2008 Woodie Awards
"I saw a film today, oh boy..."
Catherine Migel '11
Issue date: 9/19/07 Section: Entertainment
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Six teenage girls, including myself, crowded into a tiny City Cab after sprinting like maniacs down City Avenue, only to find out we missed the bus. I found I would have to get to know this girl I had just recently met pretty well; after all, she was my seatbelt for the ride. I have heard stories that in the past people would go to all sorts of extremes to see that one show, or to have that one experience - think of all the people that were shoved into vans and how many people were sitting on one another's laps for Woodstock. Yet, here, six girls who grew up on Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC, were in a cab for a movie that was based solely around the music of a band not even from their time period: the music of The Beatles.
"Across the Universe" has been a big topic in both the movie and music industries for the last year. However, what I had heard about it and what I saw were two completely different things. I had heard it was based on The Beatles' music and told a story through their songs. When I heard that producers were even considering creating a movie like this, I laughed. I imagined something that would completely butcher good music and turn out to be just another hippie Vietnam War-based movie.
Although in simple terms this is true, the movie was so much more than a psychedelic musical. Director Julie Taymor took classic songs and brought them to life. She took a simple tune like "Strawberry Fields Forever" and turned it into a bloody anti-war song. It is hard to think that would even be possible, but Taymor's use of color made it possible.
Borrowing from Beatles lyrics, the movie revolves around two main characters: Jude (Jim Sturgess) and Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood). Both bring a new sound to the classic hits of The Beatles and inject new meaning into the songs. Jude is a young man from Liverpool, looking to find a new life in America. Upon his arrival, Jude meets a rambunctious Max and his younger sister Lucy. Max and Lucy come from a privileged family, while Jude is a just a poor boy. Jude and Max move to New York during the tumultuous time period of the Vietnam War. Lucy comes to New York right when Max gets drafted into the war, and "Across the Universe" takes on the challenge of being political without going over the top.
"Across the Universe" has been a big topic in both the movie and music industries for the last year. However, what I had heard about it and what I saw were two completely different things. I had heard it was based on The Beatles' music and told a story through their songs. When I heard that producers were even considering creating a movie like this, I laughed. I imagined something that would completely butcher good music and turn out to be just another hippie Vietnam War-based movie.
Although in simple terms this is true, the movie was so much more than a psychedelic musical. Director Julie Taymor took classic songs and brought them to life. She took a simple tune like "Strawberry Fields Forever" and turned it into a bloody anti-war song. It is hard to think that would even be possible, but Taymor's use of color made it possible.
Borrowing from Beatles lyrics, the movie revolves around two main characters: Jude (Jim Sturgess) and Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood). Both bring a new sound to the classic hits of The Beatles and inject new meaning into the songs. Jude is a young man from Liverpool, looking to find a new life in America. Upon his arrival, Jude meets a rambunctious Max and his younger sister Lucy. Max and Lucy come from a privileged family, while Jude is a just a poor boy. Jude and Max move to New York during the tumultuous time period of the Vietnam War. Lucy comes to New York right when Max gets drafted into the war, and "Across the Universe" takes on the challenge of being political without going over the top.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
dee
posted 9/20/07 @ 6:11 PM EST
this review was amazing! i think the writer has a great style and she makes me want to go and see this movie!
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