Across the Universe

The film begins in an unspecified year of the 1960s with Jude, a young shipyard worker in Liverpool, reminiscing about a girl he once knew and loved ("Girl"). Some time prior, Jude enlisted in the Merchant Navy and then jumped ship in New Jersey, hoping to find his American G.I. father, whom he has never met. He promises to write to his girlfriend ("All My Loving") while Lucy Carrigan worries about her boyfriend, Daniel, who is headed for service in the Vietnam War ("Hold Me Tight"). In Dayton, Ohio, cheerleader Prudence pines for a fellow female cheerleader ("I Want to Hold Your Hand"), and then drops out of school in shame. Jude meets his father, who is a janitor at Princeton University, and befriends Lucy's brother, the privileged and rebellious Max ("With a Little Help from My Friends"). Lucy receives a letter from Daniel ("It Won't Be Long"), but Max introduces her to Jude, who he brings home for Thanksgiving. Dinner with Max's family turns into an argument where Max announces that he's dropping out of college, after which Max takes Jude and Lucy bowling, and Jude becomes attracted to Lucy ("I've Just Seen a Face").