movie is still about the most fabulous thing ever to see. There is no way anymore to get any closer to them than the 'Let It Be' movie.

John, Paul, George and Ringo will perform nicely raw versions of their famous hit songs. They haven't yet figured out all the lyrics yet but it's still nice to hear any the songs in a unfinished stage. The movie will also show you how they were playing some of their oldies as a warm up songs before starting with another take of their newer songs.

The atmosphere seems to be bit dark, Lennon is passive and Paul is clearly the one who is steering the ship now. Some visitors who appear at the studio make the daylight occasionally shine but as a better than nothing solution the rooftop concert in the end is "really enjoyable" like one of the passers-by say. It's all somehow sad, but strangely cool .

Yes the film is poorly edited--the sound sometimes doesn't exactly sync...but hey its the Beatles. Finally playing themselves in a film designed to show off their musical roots and working toward an album stripped of the "hee, hee, hee" and "blowing bubbles through straws". I saw the film when it was released 37 years ago. I have a VHS copy. I watch it at least two times a year. I still to this day do not see a film about a group breaking up. Albeit--there were some tense moments...but what "family" doesn't have tense moments. I remember the scene between Harrison and McCartney over George's guitar playing for "I've Got A Feeling"/I remember the scene between Lennon and McCartney discussing George's reluctance to "going out on the road". Tense/Uptight--sure--but what shines the most is the music. The rooftop concert shows just how hot a band the Beatles actually were. I actually find the album to be a joy...they actually get a chance to rock out just like they did in the early days. And with a nod to Lennon, they actually had a bite to these new songs. To dismiss this film is a big mistake. If anything--it should be looked upon as a historical document. I am all in favor of the film coming out on DVD. It would be a blast to see the unused footage and more.

Having never seen any VHS copies of this last Beatles movie and since it will probably be a very long time before it gets on DVD, I was stoked when I found out YouTube had this uploaded since the later part of summer 2007 and it was still there. All the things director Michael Lindsay-Hogg filmed were fascinating to me especially when Ringo played some piano with Paul or when John and Yoko danced or when Heather-a young pre-teen who's Paul's future wife Linda's daughter from a previous marriage-hung around the Apple Studios. (Oh, and while I did know of George's argument with Paul over George's guitar playing from an outtake that was used in "The Beatles' Anthology", only Paul's explanation to him about that is in here.) Then there's organ pianist Billy Preston who might have officially become the fifth Beatle had the group not split up some time after this film. The real exciting part was the legendary rooftop concert that caused some traffic and had Paul ad libbing some lines about getting arrested at the end of "Get Back"! What a way to end the film and loved hearing mostly positive comments from the crowd below. So on that note, Let It Be is very essential viewing for all Beatles fans or just any that loves good music performed live on film.

The Beatles were involved in five feature-length projects as a band. Certainly, 'Let it Be (1970)' is a far, far cry from 'A Hard Day's Night(1964)' and 'Help! (1965),' which were enjoyable, slightly goofy, comedies featuring the band at the height of their fame. Michael Lindsay-Hogg's documentary, on the other hand, is a fly-on-the-wall account of rehearsals and recording for the Beatles' final studio album. Though commissioned by The Beatles, originally as a television special, this is not a puff piece; instead, it documents a musical group struggling to hold together. The band members each sport untamed, unflattering facial hair; John Lennon has a constant shadow watching silently from his side; Ringo looks bored most of the time.

But there's some great music hidden in there amid the rabble of rehearsals. It's particularly awesome to see the musicians, particularly George and John, really getting into a performance of "Dig It!" (a terrific jam-piece unfairly shortened for the final album release). The documentary, of course, culminates with the Beatles' final public performance from the rooftop of Apple Studios, which brought street-traffic to a screeching halt, and had policemen milling around confusedly. John signs off with the memorable line, "I'd like to say thank you on behalf of the group and ourselves, and I hope we pass the audition"(fans of "The Simpsons" will no doubt note parallels with the rise-and-fall of barbershop quartet The Be Sharps).

