Movie Review #1

ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

What in the world is a movie review, an amateur one at that, doing on “Practical and Creative Ideas for Math Teachers?” Well I just thought it would be something interesting and teachers are people too, right?

Being a long time fan of the Beatles I thought I should see this movie. I had read good and bad things about it. It turned out to be very enjoyable – but it did not “change my world.” The basic story is a very common one – lonely boy meets lonely girl, they fall in love, they fall out of love, they get back together. The End.

The various plot points are illustrated by about thirty Beatle songs, sung mostly by a group of young, talented actors. In many cases the arrangements are slightly different from the Beatle originals but still recognizable. Some lyrics are given more emphasis, some less, in service to the plot. A series of stunning visuals accompany the songs, again in moving the story forward, or at least sideways. The creativity of director Julie Taymor is commendable, as well as her audacity to try to use music that is sacred to many people in a way that some may not like. I did like and admire what she did. She shot for the moon, only made it into orbit, but certainly didn't stay on the ground. How many of us have made it into orbit?

The movie is actually a series of music videos, strung together by the love story of the plot. Bono has a good part singing, “I Am the Walrus”. Joe Cocker is involved in an enjoyable take on “Come Together.” Other segments built around, “Strawberry Fields Together”, “I Want You (She's So Heavy)”, Hey Jude”, and “Let it Be” were also highlights. I also liked the multiple Selma Hayeks, but not necessarily the setting of the song, “Happiness is a Warm Gun.” The actors playing a Janis Joplin type character (“Sadie”) and a Jimi Hendrix type character (“Jo Jo”) were very good. I do wish the writers would have done more with the title song, “Across the Universe”, one of my all time favorite John Lennon compositions.

Watching this movie reminded me once again of the genius of the Beatles and showed the timelessness of their music. In fact there were many other Beatle songs that could have been used, but there is only so much celluloid. One thing I did wonder about – did they write the story and then pick which songs would go with that story, or the other way around?

I read something the other day (“oh boy”) about the fact that a lot of tweens, after watching the movie, are going out to buy the soundtrack album. New Beatle fans are being created every day. This movie is like the popcorn that many people ate while watching it – very tasty, very enjoyable but, in the end, not nutritious. But not everything has to be nutritious. I did enjoy this movie and am glad I went to see it.

Numerous other professional reviews of “Across the Universe” can be found on the movie review sites on the web.