A friend said to me recently that she felt that A HARD DAY’S NIGHT was the “basis for reality television.” I found it a repugnant theory at first, because I’m of the idea that reality television is badly scripted drama designed to dumb down the minds of those who watch. Ok, I’m included in that category; there are two shows that I’m fairly addicted to. But, as I sat to write about this film, the idea returned to me: what if this was reality theater in the 1960’s?