The Stream: An extra long Beatles concert that drags on for two hours.

The Big Screen: A musical concert with some very good humor.

The Final Bill: Music lovers and Beatles fan will enjoy this road tour of in theaters while casual fans should save some bucks by streaming it.

-S2S

This week, we had the distinct pleasure of attending a pre-screening of the movie, Yesterday.  A movie that is set for release on June 28th and seems to be flying under the radar.  Himesh Patel is the lead actor and it is good to see a fellow person of color in a film that would typically lack melanin. This film was directed by Danny Boyle who became famous for his films, Slumdog Millionaire, 127 hours, Trainspotting and 28 Hours Later.  This movie seems to have good bones to it.  Let’s get to the nitty gritty.

Let’s begin by talking about of the positives. Himesh plays Jack Malik, an aspiring singer/songwriter looking for his big break, but quickly nearing the end of his rope. Himesh plays an extremely relatable character.  You feel every bit of emotion he pours into the film.  He takes us on a bike ride and we feel every single lump along the way.  On top of that, I was pleasantly surprised by his great singing ability (unless that’s actually not him and then they did and excellent job covering that up).

Along with Himesh, the cast had a very good rapport with each other, especially Lily James as Ellie.  The sexual tension is palpable between them and it truly enhanced the movie.  In fact, the true essence of this movie is not about the Beatles music.  Without giving too much of the movie away, the true essence of this movie is what will a person choose when the have two competing desires in their heart.  Also, how much is your soul worth, even if in reality it actually costs you nothing.  Enough of that deep talk, the movie has good comedic moments, a bunch anchored by Kate McKinnon.

With all that said, facially this movie is just an extra long Beatles and Ed Sheeran concert.  Depending on who you are, that could be your worst nightmare or it will get very old very quickly (way too much Ed Sheeran).  I did find that the storyline took way too long to progress and was WAY too obvious.  Just a typical, unrequited love storyline in a different gift box.  This movie also leaves the viewer completely confused by the reality of the movie.  The producers have fun with the reality they created, but I believe viewers would have appreciated a resolution for that part of the storyline as well.

Long story short, those of you who loved the British Invasion should see this movie in theaters in some fashion because you receive a 2 for 1 (a concert and romantic comedy). Those of you looking for a last minute date night movie, should also consider watching this movie, especially if your date can appreciate good music. Otherwise, casual moviegoers should avoid this movie in the theaters, BUT will find a nice treat when it hits Netflix, Hulu, or Redbox.