There are a few curious things about this film. The theatrical cut was rased from a 210-minute rough edit, the final editing performed in the absence of John and Yoko. It's astonishing how Lindsay-Hogg wordlessly condemns Yoko Ono; his camera regards her with something bordering on contempt. By unexpectedly cutting away to her, always silent and watching, during the band's rehearsals, the director underscores the intrusiveness of her presence. She shouldn't be there, and we know it. Based on what I'd heard, I had anticipated a few more heated arguments between the band members. There's a fair bit of frustration evident, particularly towards the officious Paul, but probably nothing that spelled immediate doom for The Beatles.

There are many opinions on the movie itself and how it comes across. Personally, I think it's great because you get a look into the Beatles creative process. There isn't any other album they recorded where we get film footage of them creating their music. It wasn't a good time for the group. They already had a lot of friction during the making of The White Album. Paul gets a lot of flack for coming across as being bossy, but think about it, if Paul wasn't the driving force behind keeping the group going, they would have split up during the making of the White Album. We wouldn't have had any of the music that came after, and there would definitely be no Abbey Road, their masterpiece. If there is any concerns about how negative this film makes the group look, they could always alter it slightly, by putting an epilogue indicating that the group decided they would set their differences aside to record one final album with all of them fully participating, and that album would be Abbey Road. Now if the legal issues that keep holding this film up could be put aside and a blu ray with extra footage be released! Anything the Beatles release sells well, they know that, and this movie will not be any exception. They could also increase revenue with a limited theatrical release just prior to the blu ray's release. So many possibilities with this movie. Stop arguing over how to put it out and just Let It Be!

OK, so let me get this straight: Magical Mystery Tour, which I've yet to see but have heard is quite bad and pretentious and dated, is allowed to be on DVD, but *this* is banned by the 1/2 Beatles? Why? Because at one point Paul and George have a little argument over a song? As the British would say, bullocks! What they show in the film of arguments and sulking is what happens in ANY band, and in fact is usually much worse - I was almost surprised there wasn't more of the taped back-and-forth exchanged in the film, given what's been said how bad it got amongst the fab four during their final year in recording, particularly on Let it Be aka Get Back (the most chilling thing overall is the presence Yoko, who keeps popping up looking like she could duke it out with Bergman's Seventh Seal Death dude and probably win).

While I watched it on a reasonable if as a given muddy and slightly scratchy transfer online on bootleg, it was pretty much the film intact as it played almost 40 years ago. What makes it a must-see is not the direction, which is at best competent and at worst the weakest thing going for it - sadly, Al Maysles was already taken by the Stones, as his eye would have been perfect - but the Beatles and the music. I'd argue after watching this and listening to Let it Be... Naked that the majority of the songs are as great as the main tracks on Abbey Road. Indeed a few of the songs in the movie here, Maxwell Silver Hammer, Octopus Garden, wound up on that album, and are practically interchangeable from the rest of the output.

We see the Beatles do what they do best, be Beatles, play and work out the kinks in classic songs, and also the camaraderie that shows what underneath the image given by the other goofier movies that they were simply incredibly talented musicians. This is evidenced by the scenes where they don't actually play or rehearse their own songs but goof around, play rhythm and blues tunes and even at one point a mariachi number sung by Paul! There's not a lot of time spent with them just talking or shooting the s**t - at most we get some reminiscing between Paul and John about the Maharishi or some noodling around here and there between takes. It's not even entirely accurate to say it's documentary, as it's more like an all encompassing, authentic home movie with some extra cash to spare on cameras and editing.

