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6mo ago

‘One to One: John & Yoko’ Premieres, Offering a Complex Portrait of Lennon and Ono’s 1970s Activism

Kevin Macdonald’s documentary, now showing in IMAX, blends archival innovation with a focus on the couple’s political and artistic efforts during a turbulent era.

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John Lennon and Yoko Ono outside the Robert Fraser Gallery in London in July 1968.
The documentary "One to One: John & Yoko" reveals that the couple's move to America, and John Lennon's fight for his green card, were spurred by the search for Yoko Ono's young daughter. "It was very dramatic for my mother, but it was more dramatic for her," Sean Lennon says of his sister Kyoko.
John Lennon and Yoko Ono during a press conference in 1973.

Overview

  • The film explores John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s early 1970s New York City period, highlighting their activism, artistic collaboration, and personal struggles.
  • Innovative archival techniques, including TV clip collages and unreleased phone recordings, immerse viewers in the cultural and political climate of 1972.
  • The centerpiece is the One to One concerts at Madison Square Garden, organized to benefit children at Willowbrook State School after its abusive conditions were exposed.
  • Critics are divided, praising the vivid concert footage and historical depth but criticizing the fragmented narrative and overwhelming montage style.
  • Sean Ono Lennon describes the documentary as an intimate and candid connection to his father, offering new insights into Lennon and Ono’s motivations and partnership.