The film is not as I expected, but that doesn't mean it’s a bad thing.
I have to say the first 30 minutes of the film wasn't any good, but after that things got better. No doubt, the film is for Beatles fans. Perhaps some people who are after a chick-flick would be cheated into the theatre because of its Chinese name (which is lousy), and they’re bound to be disappointed, because this film has little to do with romantic love. Of course, the main story line is the love between an English artist who naturally is from Liverpool, where the Beatles came from, and a middle-class American girl who obviously can't have a name other than Lucy (Although much to my surprise the song 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' doesn't show up until the end credits). But there are much more beside the story. In fact, the story’s contribution in this film is minimal.
The story line is not the film's strongest point, which makes perfect sense considering the film is a musical. The lines are weak and the film lacks a climax. Just forget about the story and you’ll be fine. From the other parts of the film you can see that the director is more ambitious than to just make a brainless musical like the High School Musical. Seriously, how hard can it be? A handsome couple, some beautiful clothes and dances, a bunch of Beatles classics, that'll do. But the director has more to deliver.
The reason I won't describe the film as an extended version of a music video, as I would about Hero and Ming Ming, is that the images do not just aim to be good-looking, but to carry messages. You don't just see the faded past of 1960s through a paper-folded old-fashioned television, you see the present. You don't find the strawberries exploding on the battlefield remote, because you know what is happening now. Some events and some beliefs, you just can't forget or let go. By constructing a past scene the director has rung the bell of the present.
About the music. No one compares to the Beatles, that’s for sure. I can't help but wonder why the film hasn’t used other famous songs from the band. Although I breathed a sign of relief when 'All You Need Is Love' finally appears towards the end of the film, I still don’t understand why I don't get to hear ‘In My Life', 'Yesterday', 'Hello, Goodbye' or even 'A Hard Day's Night'.
But I think the music producers of this film have tried hard enough. I especially love the chapel music version of Let It Be. Although I know nothing about the background of that scene (which according to the making-of materials is about Detroit Riot), the sadness in the song has expressed itself well enough. While the rooftop performance of 'Don't Let Me Down' and 'All You Need Is Love' is amazing (although perhaps it's just that I love these two songs), I also like the heart-breaking 'When My Guitar Gently Weeps', a song I have always loved.
Combining music with the visual effects the film has produced some stunning scenes, such as 'I Want You' and my personal favourite, 'Strawberry Fields Forever'. I think the visual effects are about the best bits about the film. The director isn’t afraid to experiment. You can see all kinds of different visual styles, from hand-made to psychedelic, grotesque to collage. Although some of the scenes, as the crew of Nanny McPhee would put it, 'confuse the kids', I say it's a nice try. The scene about Dr Kite even reminds me of Tim Burton's Big Fish.
Most of the actors are green in this film, and they've done an OK job. Jude is cute, Lucy looks like a flower child, and Sadie must be the sexiest and most powerful performer you can see in a film. And comparing Avril Lavigne in Fast Food Nation, whose role is similar to Bono's in 'Across Universe', I have to say Bono's Dr Robert looks so much more natural.
And I must not remember to mention, that ‘Across the Universe’ is my favourite song of Beatles, and I think it makes the best name for a Beatles film. All in all this is a film about the sixties, about music, about war and peace, about taking chances, about freedom. It’s not just in Hong Kong, I find people's strength and persistence to fight for what they believe in diminishing all around the world. In comparison, those people in the past look like a legend.
So this is why I said the film isn’t what I expected. I hoped for some Beatles songs alone, but instead was taken to a magical mystery tour of a legendary era.
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