{"id":76084,"date":"2024-01-13T16:45:59","date_gmt":"2024-01-13T16:45:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hollywoodintoto.com\/?p=2038879"},"modified":"2024-01-13T16:45:59","modified_gmt":"2024-01-13T16:45:59","slug":"why-give-my-regards-to-broad-street-got-a-bad-rap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gamefootballmobileanimeiphone.com\/index.php\/2024\/01\/13\/why-give-my-regards-to-broad-street-got-a-bad-rap\/","title":{"rendered":"Why \u2018Give My Regards to Broad Street\u2019 Got a Bad Rap"},"content":{"rendered":"

Peter Webb\u2019s \u201cGive My Regards to Broad Street\u201d (1984) was seen as a major misstep and commercial setback for its star, writer and producer, Paul McCartney.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In fact, nearly every biography on the former Beatle cites the film as a blunder and describes it as though it were \u201cCats.\u201d While McCartney\u2019s film may not have given fans and film lovers what they expected (and, to be sure, the film comes up short in several ways), it doesn\u2019t deserve its long-held reputation as a disaster.<\/p>\n

Webb directed the film on a $6.8 million budget, though would later state that the result was less a motion picture suitable for theaters than \u201cPaul McCartney\u2019s home movie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"YouTube<\/a><\/p>\n

McCartney plays himself, a musician whose master recording tapes of a new album have gone missing. A revolving door of characters enter and exit the film, aiding McCartney in his search for what must have been a whopper of a good album.<\/p>\n

Along the way, musical numbers break out and they are always a welcome touch, as there\u2019s no suspense or character development.<\/p>\n

The title is taken from the Broad Street train station in the city of London – it closed in 1984, to make for Broadgate office development. Or, one could get on the film\u2019s bandwagon of naysayers and declare that even the location of the title failed to withstand the film\u2019s release.<\/p>\n

Taking it at face value, the film is too laid back, self-satisfied and, despite the intrigue of the stolen tape, flimsy in its plotting. That makes it less than \u201cA Hard Days Night\u201d and \u201cYellow Submarine\u201d but really, the easy-going nature of the project isn\u2019t a deal killer and shouldn\u2019t be for McCartney\u2019s fans.<\/p>\n

Yes, this is among the most lightweight mysteries I can think of and the plot should have been developed before the start of filming. However, it\u2019s also never pretentious or heavy handed.<\/p>\n

What we know: McCartney had planned to make the film for years.<\/p>\n

FAST FACT: “Give My Regards to Broad Street” earned an anemic $1.3 million at the global box office.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

It was originally planned as an anti-war film based on McCartney\u2019s \u201cTug of War\u201d and written by Tom Stoppard (!). Eventually, the anti-war theme was dropped for the faux doc angle.<\/p>\n

McCartney wrote a 22-page screenplay (since one page equals a minute of screen time, McCartney\u2019s initial draft hardly suggests a fully developed film, let alone a substantial running time). Weber claims that McCartney didn\u2019t want to make a movie but a one-hour TV special and that, in essence. there was no script.<\/p>\n

The soundtrack, unlike the film, was a blockbuster, with the hit (and still wonderful) \u201cNo More Lonely Nights\u201d allegedly written by McCartney over a weekend (\u201cBallroom Dancing\u201d and \u201cWanderlust\u201d are also on the soundtrack but were recently published songs).<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not entirely clear on the ending – was the whole thing a dream? Maybe so, perhaps an indication of how overly laid back the whole thing is.<\/p>\n

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"Give My Regards to Broad Street", the 5th studio album by Paul McCartney was released today in 1984. The album reached #1 on the UK chart. #80s<\/a> #80smusic<\/a> #1980s<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/PnbnOB4dXn<\/a><\/p>\n

— LandOfThe80s (@landofthe80s) October 22, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n