Across the Universe

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[2.0
stars] [IMDb Link]

One of my favorite one-liners from P. J. O'Rourke: "Earnestness is stupidity sent to college." This movie has been to college. A commenter at IMDB claims it to be a breeding between Hair and Moulin Rouge. I'd say: more like Billy Jack and Help!.

Primarily, it tells the stories of Lucy, Jude, and Max, young people of the late 1960s. It is a Beatles musical; the participants routinely break into song, sometimes with elaborate choreography and massive production and special effects. (So, why is one of the kids named "Jude"? Duh, so one of the big climactic songs can be "Hey Jude". Didn't see that coming at all.)

Pluses: It's got a Beatles soundtrack (albeit overproduced and ponderous), so it can't be awful. Salma Hayek shows up as a nurse, writhing to "Happiness is a Warm Gun", so that's pretty good. Bono and Eddie Izzard have small roles as "Dr. Robert" and "Mr. Kite", respectively. (Whoever knew Bono could be funny? He is here.) And Joe Cocker has a blink-and-you'll-miss-him bit as well. (About long enough for me to say: "Hey, I think that's Joe Cocker!")

So it could have been pretty good, except for all the plodding earnestness. Its driving theme is Idealistic Free-Spirited Youth vs. Authority, where Authority is represented by murderous white soldiers, thuggish white cops, and Uncle Sam in Vietnam. It's 60's history as told by the Oberlin College class of 1974.

(To its slight credit, the movie alludes to the Weather Underground, which is accurately portrayed as blowing itself up with idealistic, free-spirited bombs meant for others.)


Last Modified 2024-02-01 5:32 AM EDT