John Lennon may be considered the most famous of the Fab Four because of his unique perspective on life and expressing that perspective in songs such as “Imagine” and “Woman.” When he was with the Beatles, many of their songs were written by the duo of John Lennon and Paul McCartney and were responsible for their rocket to popularity and becoming a huge cultural influence for many people all around the world.
Though the Beatles as a general rule have been very protective of their music, primarily because they want to avoid it becoming too commercialized for product advertising or other business purposes, there are some movies and television programs that have found their way to being the exception. Here are 5 of them.
1. Help
We start off with one of the groups biggest and most famous hits in a movie that also featured the entire Beatles group. Consider “Help” as a musical comedy by perhaps the most famous rock group ever. This was a result of the Lennon-McCartney collaboration, and while it may seem self-serving, the making of the movie was inevitable. The song may have been a subtle cry as the group may not have been so sure about what they were getting themselves into.
2. Bowling for Columbine
This culturally relevant and still famous movie contained Lennon’s “Happiness Is a Warm Gun” song which was creatively placed to illustrate the reality of how many gun fanatics there are in the United States and the potential dangers they pose. Produced by Michael Moore referencing the tragic school shooting in Colorado, the song’s lyrics are interposed with silent scenes and personal interview clips, escalating to an uncomfortable violent and unsettling conclusion that still resonates today.
3. A Bronx Tale
Another Lennon-McCartney effort, this song is the lead-in to the famous bar fight in the DeNiro directed movie “A Bronx Tale.” What was about to Come Together were several themes in the movie, including the knuckles and fists that would meet in the violent barroom brawl and the determined unity of a group of men committed to controlling their turf. The “visiting” bikers overstayed their welcome from the moment they arrived, and the closing and locking of the bar’s door signaled the beginning of the end for their short stay.
4. The Social Network
Seeing that this movie was all about the creation of the billion dollar entity of Facebook, Lennon’s “Baby, You’re a Rich Man” is more than appropriate. It is played at the end of the movie, captioned by the millions of dollars each “contributor” got for making what is still the world’s largest social network. What cannot be overlooked is that despite the disputes as to whether Zuckerberg was the power behind Facebook’s creation, walking away with $65 million for showing up is definitely the way to resolve a conflict.
5. Can’t Buy Me Love
Many moviegoers may have missed this Lennon-McCartney creative effort as the lead-in song to the movie of the same name. It was a teen romcom made in 1987 about a nerd, played by Patrick Dempsey and a cheerleader played by the late Amanda Peterson, who pays Peterson $1,000 to act like she is his girlfriend. Of course, everything that can go wrong does go wrong, but the placing of Lennon’s song fits in well with the overarching theme of the movie.
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