Update (1/7/03)

Update (12/10/02)

Update (11/28/02) From Terry Ott:

The December issue of Sound & Vision, generally considered as one of the "best" audio and video mags, comes out swinging pretty hard against Miramax's new 2 DVD set, "A Hard Day's Night." In David Ranada's respected, "Home Theater," feature, the audio of AHDN is ripped as being "deep-sixed by the new set's producers."

"There's so much wrong with the sound of this DVD, its hard to decide where to start," complains Ranada.

Ranada writes that the sound is a "new synthesis, like the fake stereo reissues of the mono originals in the early 1960s." "The rechanneling-to 5.1-itself is of poor quality sonically. The music has an amorphous, smeary front image with synthetic reverberation coming from the surrounds at a level that changes from song to song," Ranada said.

In layman's terms, I think Ranada is saying that the entire soundtrack has been botched. He notes that there are no provisions to "even 'dumb down' your system," folding the 5.1 into the original mono, because most surround processors won't allow it.

And after the long delay's and promises of nirvana with this set, it is difficult to understand how the sound could have been so abused, as many are claiming.

Perhaps it stems from the fact that 1985 EMI CD, AHDN, was released only in mono, despite the availabilty of 4 track multi-reels at Abbey Road Studio. George Martin said at the time that the first four Beatle albums were "meant" to be heard in mono.

Whether they were or not, the problem with the digital source material of AHDN apparently remains. Think about it: How can ANYONE make satisfactory 5 channel mixes out of 1 original channel!

However, as I always caution on any "sound affairs," judge for yourself because the appreciation of any particular recording is such a subjective exercise, due to-for lack of a better term-ear prejuidice.

Update (10/16/02) From Kristen Tash:

The current issue of People (10/14/02) with CSI cast on the cover has a 2 page article with some nice pix from AHDN. It's about some "long lost" photos found in Walter Shenson's office. I thought it was kind of interesting that a cache of photos from AHDN were found at just about the same time that that University in Scotland found the photos from "Help!" Serendipity or syncronicity or whatever?? Anyway, we love those photos! There is a cute photo of George in the train car that I don't recall seeing before, as well a nice one of him and John, talking.

From Christopher Chardi:

I saw that someone mentioned the House of Blues AHDN party and I thought you and your readers might like the set list for the evening. Let me tell you, I've seen the Fab Four probably around 75 times, and this was probably the loudest, most rocking Fab Four show I've ever seen:

.

 "Another Hard Day's Night" 
by the George Martin Orchestra.
. Martin Lewis introduces Victor 
Spinetti and John Junkin.

FAB FOUR SET #1: 
. A Hard Day's Night
. I Should Have Known Better
. I Wanna Be Your Man
John: "George, are you ready?" 
George: "By all means, I'd be prepared 
for that eventuality."
. Don't Bother Me
. All My Loving
John: "I'll show him!"
. If I Fell
John, to Ringo: "I think I need more banging here, on the third bit."
Paul: "The third bit!", plays opening bass lick for "I Want To Hold Your
Hand,"
just like in the film...adds "Has anyone seen my grandfather?"
. Can't Buy Me Love
. And I Love Her
Paul: To balcony, "Have you lost him? I'll cripple ya!"

John: "We'll do the show right here, yeah!" 
. I'm Happy Just To Dance With You
. This Boy (Ringo's Theme) (with Vic Flick on guitar)
. Tell Me Why
. She Loves You 
Grandfather look-alike comes onstage and 
sits on Ringo's platform during song.
John: "Hey Ringo...you're a swine!"
. A Hard Day's Night 
John Junkin and Victor Spinetti come back 
onstage to introduce next song, John
holds bottle up to his nose and inhales.
. You Can't Do That 

INTERMISSION

. John Junkin does Peter Sellers' Richard III
 "A Hard Day's Night" bit with
Rob Christie on piano.  
. John Junkin introduces Victor, responds
 to "quit bein' taller than me!"
heckler with "what will you be when you grow up?"
. Victor Spinetti comes out screaming as
 the drill sergeant from "Magical
Mystery Tour" and marches up in front of
 Fab Four, lined up for inspection in
their "Help!" turtlenecks and suits.  I swear 
he ended his rant with "YOU GET
YOUR BLOODY HAIR CUUUUUT!", 
just like in the film.  I think this may have been
the highlight of the evening for me.
. James Bond music from "Help!"

FAB FOUR SET #2:
. Help!
. I Feel Fine
. Love Me Do
. I'll Cry Instead
. This Boy
. Slow Down (sung by special guest 
Steven Bishop...did a great job, in my
opinion)
. Drive My Car
. She's A Woman
. Anytime At All
. Yesterday 
. Day Tripper
. I Saw Her Standing There
. Twist And Shout
. ENCORE: Long Tall Sally

"George" (Michael Amador) slipped the famous 
"I'll play whatever you want
me to
play, or I won't play at all!" line from
 the "Let It Be" film in there
somewhere, but I can't remember where.

Update (10/14/02) From Jeremy Ansell:

Hi Thanks for the fantastic Beatles site. I have some info for the A Hard Day's Night DVD page:

In reference to the audio speed problems of the DVD: The only songs in the AHDN film that run slow are the ones performed at the TV show. This was indeed because of the inclusion of TV monitors in the shots. Theatrically released films run at 24 frames per second, whereas PAL TV is 25 fps. To avoid flicker on the monitors, the film cameras were run at the faster speed for these scenes. Unfortunately, the music playback that The Beatles mimed to was not sped up to compensate. Hence, the music is now 4% slow.

Those of us in PAL countries have suffered with the "speed-up" effect ever since movies were first shown on TV. Films shot at 24 fps get sped up by 4% to match the 25fps TV frame rate. Arnold Schwarzenegger doesn't sound nearly as butch on TV here as he does at the movies or on NTSC video, which doesn't get sped up.

Perversely, this explains an earlier post which claimed the AHDN songs sounded fine on Australian television. Yes, "And I Love Her" and the other TV show songs would have been at their correct pitch, but the opening title track and "Can't Buy Me Love" would have been too fast.

Having said that, all PAL VHS releases of AHDN have seemingly been copied from an NTSC master, so we've ended up with the same pitch problem as those in NTSC countries! I haven't yet viewed a PAL copy of the DVD, so I don't know if the same is true with this new edition.

These days it's possible to digitally pitch-correct audio. It's a shame that AHDN wasn't given that chance. As an aside, I wonder if anybody noticed 30 years ago that the audio in the theatrical releases of "Magical Mystery Tour" and "Let It Be" sounded slow? These were originally shot for UK TV at 25 fps but would have been played 4% slower in the cinemas...

Thanks for that. Bound to confuse some readers even more!

Jeremy Ansell
http://www.jamjarvideo.com

Update (10/13/02) From Girlswanted7:

Reading all this negative criticism about the new DVD Hard Days Night is making me upset. I do happen to think the picture and sound quality is good. However, the songs are a little slower during the end performances. My only hope is that when the Beatles catalogue is remastered, Peter Mew does not have anything to do with it. I mean the quality of "Beatles 1" is just pathetic.

Honestly Steve, this is why I don't listen to the Beatles as much as I used to. The people who run the Beatles catalogue are dinosaurs who think they are superior and don't know what they are doing. The only good product they put out is "Yellow Submarine" and the "Anthologies." But, I just turned 25 and I have plenty of time to wait for them to be replaced. Seems like a harsh statement but it's true. In a matter of time this will all change into proper hand

Comment: First, on the issue of the songs running slower, if memory serves (and it always doesn't, but...), the songs, especially "And I Love Her," ran slow in the original film. So the DVD makers shouldn't be blamed. As for "1", as we've often noted, it wasn't meant to upgrade the catalog, only to sell it. And it did. Very well.

Update (10/11/02)

Update (10/9/02) In its first week on the U.S. DVD sales charts, AHDN came in at No. 2 ...behind "Monsters, Inc." Not bad. "Grease" was No. 3.

From Gabor Peterdi (aka Metapex):

Just would like to point out that I have the single DVD European Miramax release - supposedly from the same source as the US version - and Paul is definitely missing! Check here. Anyone with an explanation WHY?

Gabor Peterdi - metapex is my company :0)

From Jon Jepson:

With all the furor over Apple's non-participation in the ADHN DVD, one has to wonder about Paul using LOADS of clips from the film during his performing of CAN'T BUY ME LOVE on this year's tour - surely he must get clearance from somebody to do this - if he's not being cooperative, why didn't MIRAMAX simply not allow him to use the clips? And as far as the fabs not getting any financial benefit from AHDN these days, I seem to recall Walter Shenson mentioning his continuing to send the Beatles royalty checks over the years for BOTH films... so the claim that they have nothing to gain from sales of the DVD may not be totally accurate. It is rather sad to see that the DVD is not selling in huge numbers - GREASE is outselling it, among other lesser DVD releases!

Comment: As we noted above, in its first week on the chart in the U.S., it placed second, one step AHEAD of "Grease."

Update (10/8/02) From Amber H.:

Just a comment about the Dick Lester cameo in "A Hard Day's Night". I'm pretty sure it is the director himself -- he had multiple cameras going for the entire film and was a very "hands on" kind of guy. I'm pretty sure there was some mention of it in the interview with him in the old "A Hard Day's Night" screenplay book that was out in the '80s. I'll try to find it for you. It wasn't the only time he was seen in one of his films -- he has a cameo in "The Knack" as well.

And from Matt Slys:

Regarding the Richard Lester cameo, it is indeed him. In the bonus materials (in the MPI DVD), that cameo is referred to.

And from Carolyn Hurwitz:

Metapex needs to look at his/her DVD again. Paul's still there, at least on my copy--he's the last one shown of the four, right before the camera shifts to the view of the stage.

As far as whether or not that's really Dick Lester walking across the stage in front during "Tell Me Why", the answer is yes. He said in an interview years later that he just couldn't be bothered getting out of the way, and since it was a good shot he left it in the film.

Update (10/7/02) From Metapex:

No wonder Paul is not saying a word about the new HDN DVD. In 1964 his solo part was not included in the movie and in the new DVD release they did it again! Originally at the very beginning of Tell Me Why, all four pictures of the boys jumping with multiple hands/feet was included. The DVD now omits Paul! Anyone with an explanation? I would have liked to have the whole movie....

One other interesting aspect I only found out recently - some already knew this, but many might not- is that Richard Lester is actually in the movie. He can be seen for a very brief time between the boys in Tell Me Why!

Comment: We looked at that scene, too, and we're not sure that's Lester. It could be, but it also doesn't make sense he'd walk on during a scene. It does look like him, though.

Update (10/5/02) One anecdote we forgot to mention from the Sunday screening: The audience applauded as the various cast members made their first appearances on screen. They also applauded as names flashed by in the credits. Even Marylebone Train Station got a hand from the crowd!

From Amanda in TX:

I haven't seen anything on your page about the party at the House of Blues, so I thought I would tell you what I remember:

Before the show started, they were playing some oldies songs, but not Beatles. Martin introduced The Fab Four who played all the songs from A Hard Day's Night in order. They also did a second set of other Beatles songs. They seemed to have a lot of fans there, mostly standing right at the front of the stage. They are very good. Best "Paul" I have seen/heard. (A couple I was talking to from Las Vegas said that he out-Pauls Paul . . . and he does.)

Martin mentioned the campaign to get Brian Epstein into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Victor Spinetti and John Junkin were introduced by Martin and came on stage to do humorous bits throughout the night. Victor (as Sgt. Spinetti) did his bit from Magical Mystery Tour and John did a "dramatic" reading of the lyrics to A Hard Day's Night (as done in the past by Martin at Beatlefest).

They both appeared on stage to introduce You Can't Do That with Victor saying that he was the director, but it wasn't on his list of songs.

The Fab Four threw in little bits of film dialogue in appropriate places. They had a Grandfather look-alike come out and wander around on stage during She Loves You, until he was thrown off by "John". He didn't rise up out of the floor, but he was an excellent look-alike.

Vic Flick performed Ringo's Theme on guitar as he did for the film.

Stephen Bishop joined the band on stage to sing Slow Down. It was also mentioned that Graham Nash was there (he was playing there the following night).

During the show, Victor was sitting at an upstairs table with a woman (wife?) and a group of others. I didn't see where John Junkin was in between stage appearances.

I don't know if it sold out, but the place looked pretty full with a wide range of ages.

