Oscar Cleanup: "Across the Universe" Review - Written by TonyD

“Across the Universe”
2007
**** out of ****
Director: Julie Taymor
Cast: Jim Sturgess, Evan Rachel Wood, Joe Anderson


2007 was known as the year of the three-quels, but could it also be known as the year of the musicals? Four musicals came out that changed me some way or another. There was “Hairspray,” a cheery musical that changed my opinion on John Travolta (and Queen Latifah and Zac Efron, but they changed back to what I originally thought of them after “Mad Money” and “High School Musical 2”). There was a little musical called “Once,” the best romantic movie since “Brokeback Mountain.” “Sweeney Todd” wasn’t one of my favorites, but it gave me a reason to be cynical and fucking angry.

And then, in the middle of all of them, was a little musical called “Across the Universe.”

Possibly the most unique movie of the year, “Across the Universe” mixes fun and depression within one film. It has been done before, and lord knows that I still have nightmares over that “Sgt. Pepper” movie, but I can’t possibly remind you the last time I came to the theater with a smile on my face. The trailer hit me harder than Amy Winehouse smacking around her husband, and if the movie was as half as good as the trailer, I was to love it. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but “Across the Universe” gave me hope in the world that maybe there is a little word that begins with an ‘l’.

Jude (Jim Sturgess) travels from Liverpool, England to America in the 1960s to find his father (Robert Clohessy). Along the way, he meets an Ivy Leaguer named Max (Joe Anderson) and they hit it off. Max has a sister Lucy, (Evan Rachel Wood) a wonderful young lady who acts more mature than her older brother. Her boyfriend (Spence Liff) has been in the military for a few months, and just a few days before he’s scheduled to come back home, he is killed. Max and Jude live in an apartment owned by a wannabe rock-star named Sadie (Dana Fuchs). She finally gets her band started when she meets JoJo (Martin Luther McCoy). Within these next few years, these individuals fight for a cause to the Vietnam War, struggle to voice their opinions, and discover that all you really need is love.

“Across the Universe” is an original musical with songs by The Beatles, but I think it’s more than that. Many know about The Beatles lives outside of music, especially the life lived by the late John Lennon. The adventures that these few people encounter are ones that symbolize the real adventures The Beatles encountered during their time. We’re left with the impression that “Across the Universe” is really supposed to be a metaphor to what times were like back then. After watching it a third, fourth, fifth, and sixth time since it was released in the theaters, I figured out why I loved it so damn much.

Julie Taymor creates a wonderful atmosphere before the war started to affect everyone. Lucy and her boyfriend were literally the perfect couple, and before the war came along, nothing could really cross them. There’s Max, an Ivy Leaguer who has nothing but a care in the world, until he gets drafted into the military. Before everyone gets affected by the war, they all lead happy and enjoyable lives. Then the war does come along, and Julie Taymor creates a dark but accurate portrayal of what really happened back in the days of protests and riots. The music is not to just be there so we can sing to it, but it tells another story that describes what the characters are going through. For the first hour, I became so interested into the story that when the sudden change in mood came, I never noticed it.

There’s a long fifteen minutes in “Across the Universe” that could decide whether you love the movie or whether you hate it. Many people say that it doesn’t fit in with the rest of the film, but I say “go to hell.” These fifteen moments symbolize just how imaginative The Beatles were. During the number “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite,” we’re introduced to a trippy universe. Even Eddie Izzard, giving an excellent cameo, fits right in with the music. He fills in his own material as well as singing the words to The Beatles’ own song. Also within these fifteen minutes, we get an excellent cameo by Bono, singing John Lennon’s “I Am The Walrus,” probably the best version of the song next to the original.

I love it how people say that “Across the Universe” never made sense. One of the problems that everyone will have with the film is how the film skips around. One of the characters played by T.V. Carpio leave suddenly during the film, and we’re never informed why she left. When Joe Anderson’s character fights in the war, the next scene, he’s suddenly in a hospital. We’re never told why he is, but we’re left asking those questions. There are a few more plot-holes every now and then, but I figured that I think the film is best off with the plot-holes intact. Since when did The Beatles ever make sense? Why should THEY make sense now? I’m still trying to figure out which one is the Walrus…

The best part about the film, however, is the music. Before going into the film, I never really listened to The Beatles. I pretty much tried to avoid them whenever I heard them just because I didn’t want to listen to a band that everyone called “the greatest band ever.” After watching the film, I bought the soundtrack to the film and downloaded some of the music from The Beatles, and I was surprised when I later discovered that almost all of the songs were done just as well as (and in a few instances, better than) the versions from The Beatles.

The cast have some excellent voices to add to the film. Evan Rachel Wood finally does something in a film instead of standing there looking pretty for the past two years. T.V. Carpio performs a fantastic rendition of “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” a song that changes tempos throughout. Joe Anderson really adds a lot of heart to the film. But the two cast members that I’m still in awe about are Dana Fuchs and Jim Sturgess. Dana Fuchs definitely has the voice of Janis Joplin, which helps a lot. Jim Sturgess is definitely one of the best actors that you never heard of. I’ll be keeping in touch with him in March when I purchase my ticket for “21.”

“Across the Universe” is more than a film. It’s an experience. It’s a story about love. It’s a story that you will never forget. To watch it is to love it. I know I listed “No Country for Old Men” as my favorite film of 2007, but I can’t decide between which one is better. On February 5, when your Best Buy opens, walk inside and ask someone who works there to point you to the loaded 2-disc DVD of “Across the Universe.” If you find the reason to shank me after watching it, you don’t deserve to watch movies. Plain-n-simple.

And to Taymor, Wood, and Sturgess, could you PLEASE let me know about the “Spider-Man” show on Broadway? For me…