The Hours and Times
By Cory Peynado, Blockbuster.co.uk

“Why is it so awkward when we talk about it?”

Written and directed by Christopher Münch “The Hours and Times” is a 1991 drama that has now, finally, and with much anticipation been released on DVD. It is a fictional account of a real holiday taken by John Lennon and The Beatles' manager Brian Epstein in 1963 and as much as it sounds like a run of the mill documentary its actually just a really good drama film.

This account is going back to April of 1963, so it’s just before the madness of Beatle mania. It stars David Angus as Brian Epstein and Ian Hart as Jon Lennon, two young men, wild and free, who decide to take a little trip outside of their crazy lives for a few days. Who knows what they’ll get up to… I mean at this point everyone knew Brian was gay and many were aware he was completely infatuated with John Lennon.

Lennon knew this also, and was in turn fascinated by what some would call his intellectual equal. Epstein's infatuation leads to this strange episode in his life usually missing from the official John Lennon biographies, set against the bare backdrop of a humid Spanish hotel room, it's in fact a remarkable achievement, the way the details of this event have been recreated to such detail.

“The lads are probably having a big party without us.”

Fans of Lennon (and I hear there’s a few) will now get the chance to take a quick look behind the curtain at some of the more private aspects of John’s life. This sixty-minute film portrays Lennon as a man who seemed to be fascinated with all aspects of his sexuality and tells us the story of how he explored this curiosity with Brian.

It’s a sobering glimpse, a dramatisation of what may have occurred between them and most of all it’s a very interesting watch. I’m not a big Lennon fan, simply because I haven’t heard much of his music, but I did find this small account of his life pretty fascinating. True fans of Lennon will find this an invaluable piece of memorabilia. Something that may open a small door to the mind of a legend.

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