The Beatles' "Yellow Submarine" Gets a Digital Makeover

The cultural and social upheaval of the 1960s was so pervasive and palpable that even a child couldn't miss it, especially if that child's parents provided a couple of quarters to see the latest feature-length cartoon. One day in the fall of 1967, the kid might go to The Jungle Book, an amiable, undemanding adventure that happened to be the last animated movie that Walt Disney (the man, not the company) produced. Less than a year later, however, the little innocent's mind would be blown by the unfettered imagination, flamboyant Pop Art palette, grown-up irreverence, and punning one-liners of Yellow Submarine, and nothing is ever the same.

Yellow Submarine runs June 8 and June 10-12 at the Castro Theatre.

(Cartoons are a gateway drug, don't you know?) Made with the Beatles' grudging cooperation and a handful of songs -- until they saw the finished film, and embraced it wholeheartedly -- Yellow Submarine stands as a timeless villains-and-heroes fantasy. The re-release of a digitally restored print invites us to consider the age-old question: Is the movie aimed at children, acid-heads, or the multitudes of blissful Beatles fans? The answer (of course) is yes.

Yellow Submarine starts at 7 and 9 p.m. at the Castro Theatre, 429 Castro (at Market), S.F. Admission is $7.50-$10.