The film follows the Beatles through their pre-fame Hamburg days when Stuart Sutcliffe, the band's bassist, meets German photographer Astrid Kirchherr.

In addition, brief portrayals of other historical characters in these early days of the Beatles include Paul Duckworth as Ringo Starr, Paul Humpoletz as Bruno Koschmider, Wolf Kahler as Bert Kaempfert and James Doherty as Tony Sheridan.

After failing to secure funding, screenwriter Stephen Ward was brought in to completely rewrite the script in 1993.

In this respect, rather than re-create the sounds of the period, iconoclastic, rebellious musicians were recruited (as a producer noted, the Beatles' pre-recording stage act was "the punk of its day") to better convey the way the music was appreciated by audiences of the time.

All musicians were members of contemporary American rock bands:[1] The film's distributor happened to be PolyGram Filmed Entertainment which was then under common ownership with Polydor Records, the label that owned the rights to the Beatles' music from the Hamburg days.

[5] The site's consensus states, "Its overly pretentious and melodramatic leanings notwithstanding, Backbeat explores the beginnings of the Fab Four with striking authenticity, soaring rock 'n' roll verve, and a strong admiration for its subjects.

"[5] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone liked how the film captured the early 60s period through its visual style and use of music.

[9] The film received further positive responses from Julian Lennon, Pete Best, and Sutcliffe's sister, Pauline, who said, "I still think the director did a fabulous job.

[16] The film's original writer and director, Iain Softley, turned the screenplay of Backbeat into a theatrical production.