Everyone Should Let The Beatles Breakup "Let it Be"

Over fifty years ago, a film was released that was intended to show the making of The Beatles' next classic album. It was released to intrigue from audiences and critics, and even won an Academy Award for the Fab Four. Yet none of the band members showed up to collect their prize, and the film has been kept out of circulation since its initial release. That is because the film that was released was “Let It Be,” and while the intention was to promote the (then) upcoming new Beatles album, the movie ended up documenting the breakup of the band.

As a result, none of the members wanted to collect their awards, and the contents of the film were considered so sensitive that both Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney vowed that the movie would not be seen again until after they had died (thankfully, they are still alive and actively releasing new music as I write this). While the project was deemed a necessary evil to recoup the costs sunk into what would ultimately be a failed project (the recordings were handed off to Phil Spector and his “Wall of Sound” to try and make something salvageable out of them), outside of the initial theatrical release and a brief run on VHS, “Let It Be” has been kept out of circulation for more than five decades.

Thanks to some wining and dining from passionate Beatles fan Peter Jackson (yes, the guy who made “The Lord of the Rings” movies), the film has finally been released on Disney+ in a stunning new restoration. So, what is the movie like? Is it really as notorious as people claim it is? Honestly, most walking into the film may find themselves a bit disappointed. While the rooftop concert at the end of the film is still one of the great endings in movie history (even if Paul has claimed it would have been better had the police arrested them rather than just asking them to turn down the volume), there is actually very little in the movie that is revolutionary or even new to fans of the Fab Four.

Yes, it still gets to make the claim that we are seeing The Beatles in their rawest form—the fights are real and none of the band members are acting, so if you want to see how the four worked as creative partners, this is likely still the best way to do it. That said, we've had so many documentaries about The Beatles revealing all the warts, troubles, and disagreements that “Let It Be” seems to be more “the proof” of what happened rather than anything we hadn't already heard. That Paul and Ringo were so open about the troubles of the band near the end of the day shows that they have come to terms with the issues everyone had, but by keeping this movie out of circulation for so long, it also showed that it is still painful to visually see those memories in front of them.

I suppose this is another example of the power of film. For while The Beatles' lives have been covered by the likes of Jackson, Ron Howard, and multiple directors for “The Beatles Anthology” (still the definitive docuseries about the band), the fact that this movie still elicits a negative reaction goes to show how raw the emotions portrayed are. Yes, Paul really was getting to be that controlling. Yes, Yoko Ono being in the background looks wrong and there is a sense she shouldn't be there. Poor George Harrison's ideas are swatted down like flies in the air (those flies would have their vengeance when they resurfaced as completed songs on his masterpiece “All Things Must Pass”).

It's all here in a little-unseen film called “Let It Be.” Again, nothing in this movie will shock viewers who have watched other documentaries where band members (save for John Lennon, obviously) have openly admitted to the issues they had during the recording of this record. While it is nice to finally have the missing piece of the puzzle available after so many years, it almost feels like looking at the actual evidence of a crime: you know the tragedy took place, and at this point, you're just looking over the remains for your own satisfaction. As a fan myself, I can think of better ways to spend time with the Fab Four.