Love London Love Culture rounds up the reviews for Danny Boyle and Richard Curtis’s new film.
BBC.com: **** “Even though the romance is a bit flat, the Beatles part of Yesterday is more than enough to carry it. A couple of times the film teases the possibility that the real Paul or Ringo might turn up to call Jack out on his fraud. But the most stunning moment is an out-of-nowhere shock, a jaw-dropping visual trick.”
Empire: **** “A glowing tribute to The Beatles and their music, this is both a toe-tapping pleasure to watch and a smart, occasionally scathing look at how we get things wrong.”
Rolling Stone: *** 1/2 ” Yesterday has its heart firmly in the right place. It’s the challenge to take it to the next level that’s missing.”
The Sun: ** “Whilst there are a few glimmers that salvage this from being an abject disaster, this rom-com comes across as an out-of touch, one-gag movie that has forgotten the romance our comedy.”
Screen Rant: ** 1/2 “As a whole, Yesterday is perhaps best compared to a cover of a Beatles song – one that’s generally agreeable and upbeat on the surface, but a bit shallow and quickly starts to fall apart the moment one takes a closer look.”
The Independent: *** “In the end, while it’s easy to have expected more from the creative convergence of Curtis and Boyle, there’s no denying that they’ve created an instant crowd-pleaser.”
The Wrap: “If you’re going to make a film with a plot like “Yesterday,” the least you can do is probe it somewhat and push it as far as it will go. But Curtis and Boyle offer up pretty much what you would expect given this premise, which basically amounts to Patel doing passable karaoke versions of these famous songs and very little else.”
The Guardian: **** “Maybe it shouldn’t be any sort of evaluative factor, but the simple fact of hearing Beatles songs, the simple thought experiment of pretending to hear them for the first time, does carry a charge.”
The Telegraph: **** “Danny Boyle and Richard Curtis: whose side are you on? These two brand-name titans of British cinema seem more like natural rivals than bedfellows”
Den of Geek: **** “But in the end, maybe enjoyment of the film depends on your ability to swallow the concept. Once you’ve done that then Yesterday is a lovely feel-good summer movie with its heart on its sleeve and its head in the clouds. It’s true that these are damn fine songs, and sometimes that – and love of course – is all you need.”
Yesterday is out in cinemas now.