From Jeff Slate:

Just an update & note related to Hey Jude's recent comments.

Several recent Miramax DVD releases, including the Jackie Brown, Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction Collector's Editions, have similar (offensive) fake surround mixes to the AHDN DVD that we're all so diappointed with. Perhaps this is down to the sound honchos at Miramax after all.

Update (10/4/02)

Update (10/3/02) From Hey Jude:

Mr. Sussman from Beatlefan Magazine made some really important points. However, while the root of most or all of any potential problems on this new AHDN set can be traced back to Apple's lack of co-operation, I'm not so sure that those who put together this Miramax set are 100% in the clear as far as criticism is concerned.

I think there are two things to point out here: First, in regards to the sound issues, while Apple prevented access to multi-track tapes thus preventing any true 5.1 mixes to take place, the Miramax team clearly had access to the original mono soundtrack of the movie. When it became apparent (if Miramax didn't know from the outset) that Apple was not going to allow any 5.1 mixes of the music, why did Miramax go ahead and fabricate a 5.1 mix from mono soundtrack elements? They clearly had the mono soundtrack as a source to work with, because in the midst of the faux-5.1 mix heard on the DVD you can hear the mono mix elements (such as the unique mix of "Tell Me Why", the single-tracked lead vocals heard on some of the mono mixes, and so on). Instead of fabricating a 5.1 mix, they could have simply left the original mono soundtrack intact. I don't know if it's quite accurate to say that it's because of Apple that the soundtrack might sound messed up. It might be more accurate to say that it is because of Apple that real 5.1 mixes for the music were not able to be done, but that it was because of Miramax's insistence on doing a 5.1 mix even it was a fake one as opposed to simply including the original mono mix that the sound actually sounds messed up to some people's ears. If being able to advertise a 5.1 mix on the DVD was a marketing decision, then fine. But then that blame rests on the shoulders of the Miramax folks. It's nothing new in the industry, but "digitally restored soundtrack" seems a bit misleading as well, as a more appropriate line would be "digitally restored and altered soundtrack." One could also argue that if Apple limited the Beatles music to only the soundtrack to the film, they could have included both the 5.1 mix and the original mono mix, since a second French soundtrack on the DVD was allowed (and of course also includes Beatles music).

Second, I think it's worth pointing out that when it became apparent that Apple was going to prevent Miramax from making this set a definitive set, perhaps Miramax should have scaled back the package. I'm not an expert on dual-layered DVD technology and whatnot, but I have a suspicion that if they had included a mono soundtrack on the movie instead of a fake 5.1 mix (which takes up more space on the DVD), they might have been able to include most or all of the extra interviews on one disc along with the movie. Miramax perhaps hasn't literally marketed this set as the "definitive" version, but they've done plenty of marketing to hype the release such as "rare and new footage" (there's definitely new interview footage, but what rare footage is included on this set apart from quick cutaways from newsreel and on the set footage which has also mostly been seen before?).

I guess what I'm trying to say is that Apple prevented this set from a being as big of a deal as it could have been, but it seems like Miramax tried to stretch out what they were able to do into more than it actually is. The set is great, and the sale price it's been going for ($17-$20 or so) is certainly worth it for two discs, or even one disc. If this set were going for $40 or $50, I would be criticizing it a lot more. The film looks great (cropping issues aside), I actually think the packaging is fine (it certainly looks more slick and professional than the packaging for past issues of the movie), and I don't even think the 5.1 mix sounds bad, it just makes no sense to me in lieu of including the original unadultered mono mix. I have no doubt that the folks that worked on this set did their best and had the best of intentions. I think they actually may have tried too hard to create a great set out of something that, because of Apple, could not be as great as they wanted it to be.

And from Christopher Clause:

I have had a quick peek at the DVD - it was released here in Canada yesterday. Can someone tell me if this is a different version because I do not hear the "phasing" or audio problems that others have talked about? In my opinion, I think it was only right to use the mono masters - it fits better when it sits along with the soundtrack. Otherwise, if the songs had been remixed, the songs "stick out" more in quality when you compare dialogue to songs. The dialogue track sounds very good (just as good as the MPI versions) and I think using the mono mixes was the RIGHT move (however there is my complaint as well: why not put a separate stereo track in the audio for those who love those mixes? And yes, where is YOU CAN'T DO THAT???)

Beatle Friends, from what I have seen so far I am VERY happy with the transfer (and maybe I am responding this way because of the criticism on this site) and I am looking forward to using my AKG headphones from my home studio, my Titanium Powerbook G4 and the DVD upstairs to enjoy in bed with a nice glass of Riesling. It is $26.99 CDN here - some of my American friends who speak French may wish to order a copy (as there is a french track on it as well - haven't tried it yet!).

May you enjoy this great movie in a similar setting (and hey, why not invite a best friend to join you??)....

From left, Victor Spinetti, Los Angeles "Breakfast With the Beatles" radio show host Chris Carter, AHDN DVD producer Martin Lewis and John "Shake" Junkin. Spinetti, Junkin and Lewis were guests on Carter's radio show on Sept. 29.

We did not see the reissued AHDN when it came to theaters last year, but that was apparently the print we saw Sunday. Those of you who have seen it know how good it looks and sounds. Preceding the film was the documentary "Things They Said Today" from the new DVD, which, until this point, we had not seen. This was a well-done, if abbreviated look, into the making of the film from the principals involved, unlike MPI's documentary which was loaded with slick celebrity sentiments about the film and had little in-depth info on how it came to be. "Things We Said Today" gets right to the heart of the matter and is only the starting point for the extras on the DVD. (We only got our copy just before our trip. We'll do a thorough review soon.)

From Albert Sussman of Beatlefan:

Hi Steve: Given the level of knee-jerk reactions to the DVD reissue of "A Hard Day's Night", I think people may be missing something so, ahem, here's a little clue for you all...

Have you noticed that, other than the film itself, there is no Beatles music anywhere on the two discs? Why?

The answer can be summed up in one word: Apple.

In his ballroom presentation at the Chicago Beatlefest and in an interview he gave me that weekend (for the soon-to-arrive new issue of Beatlefan), Martin Lewis did a deft soft-shoe around the issue, saying that Apple has a policy of not cooperating with projects they do not own. Obviously, Apple did more here than not cooperate. Not only did they not give access to the master tapes of the songs from the film but, apparently, they restricted the use of any of the film's songs to the film itself. Even the section on the second disc for the song-by-song comments from Sir George has no music. That's why there's no "I'll Cry Instead", no "You Can't Do That", no 1964 featurette (which includes Beatles music) and why the mixes on the film songs may sound strange. Lewis and Miramax only had the film soundtrack to mix from, not the stereo master tapes.

So, aside from quibbles about packaging (I'm not wild about THAT, either), aspect ratio, matting, widescreen vs. fullscreen, no Roger Ebert, etc, if the sound is your main complaint, Lewis and Miramax aren't your target. Aim your bromides at Apple for their lack of cooperation.

After all, while all this controversy is brewing regarding "A Hard Day's Night", Apple's own in-house flack, a certain left-handed bassist, is touring the country and hyping next year's reissue of "Let It Be" every chance he gets, since Apple (and, as one of the company's heads, he) owns the film and the master tapes.

By the way, Apple does own "Help" jointly with Walter Shenson's estate so, presumably, the "Help" DVD (and Victor Spinetti, at last Saturday's New York City screening of the "A Hard Day's Night" DVD, said that he had already been interviewed for such a release) should be, sonically, closer to "Yellow Submarine" than to this version of "A Hard Day's Night".

Cheers,
Al Sussman
Beatlefan Magazine

From Jeff Jacomowitz:

I've figured since everyone is giving their thoughts, let me do mine. I couldn't wait until Sept. 24th rolled around. I was counting down the weeks. Little that I knew that on Sept. 24th would be the last day at my job -- I was let go. BUT, that wouldn't stop me for getting the DVD that I've waited for.

Well, what can I say...it was worth the wait. I'm still not so keen on the cover and packaging, I wish it was the old blue and white (UK release) or the black, red and white (US release) like in the old vinyls but I'll take what I can get.

I thought the picture quality was great -- nice and vivid. Since so many complained about the sound, I won't. Sound is excellent ...really is. Must be my Sony.

Thanks Steve! And I did buy the Canadian John & Yoko 1969 DVD -- I thought that was done wonderfully.

From Gray Packham:

I’d like to make a point, if I may, on the running speed of A Hard Day’s Night.

As was mentioned in a previous e-mail, all video releases of the film (certainly all the ones I have bought or viewed since home video took off in the early 80’s) have run slower than normal. The pitch of the songs when compared to the record or CD of AHDN is quite obviously different.

However, I cannot believe it has anything to do with the "technical" reason of preventing monitor flicker in the television studio scenes. In 1994, AHDN was shown on Australian television in a faster running speed. The pitch of the songs in that broadcast almost matched those of the EMI/Apple recordings perfectly. To the ear they certainly didn’t drag. This is the only time I have ever seen the movie at this speed and there was no monitor flicker. The sound effects over the top of the songs were intact and the sound of the songs themselves whilst a tad thin and brittle had none of the phasing problems that buyers of the new DVD appear to be concerned about.

I can only assume the television station concerned either obtained video print of the film that had been speed corrected or in fact corrected it themselves by increasing the speed of the playback on their own video equipment. I would be inclined to believe it was the latter.

The Miramax DVD is not out in Australia until the end of October (it was due out on September 23 but for some unknown reason has been rescheduled). I read the reviews on your site with both longing and trepidation. Any DVD of AHDN is better than nothing but it looks like another case of "close but no cigar".

Finally, and I don’t think I’m alone in thinking this but I really do feel let down as a fan of the Fabs. In their heyday they were very concerned about the fan, the punter, the Joe who spends his hard earned. They knew how much it meant to be able to buy a single that wasn’t on an album or an album of 14 great songs instead of 4 greats with the rest as filler (as per most other artists). That’s what made them so good. They cared. Today it’s a real struggle for the fan. I mean, 32 years on and still I can’t play the Let It Be movie in my own home (save for the few video and laserdisc copies that escaped in the mid 80’s). I can’t sit down and watch the promo films, Shea Stadium or the Budokan. I can’t listen to the mono albums on CD. I can’t listen to their music in the best audio state possible and that’s what’s really disappoints me. These are things that have been out in public since The Beatles were a going concern but are not yet made available to the public. I’m not talking about the unreleased things like the 27 minute version of Helter Skelter. From an artistic point of view I can understand why those things remain hidden away. I cannot, however, see why we the fans are unable to purchase that which has already been revealed to us in some shape or form previously. We are all running out of decades.

I know they say Let It Be will be out on DVD next year and so will a remastered CD catalogue but it’s like getting blood out of a stone. I wish they’d remember what it was like to be a fan and stop drip-feeding us.

From David Freis:

One quote comes to mind in regard to all the negative comments in regard to the A Hard Day's Night DVD and it is a quote Paul McCartney said when defending the White Album on the Beatles Anthology Set and in further regard to analyzing how many tracks should have been or not been on the White Album...

Paul said and I second it..."It's the bloody Beatles...shut up!" well everyone please shut up about the AHDN DVD and just enjoy the bloody thing!!!

Update (9/28/02) More comments. First, from Jack Possiel:

First of all, thank you for maintaining this great site. (but enough schmoozing) After reading all the negative comments regarding the AHDN DVD I feel compelled to put my two cents in. We Beatle fans can be very hard to please. What everyone is complaining about with this DVD is no different than the complaints regarding Apple's BBC and Anthology Cd's: Omission and alteration. Hey folks, GET OVER IT! We'll never get exactly what we want, so we might as well find the good with what we do get.

Yes, the music on the AHDN DVD sounds a little muddy, but as any fan who own the U.S.soundtrack album (originally on UA, but reissued by Capitol in the early 80's) can tell you, the Beatles tracks on the US soundtrack did not sound that great. The U.S. AHDN album contains the soundtrack mixes, and the difference when compared to the mono British AHDN album is readily apparent. Remember, Miramax worked from the soundtrack, not the masters. I suggest that if you don't like the surround mix on the Miramax DVD that you simply play it in stereo (or mono if your amplifier allows you to). Regarding the film's visual appearance, some people like widescreen and some don't, but how can you complain when you see how pristine the film looks?

