All you need is love.
Director: Julie Taymor
Written by: Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais, Julie Taymor
Cast: Evan Rachel Wood, Jim Sturgess, Joe Anderson
Year / Country: 2007, United Kingdom, United States
Running Time: 133 mins.
Across the Universe is a jukebox musical in which the songs are provided by the greatest band of all time: the Beatles.
It opens with the main character Jude (Jim Sturgess) singing ‘Girl’ – a John Lennon classic – on a beach, immediately immersing the audience in the emotions and energy of the 1960s. The film continues with ‘Helter Skelter’ and ‘Hold Me Tight’, offering a glimpse of Liverpool’s vibrant nightlife.
Like so many of the Beatles’ songs, love is the film’s central theme, and Evan Rachel Wood and Jim Sturgess bring undeniable chemistry to their roles. Jude, a shipyard worker, travels to the US to find his G.I. father, whom he’s never met. After locating him – a janitor at Princeton – he meets student Max, who takes him home to meet his sister Lucy. Their connection sparks a romantic love story, but Across the Universe is also deeply rooted in the era’s revolutionary spirit.
Max and Jude move to New York, but their lives are disrupted when Max is drafted for Vietnam. They rent a room from Sadie, a talented singer, and her guitarist Jo Jo, both on the brink of stardom. Lucy joins them in New York, and their relationship blossoms amid the growing anti-war movement, which becomes increasingly radical as the conflict worsens.
The movie features 34 Beatles compositions, many performed memorably by the cast. Standout musical numbers include ‘I Want You’ in a US Army Recruitment Centre, a surreal circus performance of ‘Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite’ (complete with blue meanies), and a soulful ‘Let It Be’ by a black church choir.
The film is packed with visual and lyrical nods to the Beatles, from character names to cranberry sauce, the number 9, and psychedelic imagery that mirrors the band’s evolution – from Liverpool’s working-class roots to the revolutionary fervor of 1960s America, and in between a psychedelic magical mystery tour in the countryside.
The film unfortunately was a box office flop, but the two surviving Beatles praised the film after seeing it, and when the director asked Paul McCartney what could have been done better, he replied: “What’s not to like?” And who am I to disagree with Paul?
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Biography: Julie Taymor (1952, in Newton, Massachusetts) is an acclaimed American director, playwright, and costume designer, renowned for her groundbreaking work in theater, opera, and film. She is best known for her inventive use of masks, puppets, and visual spectacle, blending Eastern and Western artistic traditions. Her most iconic achievement is directing Disney’s The Lion King (1997), which revolutionized Broadway with its innovative puppetry and staging. In film, Taymor directed Frida (2002), a biopic of artist Frida Kahlo starring Salma Hayek, which received six Academy Award nominations and won two. She also directed Across the Universe (2007), The Tempest (2010), and The Glorias (2020), a biopic about feminist icon Gloria Steinem. Her work often explores themes of transformation, identity, and social justice, and she is celebrated for her ability to create magical, immersive worlds on stage and screen.
Filmography: (a selection): The Tempest (1986, Video), Juan Darién: A Carnival Mass (1990, TV Movie), Fool’s Fire (1992, TV Movie), Salome (1995, TV Movie), Titus (1999), Frida (2002), Across the Universe (2007), The Tempest (2010), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2014), The Glorias (2020)
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