Movie Review: Across the Universe

Going into Across the Universe, I didn't really know what to expect. In fact, I didn't even know it was a musical until I saw the opening scene. Whatever the case, I did find it an enjoyable movie. What intrigued me was the fact that they built this movie around the characters and environments of the Beatles' songs. It is a visceral approach, as it is set in the 60's, taking a very acid trip like experience, or dare I say LSD. This movie even references Yellow Submarine.
My only drawback about this film is that it runs a hair long, and some parts of the plot seem incoherent. This might be due to the fact, that director Julie Taymor had her director's cut chopped down because the studio heads thought it was initially too long. So after seeing the shorter version, I don't know if the longer cut would have made it better. However, I still liked this version. Actually, if I was a Beatles maniac, I'm betting I would like this film even more because of it's heavy underlining references to all things Beatles.
3 out of 5