George Harrison: Living in the Material World

(Mauro Lanari) The failed priest from New York chooses the Beatles to continue his interminable sermon. Only a frustrated seminarian could have dared to manipulate the Fab Four's career to hypertrophically focus attention on George Harrison's spiritual attitude. On April 8, 1966, "Time" news magazine publishes "Is God Dead?" as cover article, and Scorsese comes up with the idea of replying to demonstrate the persistence of "**** sacer" in today's secularized society by telling the story of the most mystical member of the Liverpool band. For almost 3 and a half hours he tells us the events of this musician interested in sitar more than in guitar, in transcendence more than materialistic immanence, in theistic meditation rather than rock, so much so that he opposes the group in order to cultivate in his own solo career the achieved bliss. The facts flow away quickly, from Beatlemania to Lennon's death and any gesture of love, since we would be (like?) "angels captured in carnality". The score contains very few songs not composed by him and even missed his first famous track, "Taxman": too earthly. A hagiographic homily monstrously long and not at all convincing about an unconventional, ecumenical and **** saint towards orthodox traditionalism. One in which the narcissus Martin happily mirrors himself.