Last weekend we went for a movie screening of the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine, shown as part of New York International Children’s Film Festival. Lifelong Beatles fan that I am, I have never actually seen the movie in its entirety before, so it was a treat (followed up by a nice dinner with friends at an Upper East Side eatery).
I actually do not think Yellow Submarine is a kids movie – there aren’t that many general-audience jokes or visuals in it, the songs from the eponymous album that all get an airing during the film are all centered around adult concepts (All Together Now is a notable exception; even All You Need Is Love can hardly leave a proper impression on a small kid beyond the title line refrain, IMHO), and some flashing imagery may be disturbing even for adults.
Nonetheless, my 11-year-old daughter after watching the movie is suddenly completely hooked on the Beatles. She had me put my entire digitized collection of the Fab Four songs onto her iPod and, according to her, is currently listening to nothing else.
I find her mostly unprompted affection for the band quite amazing. Considering that they disbanded more than 40 years ago – the music was way too different then.
On the other hand, therein probably lies the perfect explanation. The music kids listen to today can hardly stand any comparison to The Beatles.
A reason for me to smile.