I think a lot of the complaining stems from only having access to the MPI video or DVD for years. The picture quality on that was good, but nowhere near as good as on the Miramax release. The music on the MPI version came from the album mixes and not the soundtrack, so those fans too young to have seen the film in its original state have had nothing to compare the MPI version to. Remember, folks, AHDN wasn't a big budget release in 1964!

The one thing I will grant all the naysayers is that the DVD extras are, for the most part, a waste of time. The DVD -Rom material is better (although some content is similar to Voyager's cd-rom release), but not everyone has a DVD-Rom drive, either. I suggest that if you haven't bought the DVD yet, and you are tempted to, you do so before the sale prices go away. I have no major problems with the "restoration", but what is worth watching with this set could have fit on one disc. In fact, my only complaint with this release is that Miramax is trying to squeeze more money out of Beatle fans by making this a double disc set. Of course, official Apple releases haven't been inexpensive, either.

I can't wait to hear the griping when "Let It Be" is released next year...

My comments on the HDN DVD:

- I think the picture quality is very good; I'm not sure what the "aspect ratio" is supposed to be, but whatever it was originally should be the one used. Nothing can replace seeing it on the big screen.

- The sound is weird to me. It seems to fade and phase and echo. The straight mono track would have been a good option. " And I love her" does have Paul singing single, not double tracked, on the chorus, which I prefer.

-The packaging is terrible. That silver box is not appealing at all. The inside photos are grainy. No booklet either.

- The extras could have been better, athough it's good to see Tony Barrow and Klaus Voormann. The George Martin interview was insightful as always, there wasn't enough of him. It would have been cool to have Norman Smith on it, if he's still around. I think its pretty obvious why the Phil Collins documentary wasn't on it, MPI probably owns it. I'm sure MPI wasn't about to cooperate on this, seeing how it was taken away from them. The menu was annoying. Could'nt they find a drum track similar to Ringo's style?

- No "Running Jumping Standing Still" ?

- No input from Roger Ebert? He's one of the films biggest fans, and he knows what he is talking about!

- I personally am not happy with Miramax. They seem to mess these DVD's pretty well, either offering no extras , or putting in a lot of useless info. This would have been better as a single disc. They are also sitting on a treasure trove of films which they won't put out at all. This one really should have been out months ago.

- It's really a shame that the Beatles themselves aren't consulted on this, even if they have no financial stake, or Apple isn't involved. Why didn't they scoop up the rights when they had a chance? Their input is greatly needed.

-I wish George were around, he knew a thing or two about films.

Update (9/27/02) From Troy Hubbard:

Steve,

Great job on your site! I've been a faithful reader for several years now.

So far I've seen the following merchandising for AHDN:

Sam Goody: Lithographs (about 10 x 10) with each purchase.

Various Retailers: A standup which comes packaged to hold several videos. (I got mine from a friend at Suncoast) It comes boxed 24 x 21 inches with blue stripes. Also in blue on the box is ATTN: Store Manager A Hard Day's Night PrePack, open and display immediately. It is an 18 count header with a base about 3 or 4 feet tall. The display is the fabs on stage and the base says The Beatles with their individual pictures from the movie stacked from the bottom. All in all a nice display.

Promo poster: Given out at screenings.

If you know of any other merchandising, please let me know.

And one e-mail today asked about Easter eggs on the DVD. If you've found any, let us know.

More comments, beginning with Carolyn Hurwitz:

Dear Steve,

Just to throw in my two cents on the new DVD....

1. The picture looks great. I don't know what the deal is with the aspect ratio, but it looks fine to me--better than ever, in fact; I can see all sorts of little details I couldn't before, like the album cover in the hotel room. I do think that if it was filmed at a 1.33:1 aspect originally, then it should be shown that way on any future DVD's.

2. I don't have surround sound, but I do have a stereo TV. By cranking up the bass as high as it will go and turning off the "Hyper Surround" on my TV, I get a fairly decent sound on the songs, at least until the concert at the end where they add the huge amounts of echo. This reminds me of when Capitol Records used to "beef up" the American releases by adding lots of echo and reverb. Why, oh why? But what really irks me is not so much that the soundtrack has been remixed, but that the original mono soundtrack wasn't included, as it was on the YELLOW SUB DVD.

3. No one's mentioned the lack of the 1981 "I'll Cry Instead" prologue, but I would've liked to have it. If you don't like it, you can always skip straight to the film with a DVD, right? You've already heard about all the other missing stuff that should've been on there, I think, except perhaps a Director's Commentary. Why not? Didn't Lester want to do it? Or did he ask for too much money?

4. The interviews aren't bad, and I do like the silent film of the Beatles, which I hadn't seen before. Interesting that Phil Collins is never mentioned as an audience member during the concert scene.

5. All in all, I'm afraid Miramax really botched this release. It could have and SHOULD have been much better than it is. I'll have to visit their website and complain there.

I cannot imagine how they could interview the cast members and not include Victor Spinetti! and I hear he's doing promotion for this release. clearly, if non-Beatle cast members were going to be interviewed, he's the first one that should've been included! Also, i noticed at the beginning of the film, the guitar fade out of the song "A Hard Day's Night" is cut-off by the sound of screaming fans. As i recall, this is NOT how it was in the video version! It seems like a very amateurish mistake!

From Gary Owen:

Well My brother bought it a day early and once again, just like the Japanese and German versions,the sound is HORRIBLE!!!!!! The extras are nothing but interviews that get very tedious after a half hour. WHERE IS 'YOU CAN'T DO THAT'?????!!!!!! WHERE ARE THE TRAILERS???!!!! WHERE IS 'I'LL CRY INSTEAD'(which is expendable anyway)??????!

The 5.1 surround is a joke. It sounds like a badly downloaded MP3 under water. Even the stereo tarck is muddy. Why couldn't they simply use a nice cleaned up monophonic version???????!!! They could have even added the stereo version as an another option!

I have NEVER liked the way most of the songs play so slowly. I was told it is due to the fact that UA was filming video monitors which would show up as nothing but flickers if filmed at normal speed. 'Can't Buy Me Love' seems fine as there are no monitors in the field or in the police station(grin,grin).

The most fun package is the Japanese version. It comes with cool little 'Beatles/'AHDN' guitar picks, it has a chapter on locations where the film was shot, then and now and a cool little spot for people who would like to learn the guitar parts to the title track. They even use the correct guitars that were used on the recording. They speak in Japanese and the lead player is getting a rotten sound on his 12 string Rickenbacker but so what, it' still a nice little extra.

The US version: a MAJOR disappointment.

And from Jack C.:

Steve, I must disagree with most of the comments everyone has been making. The sound is excellent and the picture is so crisp it could've been filmed last year. I also enjoyed the interviews. I was disappointed with the absense of trailers and other bonuses mentioned by others, but for the most part, the DVD is great.

From Fred Velez:

I thought I'd weigh in my thoughts on the Hard Day's Night DVD now that I've had a chance to view it. I too felt the fake letter-boxing of the image was unneccesary. I'm also disappointed that the Running, Jumping and Standing Still Film was not included, especially when what little footage you see of it in the DVD looks much better than the version of the film that was issued with the MPI version of Hard Day's Night. When you consider it's importance in getting Richard Lester the job of directing Hard Day's Night, it's absence is puzzeling.

The fake Ringo outtakes are misleading, Entertainment Tonight even ran them as real outtakes. While a lot of the intereviews with the crew is interesting, I too thought, where's Victor Spinetti? The one extra I really enjoyed was the retrospective on Wilfred Brambell, it was fascinating to see footage of him in Steptoe & Son, and finally understand the 'clean old man' injoke. The Things They Said Today documentary was good, but not as good as the Phil Collins narrated You Can't Do That documentary, which is still available.

While it's good to have A Hard Day's Night in DVD again, it's current presentation is less than satisfying. It makes me wonder, what's going to happen when they get to 'Help!'?

Thanks for letting me vent.

Update II (9/26/02) From Christopher Chiardi:

In response to Bryan Barrow, every print of "A Hard Day's Night" I have ever seen has featured a few songs that have been slowed down. That is not new. Take it from someone with perfect pitch!

I noticed no one has mentioned one *glaring* omission from the new DVD..."I'll Cry Instead"! I realize it wasn't really part of the orgi nal film, but to my knowledge it has been included at the beginning of *every* edition of the film since 1982 and has become the standard.

From Alan Greenberg:

I would like to just add a fact on the new "Hard Day's Night" disc... the video to me is great....crisp clean...an occasional pop or tick in the audio and some slight background hiss at times but mostly the music is the problem....the mono mix has a slight stereo effect when you are sitting far away from your speakers...i listened to it in 5.1 and in the middle of the room you do hear a audio difference.,..the music jumps out at you...the front 3 speakrs are clear ...more bottom,sometimes a bit to much though...and the rear are just delayed and bottom thus giving the surround effect but the audio is 80 percent coming from the front ..also it sounds at times like the volume is slighting getting louder and lower at times.. but since they didnt go back to the 4 track tapes and redo the music tracks ...guess this is what we have to live with..fans might want to check out the dvd Hollywood musicals of the 60s on passport label...it has the documentary for the filming of hard days night and other 60s films.

Update (9/26/02) From Reechie Firestone:

Well, I dunno Steve. I've just watched the new DVD version of "A Hard Day's Night", and while there's little that can be done to this film to make it a bad experience to watch, I've got to add my voice to the growing number of folks who are finding this new DVD to be rather unsatisfying.

I have no problem with the "letterboxing" and the aspect ratio, I'm guessing that no one really has a clue as to the real way this film was meant to be displayed. The sound, on the other hand, is another story. When Martin Lewis says that the sound "Isn't the way he wanted to do it", or words to that effect, I assume he means the full 5.1 remix treatment that "Yellow Submarine" got.

Okay fine, but why try to manufacture a 5.1 mix out of second hand mono and stereo elements? What producers of DVD's and even audio CD's seem to misunderstand is, all we want is a clean, good sounding audio track, not some gimmicky mix thrown together by some technology entranced engineer, and pawned off as "digitally enhanced" (two words that have become a red flag if there ever was one!). If 5.1 isn't available, go with the mono, or even a clear 2.0 mix with the sound effects added in (I will give Lewis credit for a nice job of re-inserting the sound effects in with the music tracks).

I don't consider my ears to be anywhere near "audiophile" quality, but even I notice a muddy drop in sound quality when the music kicks in on the new DVD, and I'm only listening in STEREO, I can only imagine what the 5.1 sounds like. Speaking of which, just how DO you do a 5.1 mix of "She Loves You"?

Beyond the sound, I just can't quite figure out Lewis' choices of bonus material for the discs. As interesting as the cast and crew interviews are, where are the Beatles? I know Paul and Ringo declined to participate, but what I'm talking about is, there is much interesting Beatles footage pertaining to "A Hard Day's Night" that could, and should have been included somewhere on this DVD. You've already heard the questions: "Where are the trailers?" "Where's 'You Can't Do That'?" The only surviving outtake footage from the project, and it wasn't deemed good enough to include on the DVD?

There was a documentary short film made in 1964 about the making of the film. In fact, most of the newsreel footage of the Beatles filming the movie comes from this short. So where is it? Why wasn't it considered good enough for inclusion.

What about "The Running, Jumping, Standing Still Film"? Heck, that one was even mentioned as being part of the disc last weekend in Best Buy's newspaper ad advertising the new DVD (unless it's an "easter egg" that no one's found yet!). This stuff has been bantered about for almost a year and a half, since the original DVD release date was scrapped. Are you telling me that Martin Lewis didn't hear us, or worse, ignored us? Did he really think we'd rather listen to stories from the gaffer or the guy who wiped off the lenses between takes than to see footage featuring the actual Beatles? Or, was he somehow kept from using this footage?

I'd like to know, because as it stands now, I've waiting almost a year and a half for this DVD, sat through the hype and excitement over its release, only to find the actual result most disappointing. Great film, though.

reechie

From Daniel Bakken:

I have to take issue with (I assume) your comment that the new Miramax DVD used the mono soundtrack because that is what was heard in 1964. That is wrong! The whole problem here is that this is NOT the mono soundtrack, it is a mangled mono sound that sounds far worse than the mono soundtrack. On DVD they could have given us both the original mono soundtrack, and the stereo soundtrack. That way everyone gets what they want. After Yellow Submarine 5.1 soundtrack, I was anticipating this 5.1 soundtrack. Boy what a dissapointment. I can't believe anyone is truly happy with a molested mono soundtrack only. Thanks for the coverage!

