Just watched this and I have to say its pretty good.
Anyone else agree?
Thought I was watching Star Stories.
share
MovieChat Forums > Cilla (2014) Discussion > Just watched this and I have to say its ...
Just watched part-one of Cilla also, very good in parts and a lively production, some of it a bit tricky, the Beatles are poorly represented but the relationships are well painted.
The sad thing about it (for me) is the Cilla singing voice... The Beryl Marsden vocal is pretty faithful to the sixties vocal but whoever is voicing Cilla has decided to go for a sort of post-modern blues, more like Annie Ross than Cilla Black. Just go back and have a listen to the razor sharp delivery of Cilla Black on Bacharach's "Anyone Who had a Heart" chilling.
I just realised where we have seen Sheridan Smith previously, all credit to her for this one.
I agree with all you say thanks you for replying :)
sharePretty sure Sheridan Smith is doing all of Cilla's vocals.
shareJust go back and have a listen to the razor sharp delivery of Cilla Black on Bacharach's "Anyone Who had a Heart"
Wasn't that a few years into her professional career, though? It's still early days.
Re "The Beryl Marsden vocal." It was good to hear what Beryl Marsden would have possibly sounded like singing 'Love of the Loved.' I think the Beatles wanted her to record it but Epstein wanted to save it for one of his own artists. And of course Cilla got to record it about 18 months later. I don't think Paul McCartney thought too much of the song. The lyrics always sound a bit awkward to me. Especially that second line:-
"I see that there, a heaven lies."
The opening episode wasn't too bad. The portrayals of all of the Beatles was a bit weak. They're too lightweight to be playing icons. Sheridan Smith has got some of Cilla's charming cheekiness just about right. But I'm not too convinced on the look or the portrayal of Cilla's singing in it.
shareshe looked like she was miming it but i thought sheridan was using her own voice
Perhaps Sheridan may have done the singing. But then had to mime to her own voice-over. She was moving quite a bit on that stage. So, perhaps to get her voice to sound satisfactory, she had to do the singing and stage action separately.
sharei see
I was curious about that too. Then I noticed this message on screen as soon as the picture went black at the end, right before the credits rolled, "All vocal performances recorded live on set." (See image linked below.)
http://oi59.tinypic.com/w2k0ia.jpg
having never seen sheridan smith performing a song, i really had no clue of her actual voice. thanks for posting
having never seen sheridan smith performing a song, i really had no clue of her actual voice. thanks for posting
Ah Now there's a mystery as to who did the singing !
"All vocal performances recorded live on set." (See image linked below.) etc
yes but does not mean that Ms Smith sang ?
Have to say I thought she was miming and the vocal did not seem to fit her but there is no sign of anyone coming forward to say who dunit!
Someone on one of these boards says Cilla only managed ' Anyone who had a heart' after constant prompting from Bacharach in studio... not as I, an avid NME Musical Express reader, remember it.
I don't think Bacharach was there at Abbey Road? maybe? But it was George Martin ( who is far too nice to say anything of the sort) and I think Johnny Pearson light orchestra with guitarist Vic Flick * who I followed at the time, he of the James Bond theme, the hard but twangy guitar riff)
As too the Beatles in this series ... well I suppose the producer thought they had to be sketchy, once you get into realism it all falls apart... and by 1964 the Beatles were big-time Oh yeah, yeah .yeah and yes. two of them at least had a huge sense of their own worth.
She wasn't miming. See my other message on this topic.
shareThanks for the link to confirm that Sheridan Smith wasn't miming. Her performances were quite good. But just not Cilla I feel.
shareI stand corrected
Rather than lip-syncing to Cilla’s original tunes, Sheridan underwent months of vocal training so she could perform all the songs live and even recorded numbers at the real Abbey Road in London.
“Oh my God, that was such a privilege,” laughs Sheridan.
“Performing the rock ’n’ roll numbers at the Cavern was also brilliant fun.
"All these extras were screaming at me while I was on stage. It’s the closest I’ll get to being a pop star.”
http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/sheridan-smith-playing-cilla-black-4205190#ixzz3DZkTdCZ6
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Isn't the point, though, that they aren't icons yet? Ringo's mum wasn't having her hair done in a high street salon, she was sitting in her kitchen with two local teens experimenting on her.
I appreciated the subtlety of the acting. People playing the Beatles and other iconic figures are often too ott, and it comes off as an impression or party piece rather than a portrayal.
I appreciate your point that the Beatles were not icons at the time. Except perhaps those who attended the Cavern in those early days. But the Beatles always had the belief that they would become famous. And at the time of the first episode of 'Cilla,' they had Brian Epstein already making such huge plans for them. But it is just that they seemed to be portrayed as not having enough brashness cock-surety that I would like to have seen them as at his point in their career. I see what you mean about too OTT about other Beatles portrayals. It's just I think that the Beatles are too under TT in 'Cilla.'
shareI would agree that this was a bad representation of the Beatles but I would remind you that the Cavern was where they were really just finding themselves.
shareRe Beatles days at the Cavern. I'm trying to find out what precise time period the first episode of 'Cilla' actually covers. I know that Brian Epstein started to manage the Beatles in November, 1961. So presumably it is late 1961 or early 1962 that is being shown. How the Beatles thought of themselves at this time is very important for the understanding of how they are being portrayed in 'Cilla' Episode 1.
shareWell one could say the boys became men during this time. The question might be asked is this their 2nd time or the first time before they kicked them out because George was too young. They came to the Cavern virginal innocents by the time they left they were fully emerged into sex and drugs.
shareRe "virginal innocents." I suppose they must have been exposed to the rock'n'roll lifestyle sometime while they were at the Cavern. It is hard for me to reconcile the 1962 boy next door image of the Beatles portrayed in 'Cilla' episode 1, and the Beatles who took huge fame in their stride just a year later. They were undoubtedly special to take the strides that they did in 1963. But none of that speciality seems to be present in their 'Cilla' characterisations.
shareOf course their public "persona" didn't necessarily match their personal life. Brian wanted them to have a clean image.
shareI agree the first episode was very good, could have been better but it has for sure lived up to the hype it had got.
shareSorry to reply after more than a year but I have just finished watching all three episodes of Cilla and yes I have to agree it was very good.
"Stop listening to music made by poofs - Stick on some Elton John".