It all leads up to that rooftop concert that is still one of those big bad-ass moments in rock and roll history (if, again, not filmed with the best lenses or cameramen, it was perhaps a given that they had to shoot it on the fly). The energy and fun comes through all the way, and contrary to the film's reputation Let it Be shows the Beatles as having fun and doing what they do best even in what was their darkest, near-end period. Maybe there's a longer cut out there that shows more of the arguments, more bickering back and forth and maybe some of Yoko leering on like a supernatural delusion. For me, at least, I'd rather not see it: what remains, and what should for God sakes be shown to a wider and more receptive Beatles audience, is very good stuff. 8.5/10

As a life-long Beatles fan don't expect objectivity here - I first saw this in the early 70's and found it riveting … and got the same feeling tonight. This was an early ordinary rockumentary about 4 ordinary yet very talented blokes in their late 20's at the peak of their creative powers, in the process of readjustment to being mere hairy bickering mortals again after experiencing a few years of quasi-godhood. "Mr. Epstein" was long dead although Paul was trying to fill his shoes, and their Apple Empire was shrinking. The Beatles almost on their own created intelligent pop/rock music, which imho has not moved on since 1969 where they left it. There have been many excellent innovative and intelligent rock bands that have come and gone since, many borrowing and adapting from the Beatles back catalogue – however I don't count the many cash-in rip-off bands such as Oasis. Has anyone since not ripped them off at some point? I've lost count of the number of times over the decades I've heard a "new" piece of music and said to myself "I've heard that before somewhere – ah yes, such and such by the Beatles". Apart from the quantum leaps in sound technology since then nothing of any lasting musical value has been added – there has been no progression. Led Zeppelin filled stadia – but did they fill billions of hearts? Queen was popular – but did they rule the world? Pop and rock music may have always been ephemeral, but along with Louis Armstrong, Bix Beiderbecke, Lata Mangeshkar, Frank Sinatra and Jimi Hendrix the Beatles weren't. Never mind about their timeless music, they even managed to look timeless while everyone else around them in here looked dated by the early '70's. God works in mysterious ways.

John, Paul, George and Ringo got together first in Twickenham Studios then in the Apple basement in January 1969 to rehearse some new songs with the assistance of almost-5th Beatle Billy Preston (and occasionally actual-5th Beatle George Martin) and with the hope of playing live again sometime soon. Yoko (definitely not 5th Beatle) would have probably been on stage with them. As it turned out on they only made it to the Apple roof on 30th January, disturbing the peace of the police on the streets of London below. The Rolling Stone review of the film from 9th July 1970 that I remember so well was typically over-reverential but had some telling points – the first being how deliberately grainy the photography was which still can take some getting used to and that there was over 800 hours of footage from 4 cameras to edit down to the brief 80 minutes we got. How on Earth can it ever be properly remastered and will more ever be officially available in our lifetimes? Maybe we should also bear in mind that the film was to be called Get Back as a return to simplicity for the band, and that McCartney originally penned racist lyrics for this sublime song which thankfully weren't incorporated into any of the final versions. There's a lot of classic pop music in here – from their own then new stuff to rock'n'roll standards from the '50's, which the Beatles were in an ideal and unchallengeable position to translate for listeners both of the Old World of pop and the New World of rock that they left behind them.

Highlights: A splendid cod version of Bessame Mucho from McCartney; a loving version of You Really Got A Hold On Me from Lennon; the videos for Two Of Us, Let It Be, Long And Winding Road; and Get Back, Don't Let Me Down up on the freezing roof; so many others. Overall: to a fan, a beautiful and sad account of a unique group of individuals struggling and failing against disintegration; this should also be essential viewing to fans of intelligent pop/rock music who might have sometimes wondered where U2, Bon Jovi, Kings Of Leon et al came from – so far though, this was the artistic pinnacle.

I disagree with the previous writer that the LP "Let It Be" contained the Beatles "weakest efforts" - not sure how you can call "The Long & Winding Road", "Get Back", and "Let It Be" weak efforts. However I do agree that the movie leaves a lot to be desired. This is not a great piece of work - but in a strange way - it is appropriately fragmented. This was a complex band, filmed no doubt at a cross-road. The absence of their (recently deceased) manager, the presence of strangers in the studio, the prospect of ever present angst, and combative postures.

While not an easy film to watch, in my opinion a true Beatles fan will take from it the best sense of why this marriage had to end.

I didn't watch this until today. As there was so much talk about it chronicling the break up of the Beatles, I didn't want to see it back in 1969 or since.

However, having seen Peter Jackson's far superior Get Back (2021) and seeing nothing of note to indicate a falling apart, I thought I would watch the original to see if there was any difference in content.

Well, there wasn't. The stuff about Yoko causing disharmony during these sessions, as far as the recorded evidence is concerned, is nonsense. She was there, but she didn't interfere or say anything. Things may have happened off camera, because they were all very conscious of being filmed. It shows more in Get Back than Let it Be.

As a standalone film this was very badly done. The editing is atrocious, the film quality is poor and the sound is not good.

There is no story here, it is just a hotchpotch of film edited together, and not always in sequence. The snips of the police and the roof-top concert being a case in point.

Thankfully a far better documentary of the same sessions has now been released.

Paul on the piano knocking out a classical piece; George helping Ringo compose Octopus's Garden on the piano; John and Yoko dancing to George's I, Me, Mine; John doing the slide guitar on his lap for George's For You Blue; Paul and Ringo pounding out some blues on the piano; Paul doing the beautiful un-Phil Spectorized version of The Long and Winding Road with a strong assist from the group and Billy Preston which was preceded by a gorgeous version of Let It Be; And it all culminates with the concert on the roof that frankly defies description. For all the things that I've read about the difficulty of these sessions, and some of that comes through in the movie, once they got going they sure all seemed to be enjoying themselves. If you're a fan this is a must. Even if you're not, it's great to revisit the late 60's Beatles. I'd have given it a 20 if I could!

Let It Be started out as a documentary about The Beatles recording material for what was to be their next album. What director Michael Lindsay Hogg got instead was a documentary about a band who's best days were (unfortunately)behind them & were obviously tired of it all and each other. Hogg shot something like 100 hours,or so,of footage of the Beatles in an glum,dour & sometimes depressed state of mind,and the look on their faces (especially Ringo's)expresses this. The film is broken up in four parts. The first,filmed at Twickenham Studios finds them rehearsing songs,getting in some heated debates,all the time with Paul McCartney trying to be boss of the band (at least in front of the camera). The second part takes place in the basement studios at their Apple Records building,as they jam on some of the oldies that they loved in their youth. In this sequence,they at least seem to be in a somewhat better state of mind (but you could tell that things were far from ginger peachy among them). The third sequence finds them performing what looks like a pre cursor to the MTV style of music video,with the band (with Billy Preston,on organ)playing 'Two Of Us','Let It Be',and a far superior version of 'The Long & Winding Road',without the cloying strings of Phil Spector in the background. The last,and best sequence of the film finds them playing what would be the final public performance of the Beatles,live on the roof of Apple Records for the famous (infamous)free,lunch time concert,which would eventually be shut down by the local Police (also featuring Billy Preston on electric piano). This is a sad,but worthy film for old & new Beatle fans. Although this film earned a 'G' rating by the MPAA in 1970, it does contain a bit of off colour language that'll probably go over the heads of most folk

Oscar awarded documentary about Beatles final sessions. Great occasion to peep behind the big scene and see The Fab Four working in the studio. Amazing picture that must be seen not only by Beatles fans, but by all good movies lovers. An undeniably classic with lots of legendary tunes.

Another watched in-flight movie on my IPod, "Let it Be" for my money now stands as an honest and convincing testimony to the talent and stature of The Beatles, even as one can sense the ties that bind loosening them individually in front of you.

Of course there's a sadness and elegiac sensation for fans in watching this "posthumous" film and it's also fair to say the music isn't always top-drawer Beatles - only McCartney brings his best work to the party, although John and especially George would recover their chops in time for "Abbey Road". Sure, too the playing's a bit sloppy at times but there's never a moment when there isn't fascination at something going on on-screen. And for-by much is made of Paul and George's spat (with John acting as unlikely peace-maker) and the at times tired and dishevelled appearance of the guys themselves, there are many other revealing and rewarding vignettes, even before director Michael Lindsay-Hogg, corrals the band for three assured in-studio video performances (all, significantly, of Macca tracks) and then the great idea (since aped by the Stones and U2) of playing their new stuff live on Apple's roof, on a biting cold Jamuary day. It was also inspired of Lindsay-Hogg to intersperse the general public's comments before the group brings the "audition" to a close.

