Written By: Reagan Lankford and Jonah Thompson
Taylor Swift’s Eras’s Tour, which began in March 2023, has taken the world by storm. According to Forbes, every one of her shows on the tour brings in about 13 million dollars per night and the tour spans across five continents for a total of 149 dates. Many people have been unsuccessful in obtaining tickets for the tour due to its great demand. So, The Eras Tour film was created in order to satisfy fans who have been unable to get tickets for the live performance.
With approximately $130 million in revenue in the United States and over $160 million globally as of October 23, The Eras Tour film is already the highest-grossing concert film ever. Fans have described this film as “Life-changing” and “Absolutely mind-blowing.” This film is more than a concert, it is a theatrical production. From costumes to choreography, this film was meticulously put together and exceeded fans expectations. Fans also have started a tradition of making and trading friendship bracelets while at the film, which is inspired by one of Taylor’s songs “You’re On Your Own, Kid.” This tradition of exchanging friendship bracelets is a real reflection of the sense of community that Swifties have and the special connection that exists between Taylor and her devoted fan base.
The film begins with “Miss America and the Heartbreaker Prince”, a song from her album Lover. This film really takes off when she invites us to join her in singing her most iconic bridge from “Cruel Summer.” Rather than telling the audience to sing this bridge, she instructs them to SCREAM it instead. Taylor then moves onto one of her first albums, Fearless, which consists of her classic country songs “Fearless”, “You Belong With Me”, and “Love Story.” Seeing the entire crowd become engrossed in the movie and experience, as though they were actually at the concert was exceedingly remarