Across the Universe-Joe Anderson Interview
Joe Anderson starts out as a free-spirited college student and winds up a soldier in the Vietnam War in the musical Across the Universe, directed by Julie Taymor and co-starring Evan Rachel Wood and Jim Sturgess.
Transcript: Across the Universe-Joe Anderson Interview
Rebecca Murray from About.com Hollywood Movies at the Special Hollywood Screening of Across the Universe.
Joe Anderson ('Max')
I've got to think that the script didn't do justice to the finished product. Did it?
Joe Anderson: "Can you imagine trying to take that idea from black and white writing on a page? I mean, that was the biggest thing for us as the actors, and I think everybody on the film crew, was to try and sort of get an idea of what was going to come off the page. So the finished project definitely kicks the script's ass."
What does Julie Taymor bring as a director that helps you so much as an actor?
Joe Anderson: "She's like working with an, I don't know, atom bomb. One idea will spawn a million other ideas really quickly, but they all follow her logic so you've got to keep up with it. But she's an actor's director. She comes from the theater. That was the major appealing point for me. She's very free. She lets you go. She lets you explore, and then she can completely sort of hang onto an idea and force an idea, which, as you can see, sometimes is a really cool thing."
With all those millions and millions of Beatles fans out there, how much extra weight did you feel while you were performing?
Joe Anderson: "It's so weird. You know I asked a pilot for a 747 once, 'You're flying a plane and you've got all those people in the back of the plane…' And he said, 'Yeah, but if you crash, you die,' so it's kind of you want to give it your best shot and then hopefully the fans will accept it or not accept it. But seeing as it's a movie and I'm an actor, not a singer, you come from a place of truth with the character so that's what I was focusing on more than the fans."
How difficult was it for you to actually sing live, because a lot of this is not pre-recorded?
Joe Anderson: "Right. We did a bit of both but yeah, it was hard, especially when you're flipping over a couch or whatever it is, you know? But in a way I think that's what saved the movie from having that sort of music video kind of feel to it where the connection isn't really there. Especially when Revolution with Jim Sturgess when he's fighting and you can hear the strains in the voice and that's what makes it special."
Which song is going to stand out for you?
Joe Anderson: "Let It Be is the one that just gets me every time so yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Martin Luther's voice, man, you've got to love that guy's voice."
Across the Universe Resources: