Sunday, February 10, 2008

Across the Universe

In this time of writers striking Netflix has become important in our household.

On the menu tonight was "Across the Universe," Julie Taymor's latest.

In a nutshell it was moments of cinematic and artistic brilliance interspersed with the most boring and irrelevant storyline I've ever seen. At some point in the movie it turned into "Hair." When she allowed the entire song to play out there visuals were trippy and interesting and freaking brilliant. Eddie Izzard and For The Benefit of Mister Kite was so much fun. I wished it was more like that. Ok, that would make it one giant long music video.... and it's been kinda done before but there is a new generation of kids that something like this could make the music relevant for them. And that is the biggest thing that really bothered me.(ok, that and Bono's need for a better dialect coach.) How was this movie relevant in this day and age. Yes, we're in a bad war that in many ways is not unlike the war in Vietnam. There was nothing visually or narratively to tie the two together. It's a baby boomer movie. It's a movie for anyone who lived through the 60's. It's a nostalgic movie. How limiting.