Q: Are We Not Walruses? A: No, We Are the Eggmen!

Rating: 8/10 (20 September 2008)

I have a feeling someone might, immediately after seeing Across the Universe, accuse it of pretension. Well, duh! It is a musical, after all. Okay, so, true, it is more pretentious than most musicals -- it's even been dubbed the Beatles musical. But it's also more creative. It assumes a world where the Beatles never existed, and it hardly has much time to mention anything that was happening in music at the time (nor does it have much sense of chronology, really).
But this might be missing the point: anyone looking for the subtext is taking the film too seriously. Let's be honest, this is Julie Taymor -- she's one of the most visually creative directors in film, and here she outdoes herself. Take for instance the hilarious retake on "I Want You (She's So Heavy)," the exquisitely-manicured mash of prog-rock and minimalism from "Abbey Road." Who wants whom? Why, Uncle Sam wants Max (Joe Anderson) as part of the army for the Vietnam War. And who's so heavy? Well, apparently Lady Liberty.
Or how about Joe Cocker's turn as the star of "Come Together"? Cocker personifies the song, giving one of the best performances. Equally engaging is Eddie Izzard (the alliteration gets annoying, doesn't it?) as Mr. Kite in the fun-house version of the circus of "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite." Most of the songs are interpreted pretty cleverly. Some aren't, though. Bono's turn as Dr. Robert, the author of a book called "I Am the Walrus," leads the cast in a rather boring version of what I had always thought to be a song that was completely impossible to ruin (c'mon, "goo goo g'joob" is a lyric, how can you ruin that?). The other annoying renditions are of "Sexy Sadie" and "Dear Prudence," if you're wondering.
So you may be asking: is there a plot? Well, kinda sorta. It's a prototypical love story about a guy named Jude and a girl named Lucy (most of the characters are named after Beatles' title song characters), and it's about their living through the turbulence of the 60s. Does that sound lame? Yeah, it is.
But Across the Universe is mostly an elaborate series of music videos, filled with good performances and renditions, and fully engaging. Taymor has outdone herself in indulging herself. This is not a great film, but it's entertaining whether you know the songs beforehand or not. I liked it... goo goo g'joob.