Interesting Diversion

Rating: 7/10 (24 February 2008)

Let me start by saying: I was prepared to hate this. How can you mess with perfection? Who would dare take classic Beatles tunes and repeatedly rearrange them? And just how coherent a plot could/would be fashioned to string them together?
What I was met with was a likable cast "reimagining" the cultural highlights of the 1960s. Granted, it's ridiculous how the main characters keep showing up at every significant hippie event, but this isn't (obviously) about plotting. My concerns were well founded in that regard. ACROSS THE UNIVERSE desperately tries to connect these events and the characters (who are all pretty one dimensional). And the happy ending is pretty tacked on.
But I found myself being compelled to watch it. And to enjoy it. For every ridiculous plot development (and there are many) comes a moment of audacity. The reimagined songs even work well, excepting the occasional clunker like "Let It Be." And Eddie Izzard provides a hilarious turn.
Don't look too hard for content. Just go with the flow. Turn off your mind, relax, and float downstream...