Movie #62 - Across the Universe

"All you need is love."

Well - that's not all you need to enjoy this movie. When my wife mentioned that we were going to watch this film, I was intrigued by a musical influenced by the music of the Beatles - one of my favourite bands of all-time.

However, the music is probably the only thing that is good from this film. Integrating the musical numbers into the plot were done well overall - but like any musical, the performances interfere with the progression of the movie in the end. In comparison to other musicals - e.g. Sound of Music or Phantom of the Opera, the music itself enhances the plot and storyline. In this case, the music becomes a nuisance as there is very little plot or explanation of what in fact is going on.

Depicted in the 60's, I guess the only way to enjoy this film is while on some sort of drug - however, as a non-drug user, I could not enjoy the weirdness of this film... despite the fact that I try to give any movie a chance. Thankfully, this movie did not fall under the "did not finish" category - mainly because I was still entertained by the musical performances and is impressed by the beauty of Evan Rachel Wood - a 21-year old actress constantly being cast to play a teenager in films and television.

Hopefully, Wood will choose more adult roles that will allow her to break the stereotypical teenage angst films. I am looking forward to her making the transition similar to those like Portman or Johanssen. Only time will tell.