From Bryan Barrow:

The new AHDN DVD is extremely disappointing; except for the crispness of the image, it is a disgrace to a great film. The fake widescreen treatment not only crops the image but in some scenes has a "bulging" effect to it, as if someone took a postcard by the edges and squeezed it slightly so the image "bulged" outward. The songs sound muddy to me, and run too slow; I A/B'd with my AHDN CD, and the DVD version of "And I love her" is a half-step lower (and therefore slower) than the original recording- makes it drag, as do the other songs, IMHO. The "phasing" effect that some have described is annoying (fake widescreen AND fake surround sound- how high tech!). The extras are mostly nothing to write home about- no trailers, no You Can't Do That, no radio spots, no premiere footage, no original Beatle interviews, no director's commentary, NO EXCUSES! Although I haven't watched all of the extras, it appears that Victor Spinetti was not included; of all the living non-Beatle cast members, he's the most significant! This is not the film I know and love... Good thing I kept my laserdisc... Bryan ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://www2.cruzio.com/~bbarrow

From Richard Porter:

Hi Steve I've been reading your readers comments about the "A Hard Day's Night DVD" - especially about the sound and the involvement of Apple. The first thing to say is that A Hard Day's Night is owned by Miramax - not Apple. Because of this Apple had no direct involvement in the DVD. Also Apple own the rights of the Beatles recordings. Therefore for any major remixing to take place on the songs Apple would have to agree to it - and they didn't.

It is very interesting that Paul McCartney has been talking time and time again about the proposed release of "Let it Be," but, to my knowledge, hasn't mentioned 'A Hard Day's Night' once.

All the best,
Richard Porter http://www.beatlesnews.com

Comment: Yes, Richard, that is quite strange....

Next, from Girlswanted7:

Steve:

What is wrong with some of the people on your site? The sound of the "Hard Day's Night" DVD sounds great, in my opinion, though I just pruchased a new Sony television. Beatles fans are never happy with the finished product. You people are the most demanding fans in the world. While I think the one compilation disc sounds just okay, I think the "Hard Day's Night" DVD sounds great. Let's not forget this is from 1964.

Rob

From Matt Slys:

My girlfriend bought me a copy as a surprise last night, and I must confess
I am disappointed along with everyone else.

1. The sound of the music BLOWS completely!
2. I dont like the picture ratio. In the supplemental material they showed
the clips of the movie in regular mode.looked better than the main feature.
3. NO BOOKLET
4. No Trailers!
5. No past interviews with the late Norman Rossington!!! they included Alun
Owen.
6. The scratchy footage of Ringo being hit by a wheel was actually the boy
at the canal who re-enacted the scene dressed as Ringo(All grown up of
course).
7. No "You Can't Do that"!

8.The menus are great in a retro kind of way, however whats the deal with a
drum solo as a musical bed??????? not very Beatley!

The supplemental interviews were interesting but again they are not
something thats would warrent repeated viewing

Well we have Let it Be to look forward to . Im sure it wont be as
disappointing as the Hard Days Night re-issue.

Matt

Update (9/25/02) From David Freis:

Steve, At thirty minutes past midnight I went to Wal Mart for two things. 1) A Hard Day's Night DVD and 2) Elvis 1, the 30 (well, 31 including A Little Less Conversation Remix that hit #1) #1 hits package.

Well, the Elvis CD was easy enough to find, a nice Elvis cardboard pos display was on the isle in front of the music dept, but when I questioned the clerk where "A Hard Day's Night DVD" was (what? he said? HaHaHa) he told me that they would be bringing it from the back in a few minutes.

Well, after about 15 (minutes) a big "Mal Evans" Puerto Rican guy came out with a cart full of cardboard boxes, one of which I assumed would have contained the "holy grail." I made a joke to the clerk, that it would probably be in the bottom of the cart, who immediately attended to the boxes to frantically look for my copy of the long awaited DVD. In the meantime a concerned lady clerk walks up and asks what we are looking for and again I got another...What? "A Hard Day's Night"...what is that? HaHaHa Alas, no copies to be found anywhere, not even in the last box! Well, my birthday night almost ended on a good night!

And from Matt Slys:

I was reading some of the reviews of the DVD and I scrolled back to Keith Badman's review from Aug 31. Keith says this will not dissapoint and already one negative review (especially the sound..I thought the German DVD sound was supposed to bad did they use the same source?)....and Martin Lewis who seems to take credit for the good stuff and then tells somebody to Blame Apple. It seems this whole Hard Days Night re-issue is full of contradictions.

Makes me treasure the first VHS issue of A Hard Days Night from MPI back in 83 (Big video case that went with it) Exact same sound, nothing taken or added from it. Some parts of the print were scratched but back then you took what you got. I have a feeling of trepidation when I go by this thing tonight. As far as the extra's, the person who said we would probably only watch those once was right.

From Shawn McCann:

Why on earth didn't they use existing stereo mixes for the songs? On the MPI version, the change in sound quality between the music and dialogue is only distracting for a second or two at the beginning and end of songs, and is easy to get used to. However, the digitally processed versions of the songs on the Miramax disc are distracting for the entire duration of the song. It sounds like they used a flanger to try to widen a mono track. If they increased the amount of effect just a little it would have sounded like they were under water. What were they thinking? I would only recommend the Miramax version for the interviews. When I want to watch the movie, it will be the MPI version.

Comment: They used mono mixes because those were what the first audiences (and we were among them) heard in '64.

I also attended the NYC screening of AHDN.

The print, as discussed on your site, had a bit of scratchiness, but looked great as far as the blacks and whites were concerned. What was really awful was the sound. Over the course of the film the sound deteriorated more and more, with audible pops and scratches becoming so loud by the end that it was almost unlistenable. Even worse was the horrendous "fake" surround sound applied to the music.

Now, the Beatles were not movie stars, they were musicians. Most of us go to see this movie (& will buy the DVD) more for the music and the associated performances than anything else. The echo applied to the soundtrack is unforgiveable and makes a mockery of the music. Even my 3 1/2 year old son -- who admittedly comes from a musical household -- asked why the songs sounded so "funny!"

I spoke with Martin Lewis during the screening and he said "blame Apple" and the effects "were not how (he) wanted to do it," but frankly that's not good enough. Prior to the screening, in his lengthy introduction, Martin stated that Miramax had let him take his time to "do this right; for the fans" instead of rushing the reissue into the marketplace. So, which is it Martin?

With the stellar AMC mono mix and the decent MPI stereo mixes out there as a starting point it simply seems convenient to blame Apple. More importantly, whatever soundtrack was supplied as the original source, it is just plain idiocy to ONLY include a soundtrack that sounds at least as bad as the old Capital "reprocessed stereo" records from the 60s. Along with widescreen AND fullscreen versions of the print, a choice of soundtracks should have been included. To not do this makes this project, quite frankly, and no matter how many "recollections" and other extras (that we'll probably only watch once at most, if that), a truly pointless endeavour.

It's about the music, man! LOL. Please ask Martin to address this at length, if possible.

Until then I'll be waiting for the reissue of the DVD that Apple takes part in, or maybe I'll just be looking for a bootleg version that combines the AMC soundtrack with Martin's print in bootleg form. :)

Take care,
jeff.
http://www.digitalretro.com

One important point: If you're looking for a widescreen version of AHDN as seen in today's movies, you won't find one. Admittedly, we haven't seen the DVD yet, but this has the film in the original aspect ratio. That's as good as it gets in terms of widescreen.

And from Brian Cancemi:

I just bought the new AHDN DVD a day early and I have this to report:

1. The sound is STILL messed up!!!!!!! It sounds like a low bit-rate Mp3!! Phases all over the place!
2. The clip of "You Can't Do That"...where is it?? Not on this disc!
3. The original (or re-release for that matter) trailers....where are they? Not on this disc!

To me it is a major disappointment. The image is crystal clear! As if it was filmed yesterday...then the music...ugh! To truly understand what I mean you must have a 5.1 system.

Update (9/23/02) From Amber H.:

Hi, Steve -- a few more tidbits from yesterday's screening/preview of "AHDN". If you saw the preview of the DVD at Beatlefest in Chicago, it was pretty much the same presentation. No new news to report but it was a lot of fun all the same. There weren't that many people present which was a shame -- the DGA theatre was a fabulous place to see a 35 mm print of the film. The people from BAFTA were clearly upset about the low turn out too -- my friends and I got there around 11 am (doors were supposed to open at 11:15) and one of the gentlemen from BAFTA came around offering free tickets to anyone in line who would bring flyers down to the flea market down the street. I guess they really wanted a full house. My friends and I declined but a few other people did it -- I don't know how successful they were. I think the event wasn't well publicised but the DVD itself seems to be. I've caught ads for it at every commercial break on Comedy Central and BBC America since Thursday.

Victor Spinetti was a great guest. He shared a number of great stories and few things I hadn't heard before. He mentioned he bought his younger brother, Henry, his first drum kit after Henry showed some interest in music. Henry later went on to work with both George and Paul on solo projects as well as being part of Eric Clapton's band for 6 years. Someone in the audience said she'd met him (Victor) in NYC walking down the street the day of the Concert for Bangladesh -- it turns out he attended the concert and spent time with both George and Ringo.

The best news was a casual mention that he'd already recorded commentary for both "Help!" and "Magical Mystery" DVDs. From what he said, it sounds like Apple will definitely be releasing both films at some unknown date in the future. (I'm confused as to Apple's involvement with "Help!" though).

As an added little bonus, they also had one of John's jackets from the film on hand for viewing.

It was a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon and anyone who can should get to the Chicago or L.A. events. It's a pity that John Junkin was ill -- I think he would've made the event even more special.

Update II (9/22/02) We asked Fred Velez what the reaction was to the fan bringing the DVD, which wasn't supposed to hit the streets until Tuesday, to the show. Here's his reply:

I was surprised that one store was selling it before the selling date. The fan who brought it got it autographed by Victor Spinetti and Martin Lewis. If I had know Entertainment Outlet was selling it early, I would have brought a copy and had it autographed too. I think most of the fans who found out it went to Entertainment Outlet after the screening to buy a copy. Some are going to wait till Tuesday in case places like Best Buys or The Wiz sells the dvd with something extra, like a poster.

Update (9/22/02) From Fred Velez:

Hi Steve,

I attended the special screening of A Hard Day's Night at the DGA Theater in New York City on September 21. Despite the listing of the event on the Abbey RD Website, a little under 100 fans showed up, perhaps because it wasn't advertised well on the local radio or in newspapers. Al Sussman of Beatlefan Magazine told me that the organizers actually told him to help spread the word since it didn't look like enough people would show up. Susan B. Ryan of Day Trippin' magazine was there as was Mark Lapidos of Beatlefest and Beatles dj Ken Michaels.

Martin Lewis and Victor Spinetti were the special guests at the showing. John Junkin who played Shake in the movie was ill with the flu and was unable to attend. Martin Lewis introduced Victor Spinetti briefly and promised a question and answer session after the movie. First, he premeired the dvd featurette Things They Said Today. After that was finished, the 35mm Miramax print of A Hard Day's Night was shown. It was great to see the movie on a big screen again, but everyone notice that the print that was shown had noticable scratches on it. Still it was great to see the movie in a theater.

After the movie, Martin and Victor came onstage and Martin interviewed Victor, who told his wonderful Beatles stories. Then they turn it over to the audience for questions and answers about the dvd and more Beatles stories. After the session, Mr. Spinetti graciously greeted the fans, having pictures taken and signing autographs. The festivities started at around 12pm and didn't end till after 3:30. It was wonderful to be with Beatles fans in an event outside a convention or a concert.

Over all, a spendid time was had by all.

(I almost forgot to add to my report that one fan showed up at the DGA event with a copy of the Hard Day's Night DVD that the Entertainment Outlet was selling in advance of the September 24th sales date!)

Update (9/20/02) The first online review we've seen for the new DVD is here. (Thanks to Reechie Firestone.)

And a word to those considering entering for tickets to the Chicago event: Florence Eskin tells us that WXRT's webpage says winners can only be from Illinois, Indiana, or Wisconsin.

The inside of the new AHDN DVD package (Thanks to Charles Uebele III.)

Update (9/19/02) We had a quick peek at the new packaging for the new AHDN DVD. As you've seen in the picture of the U.S. version that's above left, it's silver. Not apparent in the picture is that the pictures of the Beatles are actually on the inside sleeve, so they're inset from the outside. It makes for a very nice looking package. Some stores have broken the release date embargo and are already selling it. We've also heard that some retailers may have promotional things to give away with purchase, but we don't have a list of which retailers are participating. We suggest you check newspaper ads this weekend.

Here's a list of the DVD features and extras, as listed on the back of the package:

DISC ONE:

New promotional special "Things They Said Today..."

DISC TWO

"Their Production Will Be Second To None" -- Interviews with the filmmakers: Richard Lester -- Director; Denis O'Dell -- Associate Producer; David Picker -- Studio Executive

"With the Beatles" -- Cast: John Junkin, Lionel Blair, Kenneth Haigh, David Janson, Anna Quayle, Jeremy Lloyd, Terry Hooper

"Working Like a Dog" -- The Production Crew: Gilbert Taylor, BSC; Paul Wilson, Betty Glasgow, Barrie Melrose.

"Busy Working Overtime" -- Post Production Crew: Pam Tomling & Roy Benson, Gordon Daniels & Jim Roddan

"Listen to the Music Playing In Your Head" -- Sir George Martin on the HDN Songs

"Such a Clean Old Man!" -- Memories of Wilfred Brambell

"I've Lost My Little Girl" -- Isla Blair interview

"Taking Testimonial Pictures" -- Robert Freeman interview

"Dressed to the Hilt" -- Gordon Millings interview

"Dealing With 'The Men From the Press' " -- Tony Barrow interview

"They and I Have Memories" -- Klaus Voorman interview

"Hitting the Big Time in the USA" -- Sid Bernstein interview

French language track

Digitally restored soundtrack

Widescreen (1:66:1) -- Enhanced for 16x9 televisions

Screenplay viewer -- reproduction of the entire first draft of the screenplay

"Remember All the Little Things" -- "A Hard Day's Night" scrapbook

Roundtable discussions -- cast, production crew and post-production crew

Access to the DVD Destination site

Award-winning "A Hard Day's Night" website archive

Update (9/18/02) In case you hadn't seen it, here's Rick Holland's detailed review of the now out-of-print MPI AHDN DVD that points up the flaws the new edition should fix.

Update (9/16/02) More on the the California event.

Update (9/13/02) More on U.S. events, this time in New York.

Update (9/9/02) More info on U.S. events in connection with the AHDN DVD release:

A Hard Day's WRITE!!!
Breaking News About The DVD
Bulletin #2 - Sept 7, 2002

GET READY!
HERE THEY COME!
BRACE YOURSELF!

AHDN DVD PROMOTION PLANS REVEALED!

TWO AHDN STARS COMING TO USA FOR LAUNCH!

Martin Lewis - producer of the new DVD Edition of "A Hard Day's Night" has revealed some of the promotion plans for the US launch of the DVD. He has arranged for two of the film's stars to visit the US for a 3 week promotional visit. The stars are both actors who have extensive Beatles credits and connections.

The stars are: Victor Spinetti - who portrayed the neurotic TV director. And John Junkin who played "Shake" the taller of the two road managers (very loosely based on Mal Evans).

Both actors maintained friendships and working relationships with the Beatles after the film. (Full biogs for Spinetti and Junkin can be found here. [insert link to biogs page] Spinetti was asked to act in "Help!" and "Magical Mystery Tour" - and adapted John's two books into an acclaimed stage revue - presented at Britain's National Theatre in 1968. Junkin was a cast member in John's solo film "How I Won The War" and also acted in a cult 60's British TV series which boasted an ultra-rare specially-written and produced McCartney theme tune. The series was called "Thingumybob."

The actors arrive in New York on Thursday September 19. They will spend 5 days in New York. Mainly doing interviews - but there is a strong possibility that there will be one or two special screenings in New York City. The screenings would be of a brand-new restored 35mm print of the film - plus the World Premiere of "Things They Said Today..." a new special about the film made by Martin Lewis.

The date would be Saturday September 21st. An afternoon screening and an evening screening. Both screenings would feature Q&A sessions with Spinetti, Junkin and Lewis.

Full details including ticket information will be posted here and on http://www.WhatGoesOn.com.

After New York - Spinetti and Junkin will travel to Chicago and will be there through Thursday September 26. And yes... they will be in town the same night as Paul McCartney is playing Chicago! Whether these three old friends - who have known each other for nearly 40 years - get together for a moment or two.... Well... we'll see.

And there is almost certainly going to be a screening event with the film and new special - and a big celebration in Chicago. Full details will be announced here.

Then Spinetti and Junkin will be arriving in Los Angeles. There are TWO major events planned for L.A. Details will be announced HERE very shortly. Meanwhile save these two dates: Sunday September 29 in the late afternoon. And Tuesday October 1st in the evening.

This is a very exciting trip for both actors. Victor Spinetti has been a frequent visitor to the U.S, -- filming, performing on Broadway (he won a "Tony" award in the 60's) and of course as an occasional guest at Beatlefest.

But John Junkin has not been to America for 44 years. John's last visit to the US was as a young tourist in 1958. Shortly after that - he decided that he didn't like flying - so he's never had the opportunity to return.

And to answer the obvious question -- in deference to John's refusal to fly -- both John and Victor are traveling to and from America by ocean liner! The Cunard Line's QE2 no less! And they are both traveling across America by train! From New York to Chicago to Los Angeles - and back - all on Amtrak! The Hard Day's Express!!!

Keep watching this space. There will be regular updates!

---

BIOGRAPHIES OF VICTOR SPINETTI & JOHN JUNKIN

VICTOR SPINETTI

Welsh-born Victor Spinetti is one of Britain's most prolific and beloved actors - with extensive film, TV and stage credits over the past 40 years. Recognition for his work includes a 'Tony' for his role on Broadway in the 1960's anti-war musical "Oh What A Lovely War!"

Amidst all his work he developed a very close working relationship and friendship with the Beatles. A big favorite of the group - after his performance in their first film ("A Hard Day's Night") the Beatles invited him to appear in their next two films ("Help!" and "Magical Mystery Tour.") He also co-wrote and directed "In His Own Write" - the acclaimed stage revue he adapted from John Lennon's two books of poetry and prose - a production which Laurence Olivier presented at Britain's National Theatre in 1968.

His movie work includes two films with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton - Dylan Thomas' "Under Milk Wood" and "The Taming Of The Shrew" - the latter directed by Franco Zeffirelli. Other roles in a diverse film career have seen him starring with Faye Dunaway, Orson Welles and James Mason in "Voyage Of The Damned"; Peter Sellers in "The Return Of The Pink Panther" and Prince in "Under The Cherry Moon."

His stage work has included "Candide," "The Odd Couple," "Oliver," "The Rocky Horror Show" - several Shakespeare productions including "Henry IV" and "Richard III" - and stage adaptations of Ealing comedies such as "The Lady Killers" and "The Lavender Hill Mob." He has also toured the world performing his acclaimed autobiographical one-man show "A Very Private Diary."

While in New York during his Tony award-winning run on Broadway - he appeared in the cult satirical TV show "That Was the Week That Was" - a program which also featured Steve Allen, Woody Allen, Bill Cosby, Elliott Gould, Buck Henry, Elaine May, Mike Nichols and Mort Sahl.

Nothing underscores the extent and diversity of Spinetti's work better than an A-Z list of just some of the actors he has appeared with on stage, screen and TV:

Jane Asher . Alan Bates . Steven Berkoff . Milton Berle . Jacqueline Bisset . Honor Blackman . John Bluthal . Eleanor Bron . Richard Burton . Joan Collins . Tony Curtis . Faye Dunaway . Bob Fosse . John Gielgud . Lee Grant . Anthony Hopkins . Michael Hordern . John Hurt . Derek Jacobi . George Jessel . Stacy Keach . Ben Kingsley . Roy Kinnear . Martin Landau . Christopher Lee . Joanna Lumley . James Mason . Alec McCowan . Malcolm McDowell . Leo McKern . Spike Milligan . Anthony Newley . Paul Nicholas . Peter O'Toole . Christopher Plummer . Robert Powell . Prince . Jonathan Pryce . Vanessa Redgrave . Lee Remick . Diana Rigg . Edward G. Robinson . Paul Scofield . Peter Sellers . Mary Steenburgen . Donald Sutherland . Elizabeth Taylor . Terry-Thomas . Kristin Scott Thomas . Maggie Smith . Robert Wagner . David Warner . Raquel Welch . Orson Welles . Billie Whitelaw . Gene Wilder . Michael York

---

JOHN JUNKIN

John Junkin is one of Britain's premier comedic actors and writers. His writing first made an impact in Britain in the mid-1950's - and he has been appearing in top British comedy films and TV shows since the early 1960's. He has also earned a place in Beatles history with his iconic performance in the Beatles first film - playing one of their road managers. He had a cameo in John Lennon's first and only solo feature film as an actor - Richard Lester's black comedy "How I Won The War." He also co-starred with Stanley Holloway in the 1960's cult British TV series "Thingumybob" - which featured an ultra-rare specially-written and produced instrumental theme tune by Paul McCartney.

He was born in Ealing, West London. After working for three years as a school teacher, Junkin approached two of Britain's top comedic talents - Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan - founders of the legendary BBC radio program "The Goon Show" (the 1950's precursor of Monty Python) - and volunteered his talents as a script-writer. His talents were recognized and he became a writer for Sellers and several other British comedic performers. He wrote for and made cameo appearances on the TV version of the legendary "Goon Show" - directed by future Beatles film director Richard Lester, and alongside fellow actor Alun Owen - who later emerged as a playwright - and scriptwriter of "A Hard Day's Night."

After his success in the 1964 Beatles' film, he became much in-demand playing a variety of comedic characters in films and TV shows. Junkin worked as co-writer and sidekick to Marty Feldman on Feldman's breakthrough 1968 TV series for the BBC - which won multiple awards for Feldman and Junkin.

One of the most recognizable faces in British acting he has acted in films ranging from "A Handful Of Dust" to "The Wrong Box" - and on Britain's most successful soap opera "Eastenders."

His friendship with Peter Sellers and his affinity for the Beatles led to his conceiving a comedic recording in which Sellers performed Lennon-McCartney's "A Hard Day's Night" in the persona of Shakespeare's Richard III - as voiced by Laurence Olivier! The recording, supervised by Beatles producer Sir George Martin, became a huge success in Britain and is considered to be one of Sellers' most creative recordings. Junkin is also a noted songwriter - with his songs covered by artists ranging from Doris Day and Tony Christie to Marian Montgomery and Matt Monro. And even by Marty Feldman!

The list of British and American performers he has starred with in the past 40 years, in both comedic and dramatic roles, is a who's who of thespian talent - and is testament to his highly-regarded place in the acting world.

Anne Bancroft . Warren Beatty . Jane Birkin . Dirk Bogarde . Michael Caine . John Cassavetes . Peter Cook . Michael Crawford . Judi Dench . Marty Feldman . Peter Finch . Rupert Graves . Alec Guinness . Irene Handl . Rex Harrison . Stanley Holloway . Anjelica Huston . Wilfrid Hyde-White . George Kennedy . Patsy Kensit . Roy Kinnear . John Lennon . Emily Lloyd . Jeremy Lloyd . Sophia Loren . James Mason . Patrick McGoohan . Leo McKern . Spike Milligan . John Mills . Ron Moody . Dudley Moore . Robert Morley . Ralph Richardson . Peter Sellers . Maggie Smith . Kiefer Sutherland . Terry-Thomas . Kristin Scott Thomas . Phil Silvers . Robert Vaughn . Max von Sydow . Susannah York

A press release for the screenings in Los Angeles:

THE AMERICAN CINEMATHEQUE PRESENTS A SNEAK PREVIEW AND 'A HARD DAY'S NIGHT' IN A BRAND NEW 35 MM PRINT WITH SPECIAL IN PERSON GUESTS

THE RULES OF ATTRACTION Special Sneak Preview (Tuesday, September 24) Co-Presented with Ain't It Cool News

The Beatles in A HARD DAY'S NIGHT (Sunday, September 29) Featuring Special Guests: Co-Stars Victor Spinetti and John Junkin

HOLLYWOOD -The American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre presents two special one night film programs at the end of September, both featuring In Person guests. On Tuesday, September 24th at 7:30 PM is a Sneak Preview of THE RULES OF ATTRACTION, based on the Bret Easton Ellis novel about a trio of hedonistic students at an exclusive college. Academy-award winning writer, Director/Screenwriter Roger Avary and cast members are scheduled to appear in person. On Sunday, September 29th at 5:00 PM, the American Cinematheque celebrates the 40th anniversary of the release of the Beatles' first record, and the release of the deluxe DVD edition of A HARD DAY'S NIGHT. Following a screening of a brand new 35 mm print, Co-stars Victor Spinetti and John Junkin are scheduled to appear in person with Beatles historian Martin Lewis. A special exhibition of rare lobby cards, posters and rare vintage movie marketing materials will be on display in the theatre lobby, courtesy of Christopher Chatman of Beyond Records. John Lennon's concert jacket from the film will also be on display - courtesy of Gordon Millings of Dougie Millings & Son - tailor to the Beatles. All guests are subject to their availability. All screenings are at the newly renovated Lloyd E. Rigler Theatre at the historic Egyptian (6712 Hollywood Boulevard between Highland and Las Palmas) in Hollywood.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT: Sunday, September 29, 2002 The Sunday, September 29th program begins at 5:00 PM with a special screening of a brand new 35mm print of A HARD DAY'S NIGHT, (1964, Miramax, 85 min.) Director Richard Lester's brilliant, carefree comedy set the tone for the rest of the 1960's and captured the Beatles at their best, clowning (as one respected reviewer said) like the new Marx Bros. From Lester's restless, handheld camerawork to writer Alun Owen's surreal day-in-the-life script and George Martin's pithy score (both Oscar-nominated) to the Beatles themselves - exuberantly singing "Can't Buy Me Love," "She Loves You" and ten other Beatles classics -- this is the essence of the Sixties.

