Missing The Point

I just watched It Was Fifty Years Ago Today!, a 2017 documentary on Netflix about the making of Sgt. Pepper.  At least that's what the description implied, which makes it a case of false advertising.

Instead, what we get is a rather meandering tale of some of what was going on with the Beatles from 1966 to 1968.  There is material about Sgt. Pepper, but not that much--less than half the almost two-hour running time, I'd say--and much of that isn't even about the music, but rather stuff like how they created the cover.

The other material in the doc has little to do with the album or their music in general.  For instance, there's a lot about John's statement comparing the Beatles to Jesus.  One could argue this helped get the Beatles off the road and concentrating on making albums like Pepper, but that's stretching it.  And even by that standard, the show's discussion of numerous events after the album was released--meeting the Maharishi, dealing with the death of Brian Epstein, opening the Apple Boutique--is even less relevant.

But I've left out the worst part.  The doc apparently couldn't afford the rights to their music, so we get instead a generic score that conjures up the era.  You just can't do a documentary on the Beatles without their music.

PS  With all the flaws, I did like the lengthy excerpts (probably lengthy because it was cheaper to fill out the running time) of old footage and interviews.

PPS  It's a British production, which means when someone says "um," the subtitles render it "erm."