Help! (1965)

Ringo finds himself the human sacrifice target of a cult and the band must try to protect him from it.

Director:

Richard Lester

Writers:

Marc Behm (screenplay), Charles Wood (screenplay)

Stars:

John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison

Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
The Beatles	...	The Beatles
Leo McKern	...	Clang
Eleanor Bron	...	Ahme
Victor Spinetti	...	Foot
Roy Kinnear	...	Algernon
John Bluthal	...	Bhuta
Patrick Cargill	...	Superintendent
Alfie Bass	...	Doorman
Warren Mitchell	...	Abdul
Peter Copley	...	Jeweller
Bruce Lacey	...	Lawnmower

Storyline

An Eastern cult discovers that the sacrificial ring is missing. Ringo, drummer of The Beatles band has it; sent by the girl (who's to be sacrificed) as a gift. Clang, Ahme, Bhuta and several cult members leave for London to retrieve the ring. After several failed attempts to steal the ring, they confront him in an Indian restaurant. Ringo learns that if he does not return the ring soon, he will become the next sacrifice. Ringo then discovers that the ring is stuck on his finger. Its a race against time; John, Paul, and George try to protect their friend while they're all being chased not only by Clang and his minions, but also by two mad scientists and the chief inspector of Scotland yard. Will Ringo be saved, or will he be sacrificed?

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Plot Keywords:

ring | mad scientist | human sacrifice | the beatles | drummer | 

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Taglines:

Stop Worrying! HELP! Is On The Way!

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Musical

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 August 1965 (USA)

Also Known As:

¡Socorro!

Filming Locations:

Ailsa Avenue, Twickenham, Middlesex, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$1,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walter Shenson Films,Subafilms

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Mono Dolby Digital (re-release)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the beach scene towards the end of the film, John Lennon had an appointment and could not be present. Another actor stood in for him.

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Goofs

Paul McCartney plays guitar left-handed (and has been known to play right-handed guitars upside down as he did with his Hofner bass) but the scene in the field where the Beatles are miming to their songs, Paul is holding his Hofner bass guitar as a right-handed guitar player would.

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Quotes

Professor Foot: Voltage, Voltage! Up up. Up up
Paul: Up, up.
John: Up
Ringo: Are you sure I'm earthed?
Algernon: Oh no! Er, hold on, thank you.

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Crazy Credits

This film is respectfully dedicated to the memory of Mr. Elias Howe, who, in 1846, invented the sewing machine.

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Alternate Versions

When released on video for the first time in 1989, the film remained in mono but the songs were remixed into stereo, dubbed over with the recordings from the stereo album.

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Connections

Referenced in Runaway, a Twist of Fate (2009)

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Soundtracks

A Hard Day's Night
(1964) (uncredited)
Written by John Lennon with Paul McCartney
Played by an Indian band as an instrumental

User Reviews

Great fun, great music - what's not to like?

Help! has had a bad press, dating back to the 60s - when John Lennon criticises his own work, people listen.

But John wasn't really being fair. His disappointment (and similar comments from the others) reflect that, in this film, the Beatles were playing characters rather than, as in A Hard Day's Night, imitations of themselves.

Personally, I don't see the difference. Unless the cameras are fly-on-the-wall filming you in real life, then you're playing a character - that's what a fiction film is all about! And the Beatles played characters based on themselves in both A Hard Day's Night and Help!, it's just that the former film was staged in a more cine-verite manner.

Help!, on the other hand, is pure escapist nonsense. It's colourful, it has an actual plot (wildly improbable as it might be), the four Beatles discharge their responsibilities adequately, there are some lovely little throwaway bits of humour (check out Paul, Eleanor Bron, George, and the winking), and above everything, the music is great.

Just take it as an opportunity to go back to the summer of 1965 and relish the Beatles providing fun at the height of their popularity!