Title: Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour
Describe This Movie In One Fellowship of the Ring Quote:
GALADRIEL: All shall love me and despair!
Brief Plot Synopsis: Taylor Swift extends her global dominance.
Rating Using Random Objects Relevant To The Film: 4 Jason Voorheeses out of 5.
Tagline: N/A
Better Tagline: “Move over Thanos, inevitability has a new spokesperson.”
Not So Brief Plot Synopsis: Shot over three nights at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour offers an up-close (though not so personal) look at Swift’s economy-altering blockbuster tour.
“Critical” Analysis: And you may find yourself living in a folklore shack.
And you may find yourself in a post-Barbenheimer world.
And you may find yourself sitting in a reclining seat in an IMAX theater.
And you may find yourself with an Eras Tour bucket of popcorn.
And you may ask yourself, “Well, how did I get here?”*
How did we get here, indeed. The echoes of “Karma” had barely faded from SoFi Stadium when it was announced a film version of Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” would be rolling out in theaters. Is it a cash grab by an artist whose every move seems calculated for maximum exposure? Or is it a (middle) finger in the eye of Ticketmaster for their disastrous handling of Eras ticket sales?
As the meme says, why not both?
Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour hit theaters this weekend and is already the highest grossing concert film of all time. Granted, you’re not going to see Barbie numbers from it, but when the Eras Tour may end up being the highest grossing *concert tour* ever, it’s safe to assume Swift isn’t losing any sleep over it.
Shot by veteran live event director Sam Wrench, TS:TET does a fine job capturing both the mania surrounding the experience and the amount of preparation and attention to detail that went into the show’s production. You get a lot of detail that wouldn’t be apparent to an attendee, such as how each of her microphones are designed with the specific Era in mind, or the rotation of the backup dancers, or how Eddie Van Halen’s guitar seemingly made an appearance.
I also appreciate that the audio mix mostly kept the crowd noise pegged at a lower level.
And aside from the technical details — it really is a different experience than watching the whole thing on a Jumbotron — The Eras Tour movie offers a more up-close perspective on the contrasts between the Eras themselves. Whether it’s Swift getting her Stevie Nicks on during evermore selection “That’s My Man,” vamping it up during Reputation (“Ready For It” is a jam), or playing a Swamp Thing version of her piano during folklore. There’s something for pretty much everyone.
Is The Eras Tour too long? Even with several songs excised from the finished version and truncated set transitions, the movie still runs almost three hours. Then again, if people were willing to tolerate a 25-minute “Dazed and Confused” in The Song Remains the Same . . . Fans are weird.
Probably fewer people on acid at SoFi, to be fair.
Concert tickets are expensive, and for the 99 percent of humanity who are unable to shell out for it live, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour is a pretty comprehensive compromise. By offering more close-up opportunities while still not offering any backstage access, Swift continues to demonstrate her business savvy. Let’s hope she never used her powers for evil
Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour is in theaters today.
*Apologies to Talking Heads. Oh and a reminder, Stop Making Sense is also still in theaters.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