The photography is great, the four stepping into life from their iconic White Album photos and I enjoyed the honest but fair editing applied to what was by all accounts a massively over-recorded exercise. Favourite moments for me include Paul and Ringo's boogie-woogie piano run-through, George assisting Ringo with the writing of "Octopus's Garden" and of course that final run-through of "Get Back" on the roof, with Paul surprisingly getting in some improvised anti-Establishment digs before the police pulled the plug.

Of all the concerts that ever have been or ever will be, that 20 minute Apple gig is the one I wish I could have been at. And surely even if slightly Pyrrhically, the great music they produce over the last thirty minutes or so of the film justifies the raison-d'etre of the film, working up the songs from in-progress to issuable level.

Not a bad doco as it's a film of its time with the director stuck in the middle of filming the greatest band in the world break up , worth it alone to see the final roof concert and things like george arguing with Paul which will probably be out of Jackson's upbeat view of this time in the Beatles legacy in his version, if not officially released try track it down on YouTube or bootleg DVD .

The Beatles were on the verge of permanent implosion from within when the landmark documentary "Let if Be" was filmed. The iconic band could hardly stand to be in the same room with one another at this point, let alone continue on as the greatest popular music group the world will ever know.

Still, having watched this fascinating chronicle again after several years, I was struck with this one prevailing notion.

That is clearly just how much dang fun these legendary Liverpudlians were having when they put all the business and inflated ego BS aside, cranked up the amps and launched full force into exactly what they ever really wanted to do from the beginning.

Rock our as--- right straight off.

It's hard to give a number rating, but I rated it mostly on how pleasant it is to watch, which is not very. As a historical quasi-documentary, it's a 10. But I really don't like it. These days you can easily find vast alternatives on YouTube and the Anthology.

Obligatory breakup discussion: the writing is certainly on the wall in the film, though I wonder if it were edited that way because they had, in fact, already broke up. Anyway, having Yoko in the studio was obviously not wise, but that was far from the only problem. It's easy to lose sight out just the sheer amount of musical production they created in just six or seven years. I'm thinking they were severely burned out and needed a couple years apart before things got to the temperature they did.

What more can one ask for than the greatest rock band in history jamming, feuding, joking, creating and for the finale, performing live on a London rooftop? The reason why this movie is sometimes panned is because of how ragged their (the Beatles) playing was at times. That is the good stuff to me,and for people that love the album. That ragged sound was popular by bands later, but the Beatles had moments of pure brilliance. John and Paul harmonizing at the beginning of "Across the Universe" and the rehearsal of "Two of Us" is what the public never saw before of the Beatles recording process. A must see for any Beatles fan or music fan. This is a classic film that captures an era of the break-up of the Beatles.

Let it Be is a look at how a great band can disintergrate before your eyes. It is almost impossible not to view this film without a knowing nod of oh yes I can see how it happened. The truth is the making of this documentary makes far more better reading than actually viewing it. In November 1968 The Beatles released over thirty new songs recorded between bouts of hostility and anger at the presence of Yoko in the studio. With Ringo set to make the film Magic Christian in February 1969 it is hard to see how the group could have got back together after six months apart. Paul came up with the idea to make a TV show around the Beatles recording and rehearsing new material from scratch at Twickenham with a second show that would see the group performing at the Roundhouse, London.All this completed in January 1969. All the problems that acompany this idea are seen in the film. The main problem is the group just do not have enough new material, John's heavy drug use make him just a passenger.However his ego will not allow George to take a more central role and this is why George walks out of the group and not the argument that is so often referred to by everyone who has seen the film. When he rejoins the band at their Saville Row studio along with Billy Preston the group seem more relaxed. However it obvious that all the superior compositions like 'Let it Be', 'Thr Long and Winding Road' and 'Get Back' are all Paul's and it is he who's presence dominates their rooftop performance. When all the recordings were completed their were no TV shows just enough footage to make a rough cut of a film 120 minutes long with John and Yoko equally to the fore with Paul. Allegedly rejected by the remaining Beatles his footage was taken out and what is left is a group dominated by Paul, who comes across as the leader pushing and bullying the band into a cohesive unit. But ultimatly isn't that what everybody wants The Beatles just playing music.

