I recently got to re watch The Beatles Yellow Submarine, a film I remember enjoying most of my childhood as it was always in my family's DVD player. My dad even has the film's collectable figurines that still sit proudly on a windowsill in our basement. The Beatles' music was such a big part of my childhood in fact that their albums were some of the first on my iPod so I could carry St. Peppers wherever I went.
That's why I was so excited to revisit this classic last week during one of my film classes. After all, the pop art style alone make the film a visual delight. And woven together with some of The Beatles most iconic hits? What could be better?
But seeing this film after about 7 years left a very different impression on me. Maybe this is due to me growing up by 7 years since my last viewing. Maybe this is due to me being in a film class and being much more nit-picky when watching any movie.
Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed the movie and frankly sang along to myself during the film's many musical bits. But a lot of small details, mainly when it came to the film's audio, left a different impression on me than before. First and foremost, the dialogue and therefore the plot of the film is loose at best and often diverges to fit into one of the songs. But it's here that the film really shines, after all the music is what made this film exist in the first place
Every song is accompanied by a beautiful sequence which shows my argument that this film is just a visual album with cut scenes thrown in to make the plot. Some of my favorites in these sequences are "When I'm 64" and of course "Nowhere Man" starring Jeremy, the lovable for lack of a better term 'mascot' the boys find along their journey.
Even with the critiques I have now with a what I like to think 'more defined eye,' this film still has a special place in my heart. After all I still have my Yellow Submarine plush in my college apartment showing that even if I have grown out of being entertained by bright colors and songs alone, this film has a permanent place in my heart.
