Across the Universe: A Transcendent Experience

by Daniel Foster on October 09, 2007
If you're a fan of musicals, boobies, or The Beatles then Across the Universe is for you like white powder is for Lindsay Lohan.

Consider these words of wisdom from the 20th century philosodelic: Hey Jude, I want to hold your hand with all my loving because I am the Walrus with a little help from Lucy in the sky with diamonds, strawberry fields forever, and Helter Skelter and all you need is love and to come together.

Sure, that sentence doesn't make any damn sense, but neither does the plot of director Julie Taymor's Across the Universe. However the film contains those songs above plus more, yielding an impressive 30 song musical chock full of trippy visuals.

Irish artist Jude (Jim Sturgess) travels to the United States accompanied by a mediocre A Capella voice to find his father and befriends the much more vocally accomplished, mischievous Princeton student Max (Joe Anderson). Jude meets and falls in love with Max's little sister Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) and they begin a drug induced, draft dodging adventure in New York. There they meet up with power house vocalist Sadie (Dana Fuchs, basically portraying Janis Joplin), and Hendrix-esque JoJo (Martin Luther McCoy). As I said before, the plot never began with much substance so don't expect coherence to unfold when the crew jumps on Dr. Robert's bus (played by Bono. Yes, fucking Bono).

So screw the plot and I'll just skip to the reasons why you should see Across the Universe:

  1. Good Date Movie. Whether you're taking your girlfriend or drugs, the films psychedelic boy meets girl story should entertain both you (hopefully inebriated) and/or your lady friend.
  2. Music. Even if you're not a fan of The Beatles, you'll probably jam to many of the covers. However, a disclaimer is necessary: If most of your CD collection consists of club rap, skip this movie, it isn't for you. If your taste of music extends beyond what is force fed by today's mainstream, you'll dig the tunes. Tubular.
  3. Boobies. A decent amount for a PG-13 movie, although I think the total count is an odd number.
  4. Hypocritical hippies blowing themselves up with bombs.
  5. Avoid lengthy stories from those who actually lived through the 60's. There is an advantage to watching this film. Next time your parents or some other generally aged person drone on about the magic of Free Love in the 60's, you can swiftly interrupt them by claiming you already know everything there is to know due to Across the Universe. The duration of the blank/dormant anger on their face should give you enough time to slip out the door.
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UNC Greensboro

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