Yesterday – Review

Yesterday

Directed by: Danny Boyle | Runtime: 116 minutes

So, we’ve had Queen, we’ve had Elton… now it’s The Beatles’ turn for some blockbuster magic. While I for one am happy to have some of the world’s best tunes catapulted back in to relevance, I have already written in detail about the diminishing relevance of the biopic genre. Refreshingly, Yesterday does not bother retreading the lives of the Fab Four; instead, it presents the importance of their music in a more unique manner. We are asked to imagine a world without The Beatles (I mean, it’s easy if you try), using the music of the band as a background to a quaint romantic comedy. It turns out that, after all, all you need is love.

In Yesterday, the world goes a little helter skelter after a mass blackout… collectively forgetting The Beatles exist. Enter Jack Malik (Himesh Patel), a struggling musician who seems to be the only person in the world to remember their songs. With the help of a long-time friend (Lily James) and a steel-hearted American agent (Kate McKinnon), Jack finds himself catapulted into fame. However, despite recognition being his life-long dream, he realises that life may have been better when he was a ‘nowhere man’. The premise is interesting enough, and thankfully doesn’t take itself too seriously. Things do lean in to the cliché, especially in the third act, but it retains its charm.

The performances are solid, with Patel engaging enough as the lead and James providing a genuine, sweet charm to the piece. Kate McKinnon is as funny as ever, and Ed Sheeran (who basically has an extended cameo in the flick) does just fine. Boyle does well in the directors chair, with some interesting stylistic choices among the typical British rom-com fare. Really, nothing in this film is revolutionary, but it’s solid enough to remain enjoyable. The film shines when it explores its premise more fully, with a small, yet unexpected, development towards the end providing one of the most heartwarming moments throughout the entire runtime.

As a long-time Beatles fan, this was a nice way to spend a couple of hours. Enjoyment of this film really does rest on the assumption that you believe that The Beatles are some of the best songwriters of all time, so any contrarians won’t find much joy in this. Essentially, it’s a nice, charming film that will make you feel warm and fuzzy, and will serve just fine as something to flick on when you’re looking for entertainment on a hard day’s night.