This event salutes the release of Miramax Home Entertainment's new Deluxe DVD Edition of the 1964 film (which received two Academy Award nominations) - and the 40th anniversary of the release of the Beatles' first record in 1962.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT will be preceded by the World Premiere of "Things They Said Today..." (2002, Miramax, 35 min.) A new special produced by Beatles historian Martin Lewis - documenting the making of the classic film. Discussion following with co-stars Victor Spinetti (who portrayed the neurotic TV director), John Junkin (who played "Shake" the taller of the two road managers.) and Beatles historian Martin Lewis - producer of the DVD edition of the film. Prior to and after the screening Interviews available with Beatles historian/DVD producer Martin Lewis, John Junkin and Victor Spinetti. (subject to availability).

And here is the up-to-date revised version of the official press release on the new DVD:

MAJOR DVD/VHS RELEASE SALUTES LANDMARK BEATLES ANNIVERSARIES

THE BEATLES A HARD DAY'S NIGHT

Special Edition Two-Disc DVD Packed With Bonus Features
Includes New Footage
To Be Released September 24

BURBANK, Calif. , September 6, 2002 -- Fall 2002 marks the 40th anniversary of several key events in the story of the Beatles' phenomenal success - including the recording and release of their first record "Love Me Do", the recording of their first #1 hit "Please Please Me" - and their first chart success.

Saluting those landmark 40th anniversaries is the release of The Beatles' A HARD DAY'S NIGHT on DVD and VHS from Miramax Home Entertainment on September 24, 2002. This incredible two-disc DVD edition, with rare and new footage, is likely to appeal to the same vast audience which purchased the last major release of Beatles material - their greatest hits album "1" - which has sold in excess of 28 million units worldwide since its November 2000 release.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT on DVD presents the Beatles' breakthrough first movie "A HARD DAY'S NIGHT" together with the major new production "GIVE ME EVERYTHING! - A Companion Anthology To The Beatles' First Film." The film has been digitally transferred from the restored original 35mm negative, and the original soundtrack has been digitally restored for this special DVD and VHS release (2-Disc DVD $29.99 S.R.P.)

On VHS, A HARD DAY'S NIGHT includes the new half-hour promotional special about the film"Things They Said Today." (VHS $14.99 S.R.P.).

The A HARD DAY'S NIGHT DVD includes the bonus disc "GIVE ME EVERYTHING! ? A Companion Anthology To The Beatles' First Film" ? an extensive new production which presents a huge amount of vintage and contemporary material relating to the 1964 film.The content will appeal to the broad mass of Beatles lovers, a fan base which now stretches across three generations. Included is material that will also appeal to film buffs, to lovers of comedy, and to the vast legions of young people who have discovered the fun of the 1960's through such popular vehicles as the "Austin Powers" films.

In addition to the new half-hour promotional special about the film ("Things They Said Today."), there are many extras that add to the appeal of the DVD, including interviews with most of the surviving cast and crew, as well as close friends of the Beatles. A total of 30 interviewees are featured on the DVD. These include specially filmed, in-depth interviews with director Richard Lester, musical director Sir George Martin (whose score was nominated for an Academy Awardâ), title designer Robert Freeman (the Beatles' favorite photographer/designer) and leading co-star John Junkin who portrayed "Shake" - one of the Beatles' two road managers.

Lending further authority to this new release, the A HARD DAY'S NIGHT special edition DVD has been produced by leading Beatles historian and producer Martin Lewis ("Secret Policeman's Ball" movies etc.) Martin Lewis was a long-time friend of the film's original producer - the late Walter Shenson - who proposed Lewis to supervise the DVD release and compile the new material. Drawing on his longstanding friendships with Sir George Martin, Richard Lester, Robert Freeman and others across the Beatles universe, Lewis conducted all but one of the thirty interviews seen on the DVD.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT features 12 famous Beatles compositions, including three of their biggest hits - "A Hard Day's Night," "Can't Buy Me Love" and "She Loves You" - all of which were worldwide number one hits. Other familiar titles include: "All My Loving," "And I Love Her," "If I Fell," "I Wanna Be Your Man," "I Should Have Known Better," "Tell Me Why," "Don't Bother Me," "I'm Happy Just To Dance With You" and "Ringo's Theme" - George Martin's orchestral arrangement of Lennon-McCartney's "This Boy" - part of his Academy Awardâ-nominated score.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT captures all the fun, excitement and unforgettable music of John, Paul, George and Ringo at the height of Beatlemania.It's a wildly irreverent day in the life of the world's most famous rock 'n' roll band, as they prepare for a big television appearance.The Beatles perform their songs, look for adventure and try in vain to keep Paul's mischief-making grandfather out of trouble, all while being chased by hordes of screaming fans!

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT was a massive commercial success upon its theatrical release.The film, which critics had presumed would be a standard teen jukebox movie, received almost universal critical acclaim upon its release from serious film reviewers.The film became a major factor in propelling the Beatles from their already massive teenage following into the stratosphere of worldwide fame and popularity transcending all generations.

The film's groundbreaking shooting, editing and directing style is widely considered to have been the forerunner of music video. In the 1990's MTV declared "A HARD DAY'S NIGHT" director Richard Lester the "father of music video." (Lester quipped that he demanded a paternity test!)

The 40th anniversary in Fall 2002 of the Beatles' first breakthrough is likely to generate significant media coverage. That initial success paved the way for their eight years of mega-stardom between 1963 and 1970 - and the unprecedented thirty two years of subsequent perpetual fame that has kept The Beatles as famous, newsworthy and successful today as they were at the height of Beatlemania.

Street Date:September 24
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 formatted for 16x9 screens
Rated:"G"
DVD bonus features unrated.
Original movie run Time: approximately 87 minutes
Suggested Retail Price:$29.99 (DVD) $14.99 (VHS)

Miramax Home Entertainment is distributed by Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc., a recognized industry leader.Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc. is the marketing, sales and distribution company for Walt Disney, Touchstone, Hollywood Pictures,Miramax, Dimension and Buena Vista videocassettes and DVDs.

Update (8/31/02) From author Keith Badman:

Hi Steve,

Just a short note to let you know that I've received an advance/ review copy of the new two-disc A Hard Day's Night DVD set and... you can believe the hype! The newly remastered print is just superb, the sound is a delight, the bonus features on the discs are most fascinating and the menu screens are wonderfully eye-catching!

Anyone who worked on this should take a welcome slap on the back! No one will be disappointed with this. It's just superb!

Best Wishes from the UK,
Keith Badman
(August 29, 2002)

Update (8/24/02) From Martin Lewis, a response to Amber H.'s comments from Friday:

Thanks Amber for the very generous comments. I really hope everyone enjoys the DVD as much as you indicate.

I crammed so much information into that one-hour talk I gave about the DVD - all at my usual fast delivery! - that I'm astonished you got so much detail down!

There are a couple of minor points of emphasis I'd like to clarify - just for the record.

1) I do believe that the "Yellow Sub" theatrical release was bungled. (Things weren't like that when the wonderful Derek Taylor was still with us!) The result of that debacle was that theater owners became cagey about the notion of a Beatles film in movie theaters - and that forced a lower-profile theatrical reissue for AHDN by Miramax. Miramax didn't bungle it. It inherited a badly damaged marketplace.

2) What I tried to say about Apple's non-involvement is just this: Apple has had a very long-standing policy of not becoming involved in any project which it doesn't wholly own. AHDN has never been owned by Apple - so they declined to be involved. That's their position and with great disappointment and reluctance I had to accept it. I leave it to others to decide how they feel about Apple's policy.

I think and hope that fans will enjoy the DVD - but however much fans like it - I know in my heart that the four people in the world who will enjoy it most are... Paul, Ringo, Yoko and Olivia.

That's because in essence the DVD is a homage to the Beatles - by 30 members of the cast, crew, and close friends of theirs such as George Martin, Robert Freeman and Klaus Voorman. This DVD is dedicated to the Beatles. And we fans will let them know that....

And from Rediffusion:

Hi,

Victor Spinetti was a guest on Danny Baker's BBC London radio show this week speaking about "A Hard Days Night." He said that as well as being interviewed for the bonus material of AHDN, he also spoke about HELP! for the future DVD release. Have a listen to an edited version here...

website... http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/insideldn/dannybaker/index.shtml or direct link to sound clip... http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/realmedia/radio/victor_spinetti.ram

regards,
Rediffusion

Update (8/23/02) Amber H. originally posted her account of the AHDN DVD premiere on the HariOnTour list and allowed us to use it here (thanks, Amber):

The film itself looked and sounded fantastic -- crystal clear picturewise and audiowise. It's also letterboxed. (Editor's note: The DVD isn't letterboxed, but in the original aspect ratio.) The extras include a HUGE documentary interviewing most of the technical people involved -- NO Fabs but George Martin, Dick Lester, cinematographer Gil Taylor, (who also worked on "Star Wars"), the hairdresser, the camera men, etc. Victor Spinetti, Lionel Blair (the TV Choreographer who was also a friend of the Fabs offscreen), John Junkin (Shake), -- even the girl who was in the scene with Paul that got cut out.

Unfortunately, all the unused/out take footage was destroyed/thrown out years ago by the movie studio as no one thought it would be valuable so they could not include the scene itself. However, they were able to recreate it via still photos (something that Turner Classic Movies is doing with several projects, I might add).

The original script from Walter Shenson's own vaults complete with handwritten notes will be on there. The "Making Of" featurette documentary will be on there too. I know there's other stuff too...it just seems to be a lot of fun. I have to give Martin Lewis credit for spearheading this entire project and really believing in it -- he also suggested that everyone go out and buy it the first week of release (Sept 24) because this will give the film/music distro people some inkling that the Fabs are still very marketable. He talked about how the theatrical rerelease of "Yellow Sub" was bungled and how that led to the theatrical rerelease of AHDN being bungled by Miramax... I think if there is enough interest/sales in this DVD that perhaps we might get something similar for "Help!"

We got to see a bit of the documentary -- it looks like loads of fun. Martin said that because Apple has no stake in the film, they really are NOT behind it at all which is why there were no Fabs interviewed for it (or perhaps they declined).

In my opinion, basically, if there is nothing in it financially for the Powers That Be at Apple (and we all know who they are), they won't support it/get involved in it. I suppose you can't blame them considering how badly they've been ripped off in the past and how so many things containing their images (including stuff like "Ready Steady Go!" and "Ed Sullivan" shows) were released without their permission so they tend to see non-Apple projects as people making money off of them.

The one thing Martin kept stressing was that he really wanted to make this as complete an experience as possible for the fans. It was truly a labour of love and one that I think he can be very proud of. The only real disappointment for me was the exclusion of the "scream" track that was recorded last year at Beatlefest. My friend and I were involved in it and it would have been funny to have it included. (The thought behind it was to include a wall to wall track of fans screaming through the entire film to recreate what it would have been like to see the film in the theatre back in 1964).

