25 Days of Harrison Day 23- Living In The Material World Documentary

On the fifth of October, 2011 Martin Scorsese, an American director who has been called the greatest director of all time, had released a documentary about the life of George Harrison.

"I will never forget the first time I heard All Things Must Pass, the overwhelming feeling of taking in all that glorious music for the first time. It was like walking into a cathedral. George was making spiritually awake music - we all heard and felt it - and I think that was the reason that he came to occupy a very special place in our lives. So when I was offered the chance to make this picture, I jumped at it. Spending time with Olivia, interviewing so many of George's closest friends, reviewing all that footage, some of it never seen before, and listening to all of that magnificent music - it was a joy, and an experience I'll always treasure."- Martin Scorsese

The documentary was produced by Olivia Harrison, Nigel Sinclair, and Martin Scorsese and lasts a total of 208 minutes.  208 minutes of the life of one of the worlds most loved musicians, from his early days with interviews of his brothers Peter and Harry, to school, meeting Paul and John, The Beatles, Solo work, Dark Horse Tour, India, to gardening and motor racing, and beyond. Scorsese does a beautiful job on starting from George being born during war time in Liverpool up to his final earthly days. The following video is the movie trailer:

 

The film is filled with interviews of friends and family talking about what George meant to them and all their memories, amongst them were; Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Peter Harrison, Harry Harrison, Pattie Boyd, Olivia Arias Trinidad, Dhani Harrison, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Eric Idle, Jackie Stewart, Eric Clapton, Klaus Voormann, Joan Taylor, Yoko Ono, and Phil Spector.
  
Living In The Material World is separated in two parts, Part One starts off with an interview by his son, Dhani Harrison. When the interviewer asked

"Is there anything you would say to George if he were around today?

Dhani Harrison: Were have you been? I had a dream and that was what I said to him in the dream, so I guess that’s what would be the question. Where have you been since I last saw you? And he answered it, so I can tell you the answer as well, which was, “Here, the whole time.” "

 Then moves onto the early childhood of George Harrison, getting into music, how he met Paul McCartney and how George had been asked to join The Quarrymen led by John Lennon. The film continues to go in depth about The Quarrymen to The Beatles with Stewart Sutcliffe and Pete Best and their Hamburg experiences with interviews from Astrid Kirchherr and Klaus Voormann. Then onto how Ringo Starr had joined the band and how the Fab Four became The Fab Four. Through the height of Beatlemania to the end of it with many interviews in between.

Part Two showed George after The Beatles, through Friar Park, to Olivia, his new wife, his unsuccessful Dark Horse Tour in 1974, even through his help with Monty Python where interviews with Eric Idle who said,

"This is the quiet one? He never shut up!"

 Also showing the viewers through George's Hinduism and interest in the Indian culture with videos of George in India and videos of Ravi Shankar. Also, early Beatles films from their trip to India for a Meditation camp. Part Two is just or even more interesting than part, as George is often viewed as guitar player for The Beatles, Part two shows that he was more to that and had other interests than just music, like gardening and his love for motor-racing. The second half of the film has interviews with Eric Clapton and Pattie Boyd who talk about heir love for each other leading to the divorce of Pattie and George. The Friar Park break-in and knife attack are also mentioned in part two with Olivia describing their whole experience. Son, Dhani reflects on his dad and their strong relationship.


The DVD was released on 5 October, 2011 in the US and 10 October, 2011 in the UK on both DVD, Blu-Ray, and Limited Deluxe Edition (which includes the DVD, Blu-Ray, book of unseen photographs and illustrations, and a CD of unheard tracks sung by George). The film included Bonus Features with interviews from Paul McCartney talking about George and his hitch hiking experiences, Jeff Lynne on a bit about  The Traveling Wilburys  Volume I and Volume II and Ukulele, George Martin with his song Giles Martin and Dhani Harrison playing with George's "Here Comes The Sun" on an eight-track tape, and pieces of  one of the most inspirational, notable concerts of all time, The Concert for Bangla Desh. The Following video is George Harrison's "Living In The Material World"