By Andy McCarthy
In this time of sequels, prequels and overall lack of innovation, originality and progression, why hasn’t the current revivalist culture harked back to the work of The Beatles more often? Their music and art is ingrained in the social consciousness. Everyone knows it, everyone likes it and everyone (at least those who can be trusted) can acknowledge how important the art of that loveable foursome has been in shaping our cultural identity.
The image they established must not be tarnished. Their work must be handled with extreme care and the expectations of millions of adoring fans worldwide, must be, at the very least, met, if not exceeded. In fact, the only Beatles-related work that failed to raise the bar was the disastrous made-for-television film “Magical Mystery Tour,” which The Beatles themselves have come to write-off as a mistake. Well, that and one other film: the very mediocre “Across the Universe.”
The movie has been hailed many things by many different people. And while thought provoking and awe-inspiring might fit the bill, interesting seems a bit of a stretch. One could put “Paperback Writer” over images of two rhinos procreating and it would be interesting. But would it good? Would it say anything? It is clear after seeing Taymor’s piece the art that inspired it is just better than the film. Much, much better. The music of The Beatles is alive! Every lick, rhythmic switch and lyric is infused with color and life. The story and characters conceived by Taymor along with writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais are not. Sometime leading man, Jude (Jim Sturgess), is flat when the audience meets him and flat when he leaves. With his modern clothing and scene-mullet haircut that wouldn’t make its fashion debut until well into the ’80s, Jude’s character is a prime example of Taymor’s preference for the romanticized, hipster version of the 1960’s over what actually was.
Meanwhile, Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood, who is neither in the sky, nor in the possession of diamonds) makes her first appearance as a poodle skirt-wearing, soulless caricature one would expect to find in “Grease.” Later, however, after no character arc whatsoever, the viewer is meant to believe she cares passionately about the issues and stands on the front lines of the Vietnam anti-war protests. Her performance captures nothing about a person who actually puts her life into the opposition of a war, be it in the 1960s or in present day. But don’t blame Wood, who is obviously in possession of some emotional range; Taymor just isn’t an actor’s director.
Story does not need to be examined, because there isn’t one, as is the problem whenever a director sets forth to encompass an entire decade in one film. Storylines come and go as pointlessly as characters. A girl named Prudence (T.V. Carpio) exists in the film only to represent bisexual repression, does nothing for about an hour and finally “come[s] out of the closet” (very clever) when serenaded with a heartless rendition of “Dear Prudence.” She goes on to momentarily portray “Henry the Horse” in the film’s one saving grace, Eddie Izzard’s hilarious rendition of “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite” in which he plays the title role, drunkenly stumbling through the lyrics. Max (Joe Anderson) is the obligatory care-free character who gets drafted to fight the war he doesn’t believe in, which is about as topically relevant as the film gets.
Sadly, the ’60s is as tired and played out from over-exaggeration as any subject has become. Cultural repression, followed by cultural expression, followed by civil rights, followed by the draft, followed by peace, love and lots of drugs, followed by the inability to control or sustain any of these values. We know! All that can be said about it already has been; which is why, ultimately, “Across the Universe” says nothing at all. At least Bono is convincing as “Dr. Robert.”
“Across the Universe” is difficult to recommend to Beatles music lovers who might not want to see the art used as a gimmick. It also can’t be recommended to those who are unfamiliar with the music because these versions of the songs, performed by these voices is no way to be introduced to such significant work. Even those looking for an exciting Beatles experience should just do what has worked for the last 40 years: throw on the “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album and “turn off [their] mind, relax and float downstream,” because as visually interesting as it is, Taymor’s film just doesn’t surpass the imagination.
(AllMoviePhotos.com)