Oh, I don't think anyone else has mentioned it but Martin Lewis said the reason for the 24 September release date is to tie in with the 40th Anniversary of 'Love Me Do" the following week. The reason it's a week earlier is to give journalists a chance to review it (the DVD) and then possibly tie the two events together.

Btw, anyone in the US might be interested to know that BestBuy.com has the film on sale for $19.99 right now with free shipping and a $5 digital coupon for a later online purchase. It seems like a really good deal. :)

Update II (8/22/02) Richard Porter, who lent a hand to the production team for a couple of days when they were shooting new material for the DVD in London - has an account of his experiences on his website.

Update (8/22/02) Here's a rundown on what the new AHDN DVD looked like at Beatlefest, from a combination of reports we've received:

The first hour was a presentation by DVD producer Martin Lewis. He discussed the history of the film and said that Beatle fans owe a huge debt to Brian Epstein and Walter Shenson. He said Epstein had previously resisted several approaches to make a standard issue pop film before he accepted the offer from Walter Shenson and that Shenson could have easily made a formula teen idol movie (like Elvis' films) using a sitcom director, but he picked a director and writer with the talent to do something as cool and fresh in film as the Beatles were doing in music. He also put in a plug for getting Brian Epstein into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame and urged everyone to sign the petition on the Web.

Lewis showed a few extracts from the DVD bonus material, titled "Give Me Everything!," a companion anthology to the film. He said the DVD bonus material includes about 30 different interviews, the original script and over 1,000 production photos.

Part of a new program about the making of the film called "Things They Said Today" was featured. It includes interviews with director Richard Lester and producer Walter Shenson, among others.

Lewis then introduced the world premiere of the DVD version. Reaction to it has been excellent. The release date can't come soon enough.

And from Charlie Reinhart:

Steve:

I stop by a friend's house this morning. He's a Billboard magazine subscriber and he was eager to show me the current edition (August 24). There between pages 24 and 25 was a 4-page, thin cardboard ad for the A Hard Day's Night DVD. He couldn't wait to have me open the ad and when I did, what a surprise. The Beatles began singing "It's been a hard day's night, and I've been workin' like a dog. It's been a hard day's night" and it was over. That's all they sang, but what a great ad. When I left his house, I went straight to the local magazine shop to pickup a copy for myself. They had ten copies in the rack, and not a single one of them had the ad! Apparently it was only placed in the magazines going to subscribers. I bought a copy anyhow and went back to my friend's house. He was more than happy to trade issues with me.

Thought your readers would want to know about this one - it's going to be a great collectable. I just hope they are as lucky as me and know someone who subscribes.

Update (8/20/02) An ad for the AHDN DVD in the Chicago Beatlefest program. (Thanks to Dr. Charles Crane.)

From Mike Jervis, a look at the European AHDN DVD:

Hi:

I thought you might like to know about a copy of A Hard Day's Night that is already available in Europe. Many of the CD/DVD shops in Amsterdam carry copies of this disc. I bought mine at the beginning of August. It is a one disc issue with a DTS soundtrack in 5.1 (though it's only the music that's mixed in 5.1). It isn't a bootleg (if it is it's very clever): it's distributed by RCV and has the Miramax logo and was available in legitimate outlets. It appears to have been published last year. I enclose a copy of the box artwork.

Mike Jervis

Update (8/9/02) Jon Jepson wrote to Paul Rutan, who worked on the restoration of AHDN for the film reissue. Jepson asked about what was being used to make the DVD. Here's Rutan's reply (thanks to Jon Jepson for passing this to us and Paul Rutan for allowing us to use it):

"The DVD would have been made from our new restored 35mm Fine Grain Master, struck directly from the original negative. Because of the work and technique we incorporated into the restored fine grain, this would create a top quality DVD, better in fact, then if it was struck directly from the original neg.

(Thanks to Martin Lewis and Karen Pederson for the information in today's update.)

You'll be interested to note that the UK/ European release of the A Hard Day's Night film on DVD is set for Monday, September 30. I understand it is the same version as the one to be issed in the States on September 24.

Update (7/20/02) From Scoop:

Hi Steve,

Just to let you know, the new AHDN DVD, which appears to have the same features as the region 1 version except it is in PAL, not NTSC, will be available on September 30th in Australia (Region 4).

Thanks
Scoop

Update (7/17/02)

Update (7/16/02) Here's the updated press release (the earlier one was a draft issued in error):

Buena Vista Home Entertainment Corrects and Replaces Previous Press Release, BW0099, CA-A-HARD-DAY'S-NIGHT

Entertainment Editors & Music/Motion Pictures & Video Writers

(NOTE: The following news release replaces and corrects the previous Buena Vista Home Entertainment news release, which ran earlier Wednesday.)

BURBANK, Calif....July 15, 2002...Buena Vista Home Entertainment: ... Major DVD/VHS Release to Salute Landmark Beatles Anniversary ... The Beatles' ""A Hard Day's Night'' ... Special Edition 2-Disc DVD Packed With Bonus Features; Includes New Footage to Be Released September 24

Fall 2002 marks the 40th anniversary of a key event in the story of The Beatles' phenomenal success ... the recording and release of their first record, "Love Me Do." Saluting that landmark anniversary will be the major release of The Beatles' A HARD DAY'S NIGHT on DVD and VHS from Miramax Home Entertainment on September 24, 2002. This incredible DVD 2-disc edition, with rare and new footage, is likely to appeal to the same vast audience which purchased the last major release of Beatles material ... their greatest hits album "1" ... which has sold in excess of 28 million units worldwide since its November 2000 release.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT on DVD includes The Beatles' breakthrough first movie "A Hard Day's Night" joined by the major new production "GIVE ME EVERYTHING! A Companion Anthology To The Beatles' First Film" (2-Disc DVD $29.99 S.R.P.).

On VHS, A HARD DAY'S NIGHT includes a new promotional special, "Things They Said Today..." (VHS $14.99 S.R.P.).

The A HARD DAY'S NIGHT DVD includes the bonus disc "Give Me Everything!" ... an extensive new production which presents a huge amount of vintage and contemporary material relating to the 1964 film. The content will appeal to the broad mass of Beatles lovers, a fan base which now stretches across three generations. Included is material that will also appeal to film buffs, to lovers of comedy, and to the vast legions of young people who have discovered the fun of the 1960's through such popular vehicles as the "Austin Powers" films.

In addition to the new half-hour special about the film ("Things They Said Today..."), there are many extras that add to the appeal of the DVD, including thirty interviews with most of the surviving cast and crew members as well as close friends of The Beatles. These include specially filmed, in-depth interviews with director Richard Lester, Academy Award(R) nominee ... Musical Director Sir George Martin (Best Music 1964) ... and leading co-star John Junkin.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT features twelve famous Beatles compositions, including three of their biggest hits ... "A Hard Day's Night," "Can't Buy Me Love," and "She Loves You" ... all of which were worldwide number one hits. Other familiar titles include: "All My Loving," "And I Love Her," "If I Fell," "I Wanna Be Your Man," "I Should Have Known Better," "Tell Me Why," "Don't Bother Me" and "Ringo's Theme," George Martin's orchestral arrangement of Lennon-McCartney's "This Boy" ... part of his Academy Award(R) nominated score.

A HARD DAY'S NIGHT was a massive commercial success upon its theatrical release. The film, which had been prejudged as a standard teen jukebox movie, received almost universal critical acclaim upon its release from serious film reviewers. The film became a major factor in propelling The Beatles from their already massive teenage following into the stratosphere of worldwide fame and popularity transcending all generations.

The film's groundbreaking shooting, editing and directing style is widely considered to have been the forerunner of music video. In the 1990's MTV declared A HARD DAY'S NIGHT director Richard Lester the "father of music video." (Lester quipped that he demanded a paternity test!)

The 40th anniversary in fall 2002 of the release of The Beatles' first record is likely to generate significant media coverage. That first record paved the way for their eight years of mega-stardom between 1963 and 1970 ... and the unprecedented thirty-two years of subsequent perpetual fame that has kept The Beatles as famous, newsworthy and successful today as they were at the height of Beatlemania.

Street Date: September 24
Direct DVD prebook: July 30
Distributor DVD prebook: August 13
VHS prebook: August 13
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 formatted for 16x9 screens
Rated: "G"
DVD bonus features unrated.
Run Time: Approximately 87 minutes
Suggested Retail Price: $29.99 (DVD) $14.99 (VHS)

Also included: round table discussions with cast and crew members; a digitized copy of the first draft of the script and unpublished photos by Robert Freeman who designed the "With the Beatles" and "Rubber Soul" covers, created the end credit sequences for AHDN and "Help!", and who shot and designed the covers for John's books and photographed Ringo's wedding. (phew!). The DVD will also include a DVD-ROM section and links to more content online. More details should come later this week.

I was just looking up AHDN on Yahoo, and I found this information on the main page: "Laserdisc release features the original trailer and an interview with Lester. The DVD release includes the same as well as newsreel footage and the Richard Lester short film Running, Jumping, and Standing Still starring Peter Sellers, a favorite of the band and likely the reason for their choosing Lester to direct A Hard Day's Night."

I also found this on the Yahoo! Shopping page:

"DVD Features
• Black & White
• Closed Captioned
• Widescreen/Letterboxed
• In English
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment

DVD Features:
Region 1
Keep Case
Interactive Features:
Scene Access
Interactive Menus

Do you think this information is from the upcoming DVD or something else?

Oh, and I should probably comment on the CD-ROM AHDN that was released a number of years ago (at least 6 years ago, I think) by Voyager...you probably know of it, but there's a website for it at http://voyager.learntech.com/cdrom/catalogpage.cgi?ahdn .

I haven't used the CD-ROM in years, but I do remember that I was really disappointed on how small the movie was - only 2 or 3 inches square. I don't really remember anything else, although I have a sneaking suspicion that there was something wrong in the Beatle bios. However, I think for the time it was pretty high-tech in general.

Keep up the good work!

Our comment: Yes, it sounds pretty much like the DVD, though final details are still being worked out. Next, from Al Fontana:

This is not so much a wish for the DVD but a question about these wishes. Are these requests going to reach the "powers that be" or are they for our own wish list? These are all great request for the DVD and I would love to see every one of them including "The Making of A Hard Days Night". I hope someone up there is reading all this. Thanks.

Al: The answer to your question is yes, these comments are going to the "powers that be." Cross your fingers.

Update (6/27/02) From Rob Leonard:

Here's my wish (I hope it's not too late) I've mention all these on my show at one time or another.

• Richard Lester director's commentary
• Copy of the script
• Copy of the varioius posters
• all trailers produced
• open ended interview that ended up as Fab Four on Film
• any radio and television commercials
• Put back the complete "You Can't Do That" in it's appropriate spot
• Liner notes from Roger Ebert
• The George Martin music tracks that were on the Hard Days Night LP and are now out of print
• mono and stereo version (and 5:1 if you can get the masters from Apple)
• Move the "I'll Cry Instead" photo montage to after the credits (and if there are more photos available from that photo session make another montage using "Anytime at All" and/or "Things We Said Today"
• Any outtakes
• Production notes
• Cast and Crew information

And from Brian Cancemi:

To respond to Matt Slys:

You do hear the bumping of the amplifier in the new version...unlike the MPI version. I'm glad that I wans't the only one to notice the crappy sound. My German DVD doesn't display the letterboxing properly...does anyone else have this problem??? The Japanes one is fine.

Update (6/26/02) More wish list, from Jack C.:

1. Promotional materials: Posters, etc.
2. Audio only of UA's AHDN album (complete album)
3. Commentary
4. Quiz (like on 1st US Visit DVD)
5. Bloopers

Update (6/25/02) More responses for the AHDN DVD wish list. First, from Matt Slys:

I thought I would put my 2 cents in:

I've noticed watching the very first edition of the film when it came out on video the first, they kept the original mixs and soundtrack. If you notice during the If I fell sequence when George bumps into the amplifier, you can hear it clearly. On the newer editions that came out, the music covered it up..

I would prefer they left it alone and enhanced it to match the obvious limitations the original films has. Otherwise we will get great sounding music set against a mediocre dialogue track which had plagued the MPI issues of both A Hard Days Night and Help!

And I second whoever made the comment about the cover artl Movie poster is a much better idea.

And from Jean Garello:

Dear Steve,

I thought I would pass a few comments after something I've read in your feature about the AHDN DVD. As you told us we could write about that...I'm writing!

Somebody wrote that as the sound wasn't recorded in six channels you can't have a six channel sound. Well, that sounds true enough BUT, anyone who's worked a bit with multitrack tape machines (which I happen to have done) knows that in fact you actually can do that.

It is exactly what they did with Yellow Sub. Many songs on the original album had been recorded in 4 tracks between 1965 and 1967.But if you go back to the master tapes, before they bounced the tracks to have more space left to record more instruments, you can indeed recover your six channels.That was done in Yellow Sub. The material in AHDN was all recorded in 4 tracks, as was all of Sgt Pepper.So it is possible if one wishes to do the same thing with AHDN.

For example you just have to seperate the rhythm track from the voices, this was done to songs like Nowhere Man or Think For Yourself allowing you to have the vocals in true stereo.

Hope this is gonna be of some interest...

And Carl Savich:

Steve, on the new US release of AHDN on DVD the following should be included:

1. The original trailers, about 4 or 5 of them originally and the 1982 trailer. These are classic and I was very disappointed that they were not on the video re-release and the theatrical re-release a few years ago. Some video versions had the "I'll Cry Instead" trailer from 1982 and one of the 1964 trailers. But there is a great original trailer where the Beatles are in baby carriages talking on phones where Lennon is really good. He says something like "Don't be daft" or "Don't be soft" or something like that to Ringo. It is a great trailer and to me should always be part of the movie. It is just a great moment which is cut out of video releases although I think there were excerpts shown on the MAKING documentary. In short, include ALL the movie trailers!!!!!!!! There is one where it is introduced as "they are coming....Here they are...the Beatles!!!", etc. These are really nice trailers.

2. Bonus footage should be included such as the "You Can't Do That" segment cut originally because Dick Lester did not like the song, it was a little too gritty.

3. It goes without saying that 5.1 format and print quality should be state of the art and as good as they can be gotten.

4. If anyone remembers, there was a 1964 documentary on the making of AHDN, a trailer that was a preview of the movie in B& W much like the "Mod Odyssey" trailer for Yellow Submarine. In this trailer there is a behind the scenes glimpse of the making of the movie. This trailer should be included in the DVD package. It is such a great bit and is about 5-10 minutes in length.

5. Outtakes should be included if any.

6. Finally, I agree with the other comment that the cover of the DVD is horrid! as shown on Amazon.com!!! I agree the original movie poster is much better. There are much more imaginative photos. There is one with the AHDN album cover from the 1964 British LP that included Paul's grandfather wearing a Beatles turtleneck as part of the stills, etc. That is a nice and funny cover. What is wrong with these people! Use some creativity and imagination. I totally agree, the apparent DVD cover sucks! AHDN is such a gear and fab movie classic. Great to see it on DVD finally!

And Bryan Barrow:

Here's my want list for the AHDN DVD:

You can't do that outtake w/Ed Sullivan interview/intro; footage from the premiere; all the original theatrical trailers, including the "Baby Carriage" one; the complete, unedited UK tv special shown at the time AHDN was originally released (I forget the title). It runs about 50 min. A lot of footage from this was shown in edited form in the Phil Collins narrated "making of" home video; I believe there is also a theatrical newsreel from '64 about the making of AHDN; radio spots; open end interview/Fab 4 on film; any other original audio/video that exists.

Finally, Gabor Peterdi in Hungary on the German AHDN DVD that's out:

Just some info on the german DVD release of HDN for the others:

************** What is actually on the German release:

1. PICTURE: 1:1,78 (16:9 anamorph) The film is in perfect picture,crystal clean and sharp as a knife - maybe some softness could have been applied, however it is the best ever. However the I'll Cry Instead clip is MISSING all together. The first major disappointment!

2. MENU: Nice moving menu with 20 parts of the film to jump to. No jumping to all the songs though...stupid.

3. SOUND: 1. Original german mono sound (archive form sixties) 2. 5.1 Dolby digital English 3. PCM Stereo English This is unbelievable but the English sound is awful. They tried to make the DVD seem to be 5.1 by continuously balancing the music in the separate channels, but this is just very annoying. The PCM stereo is a bit better, but it's NOT stereo! Dialogue and music are in mono (if my ears are right.)

4. SUBTITLE: German

5. Extras: - a short 12 page story of the boys by Matthia Bühring and Rainer Moers (Beatlesmuseum, Halle) - some info about all their major films. About 15 lines on each.
- 15 pages of info abou the production of the movie
- 10 pages of what famous people had to say about the movie (inc. JPGR)
- the new MIRAMAX trailer 1:45min
- recent interview with Richard Lester 8:15min
- 20 b/w pictures (about 15 rare and the others well known)
All in all not the one we were waiting for. The nice picture quality and the impressive moving menu is not enough to make this DVD the ultimate edition as the Yellow Submarine DVD was. It is unfortunate that Apple hasn't had a saying in this issue, because I am sure they would have made a better version. Awful sound, uninpressive pages of nothing new info, no outtakes, no surprises. I only recommend this DVD for completists or for people who never saw the movie before. They will enjoy it because the movie itself is great with the spirit of the fabs shining through. For us long time fans we just have to wait and see how the US version turns out. In my opinion however we will not see the ultimate HDN DVD untill Apple gets the rights for the release.

Gabor Peterdi
Hungary

Update (6/24/02) Some responses from our request last night as to what you'd like to see on the new AHDN DVD. First, from Carolyn Hurwitz::

What would I like to see on the U.S. DVD? Well....

1. A cleaned-up negative and soundtrack, of course, both the original mono and remixed stereo.
2. The 1981 "I'll Cry Instead" prologue.
3. A complete list of Cast & Crew.
4. Production Notes.
5. Director's Commentary. If anyone has read the book of AHDN which was published back in the Seventies, they know that Lester has a LOT of pithy comments and great stories.
6. Any existing outtakes--don't know if there are any.
7. Perhaps the "You Can't Do That!" documentary.

That should cover Israel....

And Alan Luber:

I don't understand all the negativity about the 5.1 surround sound. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. If the soundtrack wasn't recorded in six channels (and we know it wasn't), you can't mix it in six channels. For me, the attraction would be (a) having the movie in DVD format, and (b) having the extras that are included with the movie. I am not expecting a surround sound experience.

And from Robert Luber:

I have a couple of questions. Is the DVD cover going to look like the one pictured on Amazon? If so, it's very unimaginitive. Can't they duplicate the original poster? It would look so much better.

As for sound mixes, hopefully there will be a 5.1 to please those that need it. I personally would like a good , clean mono or stereo mix.

How much is Apple involved, since they don't own the film (or do they? )

Answer to your question: They don't own the film, but they have control of the music, for one thing. Next, from manny:

I'd like to see ALL of the scenes that were edited out of the released version!

And from jj:

Well, I'd like that FAB FOUR ON FILM thing (I realize it's audio only) that was recalled from the MOVIE MEDLEY 45 put out again. There is no point in them doing this half-assed; they need to include stuff from that CD-ROM (which I've never seen) on it, ANY photos, and how about Ed Sullivan introducing the "You Can't Do That" clip? We all know that's where it came from, but in the MAKING OF AHDN, it's like it just "appeared" from the depths, with no explanation. Vintage film reviews would be good. And while this has nothing to do with the DVD, how about doing the UNITED ARTISTS soundtrack album properly - issue it in stereo (the UA version was fake), along with the George Martin stuff in stereo as well, and time it to come out when the dvd is issued?

Finally, a comment on the German AHDN DVD, from Ondra Skoumal in the Czech Republic:

I have German version of this DVD since this spring. The picture is great but the sound is really terrible. Music is phasing. Sounds to me like mono mixes re-channeled into 5.1 dolby digital. I still hope it´s a "wrong" version and it will be released properly later this year. However, there is bonus, trailer or something, in which is played She Loves You with really great surround sound. Perfectly simulated surround sound. Because, as we know, remix is not possible in the case of this song. Sadly, in the film She Loves You sounds again bad. As the rest of the songs. MPI version with stereo music is far better.
Ondra Skoumal
Czech Republic

Update (6/23/02) You've probably seen the comments we've printed here on the Japanese and German versions of the AHDN DVD. If you have these (and not the MPI or any VCD versions), we'd like to hear your comments, good or bad. Also, what would you like to see on the forthcoming U.S. AHDN DVD? We'll use selected comments here. Please e-mail us.

Update (6/20/02) From Brian Camcemi:

I really hope that the new AHDN DVD doesn't have the audio problems that the European and Japanese discs do. I bought the Japanese one from amazon.jp. It came with a DTS mix as well as a standard 5.1 audio track. It also has something that is pretty cool..........It came with 3 AHDN guitar picks. Great packaging overall but the sound still blows. I really don't think they ever truly mixed the songs for 5.1. All it sounds like they did was just use reverb and delay to create a simulated surround. I wouldn't call it true stereo. I really have to say that I believe that the audio portion of this whole thing has been a bit of a fraud. I really hope that the US version corrects it. It is region 2 NTSC. I must say that the Japanese one has slightly better audio than the European one, but it still phases all over the place. One big disappointment as far as I'm concerned. Another neat little bonus is a guitar lesson from Japs dressed as Beatles. They teach the rhythm as well as the lead guitar parts to the title track. And it also has a brief featurette on how the film sites look today.

Update (6/19/02) Another info link, this one to DVDfile.com. Not much that we haven't already reported on.

Update (5/22/02) Are we closer to solving the mystery of when and if AHDN is being re-released? After Sean Roper told us he'd seen a Sept. 24 (not October as on Amazon) release date on DVDfile.com, we contacted them and got info that the Sept. 24 info is up on Buena Vista's site for the DVD release and the VHS. (Buena Vista is the distributor.) The site lists the Sept. 24 release date and the following extras on the DVD: "The Making Of A HARD DAY'S NIGHT", a stills gallery and an "Audio Commentary With The Cast And Crew" (no mention of who exactly will be involved). The enlarged picture of the cover also reveals it will be a two-disc set featuring "new footage, enhanced picture and digitally restored soundtrack." No extras are listed for the VHS. Interestingly, Amazon's VHS page lists Sept. 24, so the Oct. 24 date on the DVD page would seem to be an error. Also interestingly, we couldn't find any listing of AHDN on the Miramax site. (It's listed on the cover as a Miramax release.) (Thanks to Sean Roper and DVDfile.com.)

Update (2/15/02) A new AHDN DVD has apparently been released in some European countries, including Germany. Brian Cancemi tells us it has few extras: a Miramax re-release trailer in English and German, an Interview with Richard Lester in English, and several filmographies in German. He also says, "There seems to be something screwy with the sound though....as though it phases in spots." (The DVD is listed on amazon.de. If you don't have a multi-regional player, it will not play in the U.S.) We checked with a source on the upcoming U.S. DVD, who tells us it's still in the works, though no release date has been set. Take this for what it's worth: a publicity release for the Denis O'Dell "At the Apple's Core" book we wrote about recently indicates it will be linked on the AHDN DVD, which they say will be released in 2002. Since the book has no direct connection to the DVD, we take this with a grain of salt. There's still no indication of a 2002 release date yet for the AHDN DVD, though, like you, we're crossing our fingers.

Update (8/23/01) From Sean Courtney:

This past weekend at Beatlefest, Martin Lewis asked for people to go to the video room to watch the movie and...SCREAM! They're planning on adding a separate "scream track" to emulate what it was like to watch "A Hard Day's Night" in theaters in 1964 with all the teenage fans screaming at the larger-than-life images of the Fab Four being projected onto a screen.

Update (8/14/01) Martin Lewis has been hired to produce the AHDN DVD, which will be released by Miramax and Buena Vista Films but has no release date yet. He says plans call for multiple audio tracks (a 5.1 surround version, a digital restoration of the original mono, plus commentaries from cast and crew) as well as original trailers and promo clips.

(7/28/01)
Fans have been wondering why the previously-announced new edition of the AHDN DVD has not been released yet and has not even got an official release date scheduled. We've discovered that the reason for the delay is that the producers are apparently immersed in making sure that it is the definitive release. They are considering a selection of sound mixes, plus large amounts of additional audio and visuals. They are determined to far surpass the briefly available MPI version -- both technically and in respect of content. No further details or release date yet - but we will keep you informed as and when we hear more.
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