I watched that Lennon Naked this morning, you know, that BBC4 play that was on last week about John Lennon. I'm not the world's biggest Beatles fan, they're great, obviously. I think they've gone above having fans, everyone's a fan. What I'm struggling to understand is the choice of lead actor for this role. Christopher Eccleston is 46 years-old. The person he was playing in the film aged from 27 to 31. It doesn't take a genius to work out the he was much to old to play Lennon. Do you think this was some sort of vanity role for him? You know, "This'll look great on my CV, Wikipedia and IMDB if people see I've played this great man?" As has been pointed out this morning, with that hooter he looks more like Ringo. Something exacerbated by the fact that he sounded like Ringo too. Every time I spoke all I could hear in my head was "'Come along!' shouted Thomas the Tank Engine" or "Peace and love...don't send me owt else to sign, you bastards!" or "They're gonna put me in the movies". And whoever that tit was who was Paul McCartney, well, his voice sounded like the sort of effort Bobby Davro would put into a Macca impression. Still, it was good to see Epstein played by someone who got Buckaroo! for Christmas twenty odd years ago (sorry).
I've never understand this mythologising of Lennon. I went to the house he lived in about three years ago. What struck me was that it was just like the house I was born and bought up in, albeit one with a poncey garden room and a bigger kitchen with a servants' bell display board (God knows why, they could have shouted, had they had servants). What did send a shiver down my spine though was that there was a photo on the wall of his entire grammar school on the wall. I only just glanced at it and my eyes immediately fell on Lennon's face out of hundreds of others. To be honest, you got more of a sense of 'magic happening' at Macca's parents old council house. Probably because you knew it was a happier house and there's photos on the wall, taken by his brother, of Paul playing the guitar and writing things down at the spot where they were taken.
Everyone knows Lennon wasn't a very nice man, you didn't really need this film to tell you. Do yout think it's because he's dead that he gets this treatment? Or the fact that he disappeared from view for about five years while his former bandmates were selling millions of records and appearing in dodgy films? That's the thing with him disappearing to New York: he blamed everything on his father abandoning him, then he did the very same thing to his own son. How do you think Julian feels about his dad giving it all up when his step brother came along? And what about that awful 'mong' face he'd pull at any given opportunity?
He did write some cracking tunes though:
6 comments:
I'm probably the Beatles smallest fan so I didn't watch this in any spirit of reverie, but even so Christopher Ecclestone's hammy self-loving portrayal was like nails down a blackboard to me.
I might be totally unfair to him, but I couldn't help wondering if he'd insisted on getting his knob out so often because he thought his public would be desperate to see it. Just like Lennon, probably.
Thing is, it's not even all that an impressive willy, is it?
So, now I have to deal with the knowledge that I have Dr Who's dangly bits waiting on the Sky+ for me...
I thought he looked like Paul O'Grady in a wig - that mega-conk of his just got in the way.
I thought that film was slow and irritating. John Lennon was a git of the first order. If he were around today we'd think he was a cock of Bono-sized proportions.
I can't be doing with all the St John of Lennon guff - it's all myth-making and merchandising. There's really no need for a biog (film or book) listen to, or read the interviews instead -all anyone needs to know is in there.The Rolling Stone ones from the early 70s are great starting point.
I did the Macca, Lennon visits house years ago (when they were still private unfortunatley). Did you have a peep for Eleanor Rigby's grave in the Church where Lennon and McCartney met - there's also a McKenzie one near by
Nah, these days the custodians, the National Trust, herd you around in a mini bus and you may only step straight from the bus onto the pavement outside the two houses so as not to disturb the neighbours. I suppose I could have found those graves if I'd wanted to but I was Beatlesed out by then. Seeing Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane along the way was enough for me.
The nice NT mini bus driver was the wife of the guide at Mendips and he very kindly dropped us off at the Anglican cathedral.
The guy who shows you around Forthlin Road (or he did in 2007) looks a bit like Macca. He loves telling the story that Paul has twice knocked on the door and on both occasions he's been out, but he would have charged him an admission. Ho ho!
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