The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash (1978)

Charts the adventures of the prefab four, possibly the most famous band of all time.

Directors:

Eric Idle, Gary Weis

Writer:

Eric Idle (conceived and written by)

Stars:

Eric Idle, John Halsey, Ricky Fataar

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eric Idle	...	Dirk McQuickly / The Narrator / S.J. Krammerhead
John Halsey	...	Barry Wom
Ricky Fataar	...	Stig O'Hara (as Rikki Fataar)
Neil Innes	...	Ron Nasty
Michael Palin	...	Eric Manchester
George Harrison	...	The Interviewer
Bianca Jagger	...	Martini
John Belushi	...	Ron Decline
Dan Aykroyd	...	Brian Thigh
Gilda Radner	...	Mrs. Emily Pules
Bill Murray	...	Bill Murray the K.
Gwen Taylor	...	Mrs. Iris Mountbatten / Chastity
Ronnie Wood	...	A Hells Angel (as Ron Wood)
Terence Bayler	...	Leggy Mountbatten
Henry Woolf	...	Arthur Sultan

Storyline

Rutland Weekend Television takes a look at the Pre-fab Four: Dirk, Barry, Stig and Nasty; better known as the Rutles. This documentary follows their career from their early days in Liverpool and Hamburg's infamous Rat-Keller, to their amazing worldwide success. A parody of Beatlemania and the many serious documentaries made about the Beatles.

---

Plot Keywords:

parody | mockumentary | imaginary band | spoof | the beatles | 

---

Taglines:

Comedy spoof of Beatlemania from Monty Python's Eric Idle...

---

Genres:

Comedy | Music

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

The Official Rutles Home Page The Rutles

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 March 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

All You Need Is Cash

Filming Locations:

Abbey Road Studios, Abbey Road, St. John's Wood, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$200,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Above Average Production, Broadway Video, Rutle

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

There are conflicting accounts concerning the glider that flies over the wall during "Piggy in the Middle" from "The Tragical History Tour." In his DVD commentary, Eric Idle says the appearance of the glider was totally unexpected. But in an interview with Q Magazine (Feb. 1996), second unit cameraman Chris Sargent says he knew there was a gliding school nearby, and that he suggested asking an instructor to fly a glider over the wall. Both accounts agree that the glider came so close, the "policemen" atop the wall panicked.

---

Goofs

The 'Tragical History Tour' film within the film says it was made in 1968, but the bus has a 'J' suffix registration plate which means the bus was first registered between August 1970 and July 1971.

---

Quotes

Dirk McQuickly: What Ron and I will do is probably to write some songs y'know, and sell them to people... uh... we tried to write some for the uh, The Rolling Stones, and they're probably gonna buy them.
Mick Jagger: The one for that was Dirk really, he was the real huckster for the songs, I think. Y'know, always wantin' to sell us songs, y'know. They came down... they came down and we were trying to rehearse, and they said "you wanna song?, said "yeah" cause we were really open for songs, cause we didn't write our own. ...

---

Alternate Versions

The region 1 DVD contains an alternate edit from all previously released video releases.

---

Connections

Spoofs The Beatles at Shea Stadium (1966)

---

Soundtracks

Between Us (Made For Each Other)
(uncredited)
Written and Produced by Neil Innes
Performed by Neil Innes, Ollie Halsall, Ricky Fataar and John Halsey

User Reviews

Four Lads Who Shook Their Heads

Rags to riches story of Dirk (Eric Idle), Barry (John Halsey), Stig (Rikki Fataar) and Nasty (Neil Innes): The Rutles. We follow their journey from humble Merseyside beginnings in Liverpool's Cavern Club to global superstardom under the secure (if somewhat shaky) hand of their manager, 'Leggy' Mountbatten. This intriguing and revelatory voyage to the highest echelons of the pop world and subsequent (and almost obligatory) mass litigation features several contributions from celebrity fans of the pre-fab four; ready to reveal to the waiting world exactly 'how it was'!!!

Brilliant mock-umentary stands as a glowing beacon to the Beatles (including a self-deprecating cameo from producer Harrison) with an astute collection of marvellous mickey-takes of the fab's more pivotal moments performed by four actors clearly having the time of their lives. (Idle and Innes are inspired). All this interweaved with Innes' uncannilly excellent soundtrack (inc. the sublime 'Let's Be Natural') makes for a must see film for true devotees of Beatles and comedy alike.