It's fitting that the film opens with a shot of the drumstand logo 'The Beatles' set slightly askew. We then see the same logo lifted up and set atop a canvas-covered piano by a roadie, Mal Evans. The room is dark and hushed, and Mal and a single helper are the only people in sight, as if the Beatles already broke up 15 minutes before the movie began. What we are about to witness, apparently, is not a rock band but a museum exhibit.

But wait! The Fabs are still together...albeit barely. "Let It Be" catalogs the disintegration of the world's most famous rock band. It's true they kept playing for nearly 12 months after they were filmed making this rockumentary, and did better work, too, but you can see the clock ticking.

The good thing about this movie is you feel like someone floating in the wings while the dynamic foursome try to figure out their newest set of songs and whether they are any good. Some of them, like "The Long And Winding Road," "I Me Mine," "Get Back," "Two Of Us," and the title song, are not just good but enduring classics, though they would need some sweetening at the producer's console to achieve their final form. You hear the Beatles candidly chat with each other and the others hanging around the recording sessions. For Beatles fans, this is vital material, and you are well advised to hang on through to the rooftop sequence that ends the picture, not because it is the best thing in the movie (it is, but the band is flat and the show was over too quickly) but because you do get a feeling of the world's greatest band ever kicking out the jams and rediscovering a fragment of their greatness for the sake of a lunchtime crowd in London's trendy Savile Row (as a vicar says when asked by someone with a camera: "It's nice to get something for free in this country.")

The bad news is at least three of the four principal players in this drama seem to mind you floating in the wings and wish you'd go away. John, Ringo, and especially George were stressed out at the presence of the cameras and stare at the lenses with a mordant, frumpy cast. You can't blame them because the band (or at least the three of them) had little in the way of apparent material to offer. But you wait in vain for them to sort things out and become the band they really were in the recording studio. They never emerge from their funks, and "Let It Be" never quite becomes a good movie because of it.

The fourth band member is a different story. Paul McCartney was the guy who put the cameras in Twickenham and Apple Studios. "Let It Be" was his brainchild, and it shows. While the others snub the lens, Paul catches your eye with a lingering look that reads: "Where were you? I've been waiting all morning for you to show up. Look what I've come up for you on the piano. You like it?" Paul's inviting gaze and pleasing personality go a long way to make "Let It Be" endurable. You come to seek him out in every frame. But unless you are a fan, of Paul and/or the Beatles, it's not enough to make it worthwhile.

I am a Paul and Beatles fan. So what do I enjoy? The quick-tempo version of "Two Of Us" with Paul and John scat-singing face-to-face, snarling Presley-like at each other for easy laughs while John's girlfriend Yoko Ono sulks on the sidelines. The account Paul gives of watching footage from the group's then-recent visit to Rishikesh, India and the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, how he watched John board a helicopter with the "holy" man and remembered John later explaining he wanted to see if Yogi would "slip you the answer" en route, is exactly how Paul describes it later on the Beatles' Anthology, except in "Let It Be" you get to see him telling this anecdote to John directly. I even like the rooftop sequence. It's overrated as a performance; the band is out of tune even with talented keyboardist Billy Preston offering some needed life support. Even many people who like "Let It Be" the album won't like this section, which is only the best part of the movie. As I said, you have to be a Beatles fan to want to see "Let It Be," but like a JFK admirer watching the Zapruder film, saying you'll enjoy it is another matter.

The two best things about this movie, for the casual fan: One is you get to see how much of a drag it is to record music in a studio, even eventual rock standards. Two is you discover the genesis of the verb 'To Yoko,' meaning 'to totally conform your significant other to your thinking, alienating him/her (usually him) from any previous personal association in the process.' If you slow this film down slowly enough, you can literally see John's inner being sucked out of his head.

But for great Beatles music, go elsewhere. This is sociology, not entertainment.