Karl Self I grew up on the Beatles' music and was therefore delighted to see this captivating biopic about their early days in Hamburg, with Stuart Sutcliffe (bass) and Pete Best (drums) still onboard, in the days even before they fashioned their hair into mopheads and long before Lennon told his aristocratic audience to rattle their jewels. The plot focuses on Stuart Sutcliffe and his relationship with John Lennon. In a way, the movie shows us the Beatles as most of us do NOT know them -- the setting is neither London nor NYC (Liverpool plays a relatively minor role), they're not being chased by hordes of screaming teenagers, their drugs are still beer and tabs (and some amphetamines); most of all, they're still a rock 'n' roll band trying to break through.That's actually one of the movie's biggest assets: it manages to convincingly show the group as a kickass rock band, although they're playing covers of US-American hits for the most part. The actors playing Lennon, Harrison and McCartney are surprisingly convincing.Some fans have criticised the movie for being inaccurate, because, for example, John's later wife Cynthia is shown as a homely girl with a scarf, whereas she stated that she didn't like wearing scarfs. And I'd say it's true that Stephen Dorff's portrayal of Sutcliffe is too aggressive, histrionic, over the top (in scene, for example, he needlessly attacks the Klaus Voormann character in a way that would probably get him an extended stretch for attempted manslaughter in the real world). But as long as you keep in mind that this is not a documentary, the average non-stickler fan should be more than happy with this fare.

spj-4 Well, what a great surprise this midday movie turned out to be! I'd never heard of it & didn't surprise its title had anything to do with lyrics of the Chuck Berry "Rock & Roll Music" hit that the Beatles subsequently had a hit with. As a Beatles fan from my childhood days when they were thrust into the world spotlight virtually overnight, this gives an invaluable insight into the days of Beatles' youth, when they were unheralded imports to Hamburg nightclubs where they worked long hours for little rewards, along with others of the "Merseybeat" "British invasion" about to conquer the pop charts all over Britain, Australia and the United States.I notice some comments suggesting historical inaccuracies but "Backbeat" has plenty going for it. The drama between Stu (who was destined to be a 'forgotten Beatle' and John Lennon was intriguing, so too Stu and their photographer friend Astrid.As far as the comment about it not being as good as "Hard Day's Night" I would agree with. Nothing could compare with the raw energy of these euphoric real-life Beatles skits of exuberance & mischievous innocent frivolity that complemented their insightful and often profound lyrics and catchy tunes. Though I would suggest "Backbeat" would run rings around the Beatles' subsequent movie "Help" which was pathetically ridiculous when recently viewed, but for their musical hits.Don't let harsh critics turn you off this! "Backbeat" offers much more than any criticism that might be leveled at it!

crbowles I really enjoyed this film, I do however doubt that i would have enjoyed it as much if it hadn't been for the absoloutely storming soundtrack made up of Fifties covers which you believe would have been played by the Beatles at that stage in their careers. Add to that the fact that the Band used to create the sound of the Beatles consisted of some of the leading musicians of the 90's. They bring their own interpretation to the music just as you believe the Beatles would have done, The only exception to this is the Drum beat which tends to sound more like the 90's than the 60's that being said it does make it more accessable to a contemporary audience.Now as for the actual film itself, It was built on an interesting story about Stuart Sutcliffe, John Lennons best friend, Choosing between music and Art, the latter enevitably wins out with the help of Astrid. Much of the story is of a Tug Of war between John lennon trying to keep him involved in the music and Astrid who sees his artistic potential. It's a story that has been played over and over again but is refreshed in the context of surrounding characters that you feel you already know.The Characteristically funny Lennon, Business like McCartney, Shy Harrison all come across very comfortably. But they are merely bit characters as this film is more about the choices of sutcliffe than it is about the fab four.

Tomasz Softley's 'Backbeat' is my favorite movie I've ever seen. I'm a huge Beatles fan and I've watched many biographical films about The Fab Four like 'Birth of Beatles' for example, and I must admit that this production from 1993 is the best of them all. This picture shows us the Hamburg's episode (early 60s) of Beatles career and it concentrates on relationship between John Lennon (fantastic play by Ian Hart) and Stuart Sutcliffe (aka The Lost Beatle). Lots of laughs, lots of tears and above all - great music ! A must seen for Beatles fans.