They should have called it "Grease III: The Return Home"

Rating: 3/10 (14 September 2007)

Wow.
Let me just start off by saying that NO self-respecting Beatles fan could possibly enjoy this film. (Notice I say "could" and not "will".)
I knew ACROSS THE UNIVERSE would be awful, but I could never have guessed it would be this bad. The idea seemed intriguing, the effects (in the trailer) piqued my interests, and I do feel that Julie Taymor has a definite eye for artistry (even though she's yet to find a good script to direct; and this film is no exception). Plus, I thought that ACROSS THE UNIVERSE might be this year's LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE or American BEAUTY: you know, the film the American IDOL crowd will laud as the next big thing. Well, I wouldn't be surprised if ACROSS gets a few (or more) nods from MTV and the Academy/GG, but it's more MOULIN ROUGE than anything else.
Obviously, the songs in the movies are all covers--this is to be expected--but I had no idea that it would be a wall-to-wall smorgasborg of mediocre actors doing their best to try to sing some of the greatest songs of all time. I mean, CLOCKWORK ORANGE might make a fun remake (!!), but what's the point? Why not leave it as is, folks? And that was truly the question I kept asking myself: "WHY?!" Why make this movie? What... is... the... point?
What most immediately came to mind during my viewing of this hapless commercial for a HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL incarnation of the Beatles is something Dorothy Parker once said: "This is one for the ages (ages 8-12)."
What's more to say, really? Don't waste your time and money on this one.