Review: Across the Universe
By DavidFisher. Filed in audio |Tags: Across the Universe, Beatles, movies
Rich and I saw the movie Across the Universe on Sunday night. We had tried to see it Saturday night, but tickets were sold out until a later show and we didn’t feel like waiting.
This movie is basically a story/musical that uses music from the Beatles to convey the story. I don’t like to think that it’s a musical, as I can’t stand most musicals. Maybe it’s because Stephen Schwartz and Andrew Lloyd Webber make me want to jump off a cliff most days with their music. The Beatles is real music however and shows off its flexibility here.
It’s a good story. I won’t tear into the details too much, but it’s well done, inventive and fun. The one thing I couldn’t get out of my head was when the song Hey Jude was gong to pop up (as it does about 3/4 through the film) as the main character’s name is Jude. Even not during songs, the film makes some great Beatles humor. When the character Prudence enters into the New York City apartment that most of the characters are living in at the time and another character asks where she came from Jude replies, “She came in through the bathroom window”.
The main character Jude is an amalgamation of a John Lennon/Paul McCartney character which is fairly entertaining. The character JoJo also hints at a Hendrix persona.
The music I felt is great. I didn’t wince a since time thinking, “Oh dear god they killed that Beatles song” as can so easily happen. Don’t believe me? Type “Beatles Covers” on YouTube. Everything felt fresh, but not overdone. Nothing felt overly modernized, but nothing felt like it was trying to make a sound-a-like copy of a Beatles song.
I was impressed with how well the song lyrics integrated into the dialog. I myself couldn’t have fit “Happyness is a Warm Gun” so well into a script. Bono and the Edge do a nice job with “I am the Walrus” too. It really makes you want to go find a few hits of acid a trip out, not to encourage drug use of anything (that being said many of these songs wouldn’t exist were it not for the use of acid).
I honestly think this was one of the most enjoyable movies I’ve seen in a long time. It has it’s flaws, but so does every movie. Rachel Evans Wood is stunning in this film, and plays a very dynamic role. I’m recommending everyone I know to go see this. I’m going to pick up the soundtrack myself (see link here). Maybe I just enjoy anything Beatles, but this was to me far more enjoyable than A Hard Day’s Night.
If you want more detailed information check out the IMDB site.