Saturday, September 22, 2007

Across the Universe

I was expecting to hate it. Hell, I was planning to hate it.

To my utter surprise, it's actually quite moving. Visually amazing, as well, although that part isn't a surprise; Julie Taymor really is a bit of a genius, as it turns out. Of course, T-Bone Burnett, who supervised the music, most of which is exquisite, is the real hero of the piece.

I was hoping that the gospel version of "Let It Be" was on YouTube, but while we're waiting this clip gives you a pretty fair idea of what the film is like.



Obviously, this is gonna be a real pop culture Rorschach Test....

Postscript: I seem to have read somewhere that the studio mucked with Taymor's edit; don't know if it's true, but the happy ending does feel totally tacked on. Has any reviewer noticed?

Another postscript
: My former colleague Maitland McDonagh -- one of the sharpest film critics wearing shoe leather -- nails the movie here.

6 comments:

dave™© said...

Apparently, there was a piece in the Times about the "artistic differences"... sounds like a 2-disc DVD's in the offing!

Anonymous said...

Hmmm. I'm pretty dubious, but your word carries a lotta weight....

steve simels said...

I was dubious too.

I must have seen the trailer seven or eight times over the last couple of months, and every time I wanted to throw my show at the screen.


I don't want to oversell it -- there's a lot wrong with it -- but the good stuff is out of this world.

Let's just say you won't be bored...

Anonymous said...

I respect your opinion, Steve, but this movie has all the ingredients of a dreadful theater-going experience IMHO, especially the contrived musical numbers and the 60's look-alikes. (Oh, no...I just had a bad acid flashback to that awful TV mini-series "The 60s.") Every clip I've seen--including the one here--makes me wretch. I simply can't bring myself to risk wasting good movie money on something that looks so awful from the start. I'll wait to see it on DVD, if at all.

steve simels said...

Anonymous:

I saw "The 60s" and it was the biggest piece of shit ever. Believe me, I know what you're saying.

This, despite its flaws, is something else.

Anonymous said...

Julie Taymor really is a bit of a genius

I loved Titus.

You can expect lots of energetic, quirky style from Julie Taymor.