Even 52 years after the Beatles officially called it quits, the Fab Four continue to provide new material and experiences for their loving fans.
If the more than eight-hour documentary from Academy Award-winning director Peter Jackson, “The Beatles: Get Back,” didn’t satisfy your appetite for anything Beatles, then maybe “The Beatles: Get Back – The Rooftop Concert” will. It will be shown in a three-screening weekend run at the Tennessee Aquarium IMAX Theater at 6 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 11-13.
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For safety reasons related to COVID-19, seating will be limited with only half of the 400 seats available for each of the three screenings.
“We wish we could offer more screenings but this is their [producers of the film] decision,” said Thom Benson, chief communications and marketing officer for the Tennessee Aquarium in a telephone interview.
Jackson was able to get the footage, which had been sitting in a vault, after representatives of the band and the living members changed their minds about keeping it under lock and key in recent months and gave him permission. Jackson spent hours restoring and editing the footage into a cohesive “documentary about a documentary,” as he describes it.
More Info
To purchase tickets to the 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 11, event – with optional cash bar with beer and wine – go to: community.tnaqua.org/events/2022-events/beatles To purchase tickets to either of the 2 p.m. screenings on Saturday, Feb. 12, or Sunday, Feb. 13, go to:shop-us.vivaticket.com/taq/eventtickets.html?statGroup=WEBEVENTS
As viewers of the lengthier film learned while watching the Disney+ mini-series, the rooftop concert was an unannounced lunch-time event staged on the top of Apple Corps headquarters in London in 1969. It was their last public appearance.
(READ MORE: Watch workers install new screen at IMAX Theater)
A film crew was on hand while the band was recording “Let It Be,” the last album released by the group in 1970. A film of the same name was released that year, as well. It has not been officially available since the 1980s.
The IMAX movie features the entire 42-minute rooftop performance and includes such songs as “Get Back,” “One After 909,” and “I’ve Got a Feeling.”
“It’s like you’re sitting in a time machine. We’ve either gone back in time, or they’ve come forward,” Jackson has said of the film. “It looks like it was shot yesterday.”
(READ MORE: Gallery: Workers take apart Chattanooga’s giant IMAX screen)
According to a release from The Tennessee Aquarium IMAX, “thanks to Jackson’s use of IMAX’s proprietary Digital Media Remastering process, ‘Get Back – The Rooftop Concert’s’ image and sound quality have been up-converted to take full advantage of the theater’s world-class projection capabilities.”
Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.