Thursday, September 06, 2007

Hey Jude, You Made It Bad

Is there anybody going to listen to my story, all about the film I saw today ... ? (Or Wednesday night, to be more exact.) Across the Universe is director Julie Taymor's strange, strange movie set to the music of the Beatles (33 songs in all). To cut to the chase, it's a mess. A truly bizarre, unnecessary mess of a movie. Often it takes the really easy way to a cliche; for example, the lead characters are named Jude and Lucy, and there's another one named Prudence. Yes, this means you'll hear "Hey Jude" and "Dear Prudence" during the film. (Mercifully, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is saved for the end credits.) "Let It Be" is recast as a gospel song and sung during race riots and a funeral. And worse, "With a Little Help from My Friends" is sung by a bunch of drunk college students. The film goes from strange to stranger. And then Bono shows up to sing "I Am the Walrus," followed by Eddie Izzard singing "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite." And it's a long movie too (more than two hours). Sure, the songs are good, but they're not always the right fit and too often they feel forced into the story. I laughed out loud during "Revolution." And I didn't ever really buy that Evan Rachel Wood was doing her own singing. (On the other hand, Jim Sturgess, who plays Jude, makes a decent impression. And T.V. Carpio's version of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" is tender and sweet.) Can't say anything really makes Universe worth seeing. Nothing's gonna change my world, not least of all this movie. I'm giving it a D.

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2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

yea i agree...not. Your reveiw appalls me (in fact I suggest learning how to make a review in which th reader can get through it without yawning), if you think you can do a better job I'd love to see it because it takes alot of hard work to make a movie. I loved this movie and I plan on buying it when it is available. ha, how's that for a review?

November 21, 2007 11:48 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

yea I agree with my friend...she told me to look at this thing you call a review, and it's pretty sad. not only did she think your reveiw sucked but so did I. I also think that it is sad that she is fourteen and she burned you bad. You might think about finding a new job because you are clearly incompetant to do this one

November 21, 2007 12:02 PM  

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