REVIEW: Borrowed Time - Lennon's Last Decade | Documentary

Alan G. Parker’s Borrowed Time: Lennon’s Last Decade is a powerful, intimate, and refreshingly unvarnished portrait of John Lennon’s final decade - a period often overshadowed by both his Beatles legacy and his tragic end. Rather than retreading the familiar story of Beatlemania, Parker chooses to zero in on the man after the hysteria: post-breakup, politics, and neck-deep in the quiet chaos of fame, fatherhood, and figuring out who he was beyond the world’s expectations.

Drawing from a rich tapestry of archive footage and candid interviews, the film builds a compelling, often quietly devastating picture of Lennon in the 1970s. Here, we see him as the househusband in New York, the peace-seeker removed from the limelight, the conflicted artist rediscovering his creative voice after years of silence. It's an honest, reverent, yet realistic lens that strips away the mythology and offers something far more interesting: a portrait of the man himself.

What sets Borrowed Time: Lennon’s Last Decade apart is its refusal to flatten Lennon into a saint or a symbol. The documentary is brave enough to embrace contradiction - portraying Lennon as both icon and introvert, visionary and vulnerable, activist and absentee. His complicated relationship with Yoko Ono, his estrangement from Paul McCartney, his struggle with identity and legacy - all are handled with nuance and care, adding layers to an already fascinating figure.

Parker doesn’t aim for mythmaking; instead, he crafts a study in human complexity. We see Lennon the recluse, the dad, the dreamer, the doubter. It’s a version of him we rarely get to see - stripped down, uncertain, striving for meaning in a world that wouldn’t let him simply be. The result is a film that feels both deeply personal and broadly resonant.

Borrowed Time: Lennon’s Last Decade isn’t just a music documentary. It’s a musing on what it means to grow older under the weight of the past, to search for peace while carrying a legacy. For Lennon fans, it’s essential viewing. For those drawn to the messier corners of music history, it’s a masterclass in character-driven storytelling.

If you’re after a glossy, nostalgia-heavy Beatles tribute, this isn’t it. But if you want something deeper - a raw, moving exploration of a legend trying to outrun his own shadow - Borrowed Time: Lennon’s Last Decade is absolutely worth your time.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

BORROWED TIME: LENNON'S LAST DECADE opens in UK cinemas from 2nd May, with an exclusive Director's Cut available on the Icon Film Channel on the same day.

FILM DETAILS

• Theatrical Release Date: 2nd May 2025

• TL;DR: A visionary new documentary exploring the final decade of John Lennon's life in extraordinary detail. Follow the legend as he evolves beyond The Beatles, creating revolutionary music and standing at the forefront of anti-war protests that would make him one of the most influential pop culture icons of all time.

• Director: Alan G. Parker 

• Cast: John Lennon (archive), Yoko Ono (archive), Paul McCartney (archive), Tony Bramwell (Apple Records CEO), Earl Slick (guitarist), Henry 'The Horse' Smith (1981 tour manager), Vinny Appice (drummer)

• Genres: Documentary

• Run time: 134 Minutes

• Cert: 12A

📸 Strike Media Ltd