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The Fab Four become "Prefab" in Eric Idle's hilariously dead-on 1978 made-for-TV mockumentary, The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash. Idle (of Monty Python fame) conceived, wrote, and codirected this cinematic history of the Rutles, a Liverpool foursome who are, of course, a slightly skewed version of the Beatles. Idle himself plays Dirk McQuickly (that is, Paul McCartney), Neil Innes plays Ron Nasty (i.e., John Lennon), and Ricky Fataar and John Halsey appear as Stig and Barry (George and Ringo, respectively). Idle's send-up of TV-documentary style is distinctly Pythonesque and plenty amusing; but the film is also very much a Saturday Night Live production, with SNL creator Lorne Michaels serving as executive producer and SNL filmmaker-in-residence Gary Weis codirecting the project. Early Not-Ready-for-Primetime players Dan Aykroyd, Gilda Radner, John Belushi, and Bill Murray all have choice moments. Structurally, the film is a Maniacal Mystery Tour, as the Rutles' history mirrors all the important events, albums, films, and scandals of the Beatles' legendary career. Adding to the fun are some fascinating interviews with Mick Jagger and Paul Simon (with Jagger making some rather revealing comments about the Beatles/Rolling Stones rivalry while ostensibly talking about the Rutles), and cameo appearances by Bianca Jagger, Ron Wood, Python Michael Palin, and even George Harrison. But perhaps the strongest elements in The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash are the songs, superb pastiches all -- written and performed by Bonzo Dog Band member and longtime Python collaborator Neil Innes. Innes does more than merely poke fun; he manages to reinvent the Beatles' sound from the inside out -- half parody, half homage, and thoroughly fun to listen to. Oddly enough, it might be perhaps the best Beatles documentary ever made. The Rhino DVD includes deleted scenes and a fascinating commentary track by Eric Idle. Gregory Baird

All Movie Guide

A mockumentary of a Beatles-like singing group called the Rutles, The Rutles is a collaboration between Monty Python alumnus Eric Idle and Saturday Night Live filmmaker Gary Weis. The members of the "pre-Fab Four" are Nasty, Barry, Stig, and Dirk. There really isn't any plot, just a series of vignettes, unctuously narrated by Idle, which mercilessly skewer the Beatles mythology. Under the guidance of agent Leggy Mountbatten (before he tragically takes a teaching post in Australia), the Rutles rise to the top with such hit songs as "Please Please Let Me Hold Your Hand" and "I Am the Waitress." Mention is made of the Rutles' film successes: "A Hard Day's Rut," "Ouch!," "Tragical History Tour," "Yellow Submarine Sandwich," and "Let It Rot." We also see such career highlights as Nasty's declaration that the Rutles are more popular than God (he meant "Rod," as in Rod Stewart), the rumor that Dirk is dead (whereupon Stiggy starts his own rumor that he is dead), and Nasty's unfortunate liaison with a Yoko Ono counterpart (depicted as a Neo-Nazi dominatrix). The Rutles gains an added veneer of verisimilitude through the participation of such rock stars as Paul Simon, Mick Jagger, and Ron Wood, as well as George Harrison himself, who shows up as a BBC commentator. Hal Erickson

All Movie Guide

You don't have to be a Beatles fan to enjoy All You Need Is Cash, though it certainly helps. Co-writers and directors Eric Idle and Gary Weis ruthlessly and hilariously parody the style of biographical television documentaries, and anyone who has ever watched A&E's Biography will be able to recognize the same cliches more than 20 years down the line. But, just as important, Idle and Weis know the details of the Fab Four's career and take tremendous glee in twisting them into new comic shapes, and songwriter Neil Innes has created a handful of songs that brilliantly turn the Beatles' greatest hits inside out (it's a shame more bands haven't had the nerve to cover "I Must Be In Love," "Doubleback Alley," or any of the other songs featured in the film, which happen to be great pop tunes in their own right as well as skillfully executed parodies). But while the touch isn't always light and the tone isn't always gentle (thankfully this was made while John Lennon was still alive and Innes could parody his well-documented mean streak without cries of disrespect to the dead), All You Need Is Cash is satire done with tremendous affection for its subject. It's worth noting that Innes was a former member of the group The Bonzo Dog Band, who appeared in Magical Mystery Tour and whose only hit single, "I'm the Urban Spaceman," was produced by Paul McCartney (under the pseudonym "Apollo C. Vermouth"), while Idle was close friends with George Harrison, who makes a cameo appearance as a reporter. The film also features several contemporaries and admirers of the Beatles, including Mick Jagger, Paul Simon, and Ron Wood, all of whom have been affected in some way by the Beatles' influence. Presenting a Bizarro World version of the biggest and best pop group of all time, All You Need Is Cash is a rock version of a Friar's Club roast — a sharp poke in the ribs, with love and respect in its heart. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 603497664122
• Source: RHINO THEATRICAL
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: B&W, Pan & Scan
• Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
• Language: English
• Time: 1:10:00
• Sales Rank: 25,919

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