A dockworker comes to America to seek out his estranged father and instead finds love, turmoil, and war.
Rich in color and filled with imaginative scenes, Across the Universe [Columbia/Revolution Studios, 2007] is a feast for the eyes and ears. The film seamlessly weaves thirty-three Beatles’ songs into a story of love and war set against the backdrop of the turbulent 1960s.
Beatles Songs Define the Film's Characters
The film begins with Jude (Jim Sturgess), a dockworker from Liverpool, who travels to America to find his estranged father. Jude soon meets Max (Joe Anderson), a college dropout and soon-to-be Vietnam War recruit, and falls in love with Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) who finds out her boyfriend has been killed in Vietnam. Max and Lucy, originally from a sheltered, suburban life, move to gritty 60s New York with Jude. The three share a house with soulful singer Sadie (Dana Fuchs) and Jimi Hendrix-like Jo-Jo (Martin Luther McCoy). Rounding out the living arrangements is Prudence (T.V. Carpio) who, in reference to a joke in a Beatles’ song, comes in “through the bathroom window.”
Director Inserts Puppetry With a Creative Flare
Across the Universe is directed by Julie Taymor, also known for her direction of Frida [Handprint Entertainment, 2002] and the 1997 production of The Lion King on Broadway. Taymor’s personal appreciation of puppetry and masks is seen throughout Across the Universe. For instance, Uncle Sam’s war recruitment effort is shown with masked soldiers devoid of emotion or humanity. The robotic officers sing “I Want You” as they physically examine Max and other reluctant youths before shipping them off to Vietnam.
Bono makes a cameo as a tie-dyed Dr. Robert, a wise and knowing hippie leader. Psychedelic images accompany his determined performance of “I Am the Walrus.” Eddie Izzard, Joe Cocker, and Salma Hayek also make cameo appearances in the film.
The Effects of War Illustrate the Generation
The film does a successful job of depicting a young love forced to change with the expressive yet violent times. In an emotionally moving scene, images from the Vietnam War are shown in conjunction with the Detroit riots, underscoring the point that conflict and hostility were a prevailing force here at home as well as overseas.
Musical Relevance
The music, still relevant and pleasing, is sung with sentiments that reflect not only a specific place in time but also universally felt emotions. The players in Across the Universe perform with unaffected sincerity, drawing sharp contrast to other, more traditional and showy musical films. The Lennon/McCarthy songs used in Across the Universe prove their brilliance in the ability to hold up to the music and issues of the current day.
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