1970 ‘Breakup Film' That Disappeared for 54 Years Is ‘Suddenly a Joy' to Watch
On April 10, 1970, the world's biggest rock band called it quits. Weeks later, The Beatles released Let It Be, a raw and intimate film capturing Paul McCartney, George Harrison, John Lennon, and Ringo Starr rehearsing, relaxing, and recording what would become their final album together.
But beneath the music and moments of levity was a growing sense of tension and change - one the band members struggled to revisit. After a brief theatrical run, the so-called "breakup film" vanished for decades.
Released on May 8, 1970, Let It Be arrived shortly after McCartney publicly announced the band's split. Behind the scenes, the loss of longtime manager Brian Epstein had deepened fractures within the group, and the mood between the Fab Four was anything but, well, fab.
One of the film's most notorious scenes captures the tense exchange between McCartney and Harrison, with Harrison remarking, "I'll play whatever you want me to play." Candid and honest, it's a fly-on-the-wall moment that solidifies the film more than a concert doc, but a piece of rock history.
Let It Be isn't all lows, however. Throughout the reel, the guys are seen joking in rehearsals, experimenting in the studio, and enjoying their time making music together. As RogerEbert.com observes, the British documentary reminds us that "the mighty Beatles were also very human."
The film culminates in the now-iconic rooftop concert, featuring performances of "Get Back," "Across the Universe," and "Let It Be." And even though it wasn't a box office smash in the way their previous films, like A Hard Day's Night, were, Let It Be still briefly reached No. 1 at the U.S. box office and even earned the group an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score.
Still, the film was universally panned by fans and critics, who became fixated on moments of tension, which the director later tells Grammy.com is because audiences were "looking for little bits of sharp metal on the sand to think why they'd broken up." But even the Beatles themselves distanced from the movie, with none attending the premiere.
Harrison later said, "Most of it makes me so aggravated. I can't watch it because it was a particularly bad experience."
Branded "grim" and depressing, Let It Be quietly disappeared from circulation, with director Michael Lindsay-Hogg comparing the decades-long exile to "solitary confinement."
"I went through many years of thinking, It's not going to come out," he tells Grammy.com. "Then, suddenly, the sun comes out. And someone opens the cell door, and Let It Be walks out."
In May 2024, Let It Be finally returned to the public eye when Disney+ restored and rereleased the film with the support of The Beatles: Get Back director Peter Jackson. Using technology developed by Jackson's production company, the decades-old footage was remastered.
The rerelease marked a long-overdue reevaluation of a movie whose painful reputation may have overshadowed its warmth. Critics hail it today as "suddenly a joy" to watch. Jackson echoes that sentiment in The Guardian, saying, "It's only right that his original movie has the last word."
Let It Be is streaming on Disney+.
Related: 1971 Bittersweet Classic With Soulful Soundtrack Ranked Among Greatest Rock Movies
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This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 5:08 PM.