The Eras Tour might go down as one of the great promotional events of all time. I assume Taylor Swift, in all her marketing genius, somehow convinced the world to bend to her will. I mean, The Talking Heads re released the greatest concert doc ever filmed, planting that idea in everyone’s heads. She owned the summer with all these incredible concert moments. And currently, the NFL has bent the knee and succumbed to the power of Tay Tay. And if you were one of the unfortunate many who couldn’t afford $1000 for Eras Tour Tickets, no problem! Taylor’s taken over the movies for a few weeks to let you experience even a piece of what she wants you experience.
This concert film takes place on Taylor’s final US show, in SoFi stadium in Los Angeles. Go big or go home, that’s the ethos of the Eras Tour. That grandeur is present beginning to end: 2 and a half hours of spectacle that leaves you smiling and satisfied. Cinematographer Brett Turnbull’s camera spins around Taylor’s beautiful, Barbie like legs upwards, projecting her singing behind just an incalculable amount of people. In general, the constant but steady moving camera really does great work immersing you inside SoFi to capture the general good vibes and emotionally bare state of the crowd, ready to bleed heartache and scream joy depending on what the song requires. I’m serious: every type of human on Earth was at that show, crying, screaming, laughing, dancing, and just…elated to be a part of something special.
And that’s the power of Taylor Swift. She earns that hype all your Swiftie friends say about her. The show is immaculately constructed: she opens with Lover and Fearless, hyping up the crowd into frenzy, then visually transitioning majestically into the more brooding, lower key Evermore, building back up again to what was my highlight, Reputation, and up and down we go. Each visual transition to the new album is breathtaking, leading to some cool new set and costume to set the tone for the next 20-30 minutes. By the end of the 1989 Era, it’s clear why everyone just bursts into tears thinking about Taylor Swift. People are complicated, and change a lot as they grow up, universally going through high highs and low lows. Swift articulates those moments in song, and solidifies them with that 1000000 watt smile and personality, welcoming everybody to feel all the feels.
This is the height of fall movie season in the US. And even those great films moved their released dates when they heard The Eras Tour was playing on October 13. It’s not quite Avengers: Endgame big, but it’s close…and incredible to be a small part of. I mean, come on Martin Scorcese! When are we getting the Killers of the Flower Moon friendship bracelets?