memorable

Rating: 8/10 (11 July 2008)

Across the Universe The Beatles, their words spoke for a generation in the sixties. Their music is renowned and loved across the world. Across the Universe tells a story no one has ever seen using the songs everyone has heard.
Across the Universe is a visually stunning rendition of over 20 Beatles songs that will dazzle your ears and your eyes. They range from the world renowned "Hey Jude" and "Come together" to the more obscure "I've just seen a face" and "Because".
The main character is Jude, played by the handsome Jim Sturgess. He is a dockworker from Liverpool who goes to America in hope of finding his biological father. Lucy is young woman played by Evan Rachel Wood who thinks love can conquer all. Jude meets Max, played by the equally handsome Joe Anderson, at Princeton University and they set out to New York where Lucy and Jude fall in love. From then on the story evolves into a face paced and musically powered story of love, war and everything in between.
The cast includes the comedian Eddie Izzard, Bono, Joe Cocker and other musical greats. It also introduces Jim Sturgess, a young, brown eyed, blacked hair man who might just become the next teen heart throb. Evan Rachel Wood, Joe Anderson also star in a cast of relatively unknown actors.
Now, to answer your question, the covers of many of the great Beatles songs have not been botched. The new renditions of the Beatles songs are spectacular. "Strawberry fields", "I am the walrus", "dear prudence", "Revolution", "Helter Skelter", have all been successfully reproduced and are sung and played out with a distinct visual style. The songs are so catchy that you'll be humming at least one of the songs by the end of the movie.
Julie Taymor, the director and one of the writers of Across the Universe directs a visually inventive but slightly uneven story of war and romance in the early seventies. The cinematography is beautiful and imaginative but sometimes steals from the performances in the movie. The costumes are original and very impressive. The most captivating costumes are those in the "Mr. Kite" music number, they show a stunning display of originality. The lighting in the movie is slightly over-dramatic but succeed in portraying the director's vision, albeit slightly heavy-handedly. There are a lot of memorable scenes in the movie and the musical numbers are done with much more grace and style than most recent music videos.
The film will surely be enjoyed by those of all ages and is a blessing to all those who love musicals and Beatles music. The movie breaks all generation gaps but will hold a special place in the hearts of those born in the sixties.