More than just a pop hit, “Beyond the Sea” is great

One of the films released in 2004 that last-minuted me was “Beyond the Sea.” I was too young to appreciate Bobby Darin – I didn’t really come of age until the Mick Jagger started singing about people being under his thumb – but I knew who he was. Who didn’t? Everybody knew about “Splish Splash,” not to mention “If I Were a Carpenter.” And besides, he got to sleep with Sandra Dee .

Other than that last achievement, I could have cared less. When you’re caught up in the British Invasion of the 1960s, somebody who says that he wants to be better than Sinatra – the guy my mother screamed at – comes across as a loser. That’s one reason why I love “Beyond the Sea” so much. It shows that Darin, a cocky, self-assured guy from the streets of New York, was a lot more talented than I ever knew.

The movie, which just opened in Spokane on Wednesday, also gives Kevin Spacey a chance to show just how talented he is. A guy who has made a name for himself on television , the stage and in movies , Spacey has little to prove. Yet “Beyond the Sea” is a virtual one-man show: He cowrote it, he directed it and he plays the youngish and older Darin (William Ulrich plays Darin as a boy). And he not only sings, but he dances as well as any of J-Lo’s backup boys.

“Beyond the Sea” is so kick-ass that Spacey could be nominated for at least three Oscars. And he deserves it. So, it turns out, does Darin.