A beautiful coming of age story

Rating: 8/10 (11 June 2020)

Directed by Julie Taymor, Across the Universe (2007) is a musical that uses the songs of The Beatles to tell the story of a group of twenty-somethings living in the United States during the 1960s. As the Vietnam War rages on, the lives of Jude (Jim Sturgess), Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood), Max (Joe Anderson), Sadie (Dana Fuchs), Jo-Jo (Martin Luther), and Prudence (T.V. Carpio) converge in a small, New York City apartment. Featuring important historical events like the Detroit Riot, as well as the LSD counterculture of that time, this movie covers a wide variety of topics and events.
One major theme throughout Across the Universe is the idea of self-discovery. Each character goes on a journey as they discover who they are while simultaneously navigating the social and political climate of the sixties. Jude, a foreigner, tries to find his place in America. Max is forced to mature quickly when he is drafted for the Vietnam war, while his sister, Lucy, finds her voice in anti-war activism. Jo-Jo uses music to mourn the loss of a loved one, Sadie struggles as she attempts a solo music career, and Prudence comes to terms with her sexual identity. Similar to Blinded by the Light (2019), Across the Universe is about trying to figure out who you are while the world feels like it is falling apart around you.
What makes this movie unique is its abstractness. Just like the characters are discovering themselves, so is the movie. Each musical number is done in a different style of cinematography, which becomes more abstract as the movie goes on. It's almost as if the movie itself is trying to figure out what it is. One way this abstractness is achieved is through lighting. The beginning of this movie focuses on realism and uses mostly natural lighting. However, later musical numbers use colored lighting, which helps emphasize the character's emotions within that scene. Dramatic lighting changes show an emotional shift, and multicolored lighting is used to mimic the effects of LSD. Special effects are also used to make the movie more abstract. A poster of Uncle Sam comes to life, or an apartment appears to float amongst the clouds. Special effects are used mainly during the second half of the movie and demonstrating that this movie is changing and adapting to events occurring within it. Through the use of lighting and special effects, the movie tests different identities, which mimic the personal journeys of its characters.