All This and World War II

• 1. Dreams Of Hitler And The Fool On The Hill

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  Producer Russ Regan conceived the project after experiencing vivid dreams about Adolf Hitler in Berchtesgaden. He imagined these scenes set to the Beatles song The Fool on the Hill. Another dream featured the Liberation of Paris synchronized with Michelle by Paul McCartney. A third vision depicted the attack on Pearl Harbor accompanied by Here Comes the Sun. These surreal images formed the initial blueprint for a musical documentary film. Regan sought to create a unique juxtaposition between pop music and historical war footage. Terry Gilliam was initially asked to direct the project but declined the offer. Sanford Lieberson then approached Susan Winslow, who was only 24 years old at the time. She had worked as a researcher for the film before being promoted to director role. Her selection of archival footage proved decisive enough to earn her the top credit.

• 2. One Million Feet Of War Newsreels

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  Susan Winslow spent three years reviewing one million feet of World War II newsreel footage. Researchers sifted through vast archives to find clips that matched the musical themes. The final cut included scenes from Four Jills in a Jeep and Guadalcanal Diary. Viewers also saw excerpts from The Longest Day and Tora! Tora! Tora!. Clips from Patton and A Bell for Adano appeared alongside Great Guns. Warner Bros. Pictures contributed a scene from Casablanca to the mix. Historical figures like Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt appeared throughout the runtime. Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini were shown in their original broadcasts. Actors such as Humphrey Bogart and Clark Gable featured in the archival segments. Douglas MacArthur and James Stewart also made appearances within the edited sequence. The editing process required matching these visuals with contemporary covers of Beatles songs.

• 3. Six Hundred Thousand Dollars And The London Symphony

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  The production budget totaled approximately $650,000 over the course of three years. Lou Reizner served as the musical director for the soundtrack arrangements. He had previously worked on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band before leaving that project. Wil Malone collaborated with Reizner to create the backing sound for the film. The London Symphony Orchestra provided the orchestral arrangements for the music. Frankie Laine covered Maxwell's Silver Hammer because his friend Reizner asked him to do so. He stated there was not much else to say about the track. Barry Gibb, Robin Gibb, and Maurice Gibb performed vocals on several tracks. Nicky Hopkins played piano while Les Hurdle handled bass duties. Harry Rabinowitz conducted the orchestra alongside David Measham. Colin J. Berwick edited the final cut after the long research phase concluded.

• 4. Distributed By Fox And Withdrawn From Theaters

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  20th Century Fox distributed the film upon its release in 1976. The Motion Picture Association of America gave it a PG rating. It premiered at the Cinerama Dome in Los Angeles on the 11th of November 1976. Critics reacted negatively to the final product almost immediately. The film suffered financial losses at the box office during its run. 20th Century Fox withdrew the movie from theaters shortly after its debut. Rumors circulated that the studio destroyed all existing prints of the film. No official home video release has occurred since the theatrical run ended. Tony Palmer later re-edited the footage in 2016 with different archival material. He used new music for his version titled The Beatles and WWII. The original remains unavailable for general purchase or rental.

• 5. Positively Ghastly Reviews And Later Re-evaluations

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  The New York Daily News claimed the PG rating must stand for Positively Ghastly. Kevin Thomas wrote for the Los Angeles Times describing the work as tasteless and offensive. Ruth Batchelor criticized the musical selection in her review for the Los Angeles Free Press. She argued that people over 40 would resent the film while those under 30 would not understand it. Joe Baltake called it a pointless documentary in the Philadelphia Daily News. Jerry Stein compared the editing style to a sixth grade history book in The Cincinnati Post. Shane Burridge noted the film removed almost all deaths and atrocities from World War II. George Anderson gave the project a B rating in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He felt it was an effective amalgamation of music and film footage. Phil Hall described it as the most brilliantly reckless movie he had ever seen.

• 6. Chart Success And Four Decades Of Reissues

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  Riva Records released the soundtrack album in the United Kingdom before the film arrived. The record reached number 23 on the UK Albums Chart during seven weeks of listing. It peaked at number 48 on the Billboard Top 200 in the United States. The album also hit number 14 on the Australian album charts and number 17 in the Netherlands. New Zealand placed it at number 37 on their local rankings. Peter Gabriel made his solo recording debut singing Strawberry Fields Forever on this release. Elton John's version of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds became a number one hit in the US and Canada. Rod Stewart's Get Back reached number 11 on the UK singles chart. Ambrosia's cover of Magical Mystery Tour climbed to number 39 on the US Hot 100. The LP received nominations for NARM Awards Best Selling Movie Soundtrack. A box set featuring the re-edited film and two CDs appeared in 2016 from Gonzo Multimedia.