The Sandspur

Issue date: 10/29/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment

Set in the tie-dye era of sex, drugs and alcohol, Across the Universe successfully captivates the attention of its viewers as it whisks them away to a world filled with brightly colored filth and hallucinogens.

Overflowing with Beatles music and artistic expression, this emotional love story serves as the Titanic for the next generation.

Gorgeous, dark-haired Jude (Jim Sturgess) plays the rebellious Irishman who finds himself experiencing the "highs" and lows of life in the Beatles era. As if one puff of his cigarette isn't enough to steal the hearts of millions of girls, his lips succeed in producing a succulent melody that sounds almost as good as he looks.

The story begins with Jude being befriended
by the Princeton slacker, Max (Joe Anderson), who shows him how to get by "with a little help from his friends." Before long, the inevitable happens, and Jude can't get Max's innocent little sister, Lucy (Evan
Rachel Wood), out of his mind.

Lucy, with her center-parted hair and natural but pretty face, soon finds herself enthralled in the arms of the Irish hero as they immerse themselves in the culture of the 1960's.

Although the story of their young love might suffi ce as entertainment for this movie, the storyline doesn't stop here; it continues with several other characters. The rocky road relationship between soul singer Sadie (Dana Fuchs) and talented guitarist JoJo (Martin Luther) creates a mirroring effect of the troubles of love as they chase after what they deem as a happy life.

Next, Max enters into a conflict of his own when he is drafted into the United States military as a soldier in the prolonged Vietnam War.

Lastly, we have such an eccentric character as Prudence, the small black-haired girl on a
quest for finding her fit as she leaves her post as a cheerleader in the world of jock straps and pom-poms to enter a world full of artistry and abstractions.

Across the Universe is not just an entertaining movie, but is an epic film of artistic genius. With every scene, comes
an endless pool of metaphorical examples and hidden meanings. A superficial eye might see
a screen filled up with amusing characters, odd clothing, and an array of colors and shapes, but an attentive eye will see the collaboration of various elements such as lyrics, clothing, background, props and lighting that send a direct and forceful
message.

Although it is set in the 1960's and 1970's, the analogous statements that this moviemakes are pertinent to today's
generation and the human race in general in more ways than one.

Such images as a few lanky young men carrying the burden of the Statue of Liberty on their back, hovering from the weight, as they tread through the swamp lands leaves an impressionable mark on all who see it for it so very accurately represents how America's young men have faithfully upheld our view of freedom over the past decades.

It is images like these that, once seen, are hard to forget because they strike such an emotional chord in our hearts. It would not be an understatement to say that the images presented throughout this movie are powerful analogies that speak right to the heart of many- especially the youth.

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