MovieMantz Review: ‘Across The Universe’

It Goes Nowhere, Man

by Scott Mantz

“Across the Universe”
Starring: Jim Sturgess, Evan Rachel Wood
Directed by: Julie Taymor

I’m a huge Beatles fan, so I was excited when I heard that visionary filmmaker Julie Taymor was going to direct “Across the Universe” – a musical that used the lyrics of the Fab Four to tell an epic love story set against the backdrop of the 60s. Well, I should have known better, because despite lofty ambitions, stylish direction and a whimsical approach, the result is an awkward, uneven film that could best be described as a beautiful disappointment.

Using characters well known to Beatlemaniacs, “Across the Universe” tells the story of Jude (Jim Sturgess), a working class bloke from Liverpool, and Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood), a sheltered American teenager. They fall in love, move to the big city and get by with a little help from their new friends. They include Max (Joe Anderson), Lucy’s brother who just got drafted; Jo-Jo (Martin Luther McCoy), a talented blues guitarist; and Sadie (Dana Fuchs), the aspiring singer who loves him. They all want to change the world, but after 2 hours and 11 minutes of doing every little thing, you wish they would just let it be.

“Across the Universe” gets off to a promising start, as Jude and Lucy break out into snippets of various early Beatles songs like “All My Loving,” “I’ve Just Seen a Face” and “Hold Me Tight” to illustrate the passion that eventually brings them together. But once the action shifts to New York, Taymor loses her focus on their relationship and becomes more enamored with rehashing tired 60s clichés that very much favor style over substance.

And considering Taymor’s visionary body of work – including 1999’s “Titus,” 2002’s “Frida” and Broadway’s stage version of “The Lion King” – that style can be pretty ambitious. That’s certainly the case when an animated Uncle Sam sings “I Want You” to Max in a trippy musical number that’s right out of Pink Floyd’s “The Wall.” And Joe Cocker, who, back in the day, famously covered “With a Little Help from My Friends” and “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window,” makes a noteworthy cameo with a stellar rendition of “Come Together.”

Otherwise, Taymor’s ambitious take on the 60s gets the best of her, as the film’s far-out mid-section recalls – of all things – the Beatles’ own ill-conceived project from 1967, “Magical Mystery Tour.” And anyone who’s seen that overindulgent, incoherent disaster (the Beatles’ only failure) will know not to take that as a compliment. Even U2’s Bono, who pops up at this point as countercultural guru Dr. Robert, fails to liven up the proceedings with his take on “I Am the Walrus.”

Most of the songs start off with a few verses sung a cappella before the rest of the instrumentation kicks in, which turns out to be an effective way to ease moviegoers into the concept (think “Moulin Rouge,” but without all the hyper-kinetic bells and whistles). And the lovebirds played by Evan Rachel Wood and Jim Sturgess do a credible job singing the Beatles numbers, but their love story is shamefully underdeveloped, while the rest of the cast members are so poorly defined that they barely register at all.

Since so many of the mid-to-late 60s Beatles songs tell such vivid stories, it’s surprising that “Across the Universe” never manages to tell a dramatic story of its own. That’s because what started out on a promising note turns into a gimmick, and Taymor never succeeds in wrapping a hook-grabbing narrative around the songs. The Beatles (and their fans) deserved better, and as a result, it’s safe to say that a splendid time is not guaranteed for all.

VERDICT: SKIP IT!