Synopsis: When young dockworker Jude leaves Liverpool to find his estranged father in America, he is swept up by the waves of change that are re-shaping the nation. Jude falls in love with Lucy, a rich but sheltered American girl who joins the growing anti-war movement in New York’s Greenwich Village. As the body count in Vietnam rises, political tensions at home spiral out of control and the star-crossed lovers find themselves in a psychedelic world gone mad.
Rating:PG-13 for some drug content, nudity, sexuality, violence and language.
Run Time:133 min
Director: Julie Taymor
Dvd Extra’s: Extended Musical Performances, deleted scenes, commentary, behind the scenes featurettes, Don Nace art gallery.
Nudity Factor: For PG-13 film you do see Evan Rachel Wood’s breast as she is sleeping and being drawn, in another scene a bunch of the cast is swimming naked but the only real part of nudity you see is a man’s butt, in another scene it appears that dancers are dancing in water only covered in mud.
Of Note: Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono, Paul McCartney and Olivia Harrison praised the film after seeing it.
Recommendations: Moulin Rouge
Anyone that knows me, knows that I am not a huge fan of musicals. Sure, I like Greece and a few others. I just always struggle with the interruption to the movie everyone breaking out in song does to the pace of the movie. This is even worse if it just feels silly, like some musicals do. For the most part, the music sections work in this film, even the ones that are kind of silly or artsy. The story follows a young man name Jude that has gone to work building ships to help make money for him and his mom. He saves up some money, so he can take a trip to the United States, so he can try to find his father that he has never met. Of course, this is an event you build up for your entire life, and it is hard for the experience to be everything you hope it to be. On the good side, though, he does meet a friend that changes his life. They quickly become buddies. When Jude is invited to join his new friend at his families Thanksgiving. Another life-changing event that results in the two friends moving to New York. From here, the two young men get caught in everything the era has to offer. The story itself is good. I kept thinking that it would take a turn for the worse, as most of the films set in this era tend to do. I kept waiting for what is a fun-loving story to make that turn. The two friends meet a lot of fun characters along the way and develop an even more great friendships. Jude along the journey meets his one true love that seems to have come to him across the universe. The Beatles music weaves its way into the story, and what I really like with it is they found away to make the lyrics fit so well with what is going on in the movie. Unlike most musicals, it actually felt like it naturally fit. The actors I thought were great. I was not sold on Evan Rachel Wood as Lucy Carrigan at first, but as the movie went on, I liked her more and more. By the end of the movie, I was invested in the characters and was routing for them as the story unfolded. I groaned at bad decisions, I laughed when they were being funny, and I felt sad when things didn’t go their way.
Overall, I enjoyed this way more than I thought I would. Being a musical, I was a little nervous has I have seen some that I can honestly say I hated. This one just got the transition from acting to signing right. It felt more natural and enhanced the film instead of was just an excuse to insert singing and dancing. I would list this as one of my favorite musicals, and one day I will put this in the conversation with some of the more classic musicals that we all know and love. I would recommend this film to both lovers of musicals and those that don’t care for them. If nothing else you get some great music throughout the movie, especially if you like the Beatles.