Yesterday

『トレインスポッティング』、『スラムドッグ$ミリオネア』でおなじみの巨匠 ダニー・ボイル監督新作『YESTERDAY(原題)』のオリジナル・サウンドトラック・アルバムのLP。

『トレインスポッティング』では世界を圧倒し、『スラムドッグ$ミリオネア』でアカデミー賞を8部門受賞、ロンドンオリンピック開幕式で芸術監督を務めたダニー・ボイル監督と、『フォー・ウェディング』、『ラブ・アクチュアリー』、『ノッティングヒルの恋人』などイギリスを代表するロマンティック・コメディで知られるアカデミー賞ノミネート脚本家リチャード・カーティスのタッグが贈る新作『YESTERDAY(原題)』のサウンドトラック・アルバム。

A high-concept musical film that dares to insert itself in the legacy of the Beatles, Yesterday concerns struggling singer/songwriter Jack Malik, who awakens from a paranormal event to a world where the Beatles never existed -- except in his own memory. He stumbles into fame, fortune, and ethical and romantic dilemmas by performing their songs. (A good portion of the Yesterday's budget was spent securing rights to no less than 17 Fab Four tunes.) The film's screenplay comes courtesy of Richard Curtis (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones's Diary, Love Actually), and Oscar winner Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire, Trainspotting) directed. Best known prior to Yesterday for his nine years on the English soap EastEnders, lead actor Himesh Patel earned the role with an acoustic cover of a Coldplay song of his choosing ("We Never Change"). Without being told the subject matter at stake, he won over the filmmakers with his balance of simplicity, directness, and making it seem like his song instead of a cover. Patel sang and played all of his tracks live in the studio. The soundtrack recording consists of seven instrumentals by scorer Daniel Pemberton and 20 performances by Patel. One of those songs, "Summer Song," was written by Curtis, Pemberton, and Adem Ilhan as a Jack Malik original, but the rest is all Beatles. With that in mind, the soundtrack unfolds according to reasonable expectation, with warm, competent covers of Beatles classics ranging from their early days ("I Saw Her Standing There") to late-career material ("The Long and Winding Road"), with the pleasant-voiced Patel better suited to the more intimate songs. Where it may deviate from expectation is in heavily reworked arrangements that retain the most memorable song components while (realistically?) forgetting the rest or making do with impressionistic filler as needed -- they don't try too hard to replicate George Martin, or George Harrison's guitar playing, or Ringo's drumming, and The White Album is represented by "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da." Standouts include a percussive take on "Here Comes the Sun" and a punk "Help!" A duet version of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" features Lily James as romantic interest Ellie. ~ Marcy Donelson

交通事故での昏睡状態から目を覚ますと、ビートルズが存在しない世界になっていた! 世界にただ一人ビートルズの楽曲を記憶している主人公は、ビートルズを歌うことで一躍スター街道を登り始めるが…。『イエスタデイ』はビートルズへの愛に溢れた映画である。『トレインスポッティング』の監督ダニー・ボイルと『ラブ・アクチュアリー』の脚本家リチャード・カーティスのタッグ作と聞いて、安心もされよう。本サントラは、ビートルズの名曲を主人公のヒメーシュ・パネルが歌ったものを収録。パネルのクセのない歌声がビートルズの楽曲の凄みを更に引き立たせる。勿論、捨て曲は一切なし、です。
intoxicate (C)高野直人