Ringo Starr has given the newly restored Let It Be documentary his seal of approval, despite previously claiming that there was “not a lot of joy” in it.
Directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, Let It Be was first released in cinemas 54 years ago, and featured footage of The Beatles while they were working their 12th and final studio album of the same name in 1969.
While the original film has been difficult to obtain over the past five decades, last month, NME exclusively announced that Disney+ were to release a restored version of the 1970 film.
The film arrived on May 8, and was restored by renowned filmmaker Peter Jackson – who also worked on the 2022 docuseries Get Back. He used state-of-the-art digital technology to restore the 55-year-old film reels to crisp, modern quality.
However, before the film was shared earlier this month, drummer Ringo Starr made headlines after revealing that he thought that the film didn’t have “a lot of joy in it”.
Speaking with Associated Press, he said: “I think Peter Jackson has done an incredible job. For me, not a lot of joy in it. It’s from the point of view of the director, and that was up to him.”
Starr has shared similar sentiments about the film in the past. In 2021, he said: “I didn’t feel any joy in the original documentary, it was all focused on one moment which went down between two of the lads [McCartney and Harrison]. The rooftop concert was also only about seven to eight minutes long. With Peter’s [documentary] it’s 43 minutes long.”
Now, Starr has seemingly done a U-turn on his original comments, and has said that he gives his seal of approval to the recently re-shared documentary.
“I thought the re-edit of Let It Be was great,” he stated, via The Standard.
“The original one has just come out again that Michael Linsday-Hodd did, and the edit – I love the edit.”
He did continue to state that he was disappointed in the original film, but felt that the re-edit of Lindsay-Hogg’s work contained a greater focus: “It’s just on the lads and the playing… and the music and the chat about the songs.”
Ahead of its release, NME gave the re-release of Let It Be a glowing four-star review.
“What Let It Be has gained through the decades, though, is historical weight. The sight of The Beatles playing and rehearsing together, freely and candidly, will never lose its window-on-history magic. Meanwhile, tracks that might have felt new – even a bit throwaway – in 1970 have become stone cold classics,” it read.
“There may not be a more punk rock bit of film on earth than George being told the police were on the roof to shut them down, and casually turning his amp back on. For that alone, for all its whitewashing and line-toeing, Let It Be remains a staggering watch.”
NME also spoke with filmmaker Michael Lindsay-Hogg shortly before the re-released version of Let It Be arrived, and recalled his time working on the 1970 film.
He also opened up about deleted clips from the original project. “From memory, I think there were a few sequences that had John and Yoko maybe on their own, having a cup of tea and chatting together. They were slightly separate [from the band],” he explained.
“Most of the stuff you see in Let It Be is John and Yoko as part of the group. It’s not John and Yoko on their own except for the wonderful sequence at the end of the first part when they dance.”