So, given that I’m a massive Beatles fan, I was predisposed to like this movie. Lots of Beatles music, romantic, emotional – all the things that I adore.

I was overwhelmed.

Ever since I saw the trailer several months ago, I have been wanting to see this movie. It’s been out in limited release since the middle of September, finally making it to the Olathe 30 AMC as a part of their AMC Select movies. Alli and I made a date last night and caught the 7:45 showing, which was amazingly full. And it wasn’t full of people like me or even my parents who grew up with the Beatles and this era. Mostly it was teenagers who were rowdy before the movie and I was very close to getting upset. But once the movie started, I was drawn in and they shut their mouths and watched what I texted to my brother after as “the best movie I’ve seen in 5 years”.

That’s not to say that you should run out and see it. This movie is not for everyone. But it was most definitely for me.

Directed by Julie Taymor, most famously known as the director of Frida and the woman who brought The Lion King to the stage. She probably has more notoriety on Broadway, but that made her perfect to direct what was essentially a musical.

Across the Universe brought me back to when I first watched the movie Hair with Treat Williams and Bevery D’Angelo. It’s really a combination of that and Rent, except with better music and a plot that seems like it actually could have happened to someone.

Set during the ’60s, Across the Universe follows Liverpool-transplant (natch) Jude (played amazingly by Jim Sturgess) as he immerses himself in the psychedelic and anti-war counter-culture of the Vietnam era. He meets a spoiled Princeton student named Max and they galavant across the US with a mish-mash of company from a Jimi Hendrix lookalike to a girl named Prudence. And all of it set against the backdrop of only songs by The Beatles.

There are some fantastic cameos by Bono and Eddie Izzard. Bono’s character is based on Ken Kesey, while Eddie Izzard’s…well, you really just need to see the movie to understand his.

The film is filled with vibrant and energetic scenes, but is not so saturated as to seem cartoonish. Amazingly, the music, while all composed by members of The Beatles, is all sung by the main members of the cast. This isn’t the first movie to do that, but having to live up to The Beatles is no small task. Each of the main cast members responds extremely well, including Evan Rachel Wood, who has a surprisingly good voice, although her Lucy character could have been played by any number of actresses.

Ultimately, Across the Universe is a love story about Jude and Lucy, but it is set against the violence of the mid 1960′s, when The Beatles were at their most popular. The music is brilliant, but with Lennon and McCartney composing all of it, you can’t really go wrong.

It bears repeating that this movie isn’t for everyone. It is politically-charged and you’ll find plenty of places to draw the comparisons between the war we are in currently and the war we were in back then. There is plenty of alluded to drug use. Still, it resonated with me in such a strong way that I couldn’t help but call my dad after the movie ended and he was already asleep and say to him (after all, it was he who made me love The Beatles): “Dad, I don’t care if you’re sleeping right now. You should wake up, put on clothes and go to the next showing of Across the Universe. You shouldn’t wait. It’s that good.”

Now, if you’re not a fan of the music of The Beatles, I probably wouldn’t recommend it. But if so, you should RUN – not walk – to see this movie.