In chaos theory, the butterfly effect refers to the phenomenon of a tiny change in a system, typically time, having a significant change elsewhere. In the case of Danny Boyle’s Yesterday, a charming young musician named Jack is hit by a bus and is somehow transported into an alternate dimension. In this dimension, the only major difference is that the legendary band The Beatles never came to exist. As he realizes he’s the only person who remembers them, the butterfly effect of this change is explored while following Jack’s life as he gains fame and fortune from performing Beatles songs played off as his own. The butterfly effect and the low fantasy aspect of this movie is what drew me to it – this strange plot stood out as a fun, lighthearted, creative premise for a romantic comedy that is refreshing amongst the choices we have today in the genre. For this and several other reasons, I found this movie in general to be an enjoyable time that certainly has its heartwarming and funny moments. However, I feel that it fell slight of certain possibilities and the writers made some choices that weighed down the plot and the universe of the movie.
A strong suit of Yesterday is certainly the cast, featuring experienced and renowned actors like Lily James as well as big stars like Ed Sheeran, James Corden, Kate McKinnon, and Sarah Lancashire. Aside from Lily James’ magnetic and sweet romantic performance, Himesh Patel gives a standout performance as the lead. An actor that’s practically unknown outside of the U.K., he balances lovable nervousness and humbleness all with a talented singing voice. The entire cast were believable in their roles and did what was necessary. The comedic timing and delivery that the actors brought was the most notable aspect of the film to me, and they couldn’t have pulled that off without genuinely funny writing.
This film was meant to be a complete comedy, and when it wasn’t it felt disingenuine and missed important beats. It can be hard to get me to laugh at a movie without physical comedy, but I found myself reacting out loud at jokes that hit the right way at the right times. However, without giving spoilers, some overly-saccharine scenes felt out of place and fogged up what type of mood they were going for in the end product.
I definitely respect that the film had a pretty high-concept premise without obsessing over the logic of it all. Too many films with themes of alternate dimensions focus too much on how it happened or how to “get back” – Jack seems to accept that his world is the way it is now and he has to find his place in it. Rather than spending time on frivolous and tedious ways the world could have also changed, it focused on its plot and characters. On the other side, I felt like it was confusing and a waste of time to point out other random things in the universe that also didn’t exist anymore, things like Coca-Cola and cigarettes. While the band Oasis makes sense to not exist as they’re a British band heavily influenced by The Beatles, Coca-Cola and cigarettes existed long prior to The Beatles and the band had nothing to do with the company’s success. While the jokes that reveal their disappearance get a laugh as Jack seems insane when he brings them up to clueless people around him, and things don’t always have to make perfect sense in a fictional movie, their inclusion felt like a decision that wasn’t vital to the plot. I wish they’d either backed off on these aspects or delved deeper into the changes of this world – the in-betweenness of the final cut was messy.
In terms of visual style, the film looked pretty low-budget and didn’t depend on complex or unique shots to get the message across. However, this didn’t matter to me because the type of film it seemed to be trying to be didn’t need anything like that. It was all about the story and the characters, and while many films I’ve loved before have balanced all of that including intriguing visuals, it worked for me here. The visual and audio quality of the Blu-ray was clean and clear.
Overall, while the first half leading up to Jack’s fame was much more memorable and effective than the second half, this movie was charming and – for the most part – succeeded with its goals. I would recommend going into it with an appreciation for the acting and taking the overly-sweet parts with a grain of salt. It’s a romantic comedy, a genre I’ve always had a slight soft spot for, and it’s sure to be remembered amongst Danny Boyle’s filmography. I’m looking forward to the future of many underappreciated cast members and to have my heart warmed again in an unsurprising and comfortable way like it was when watching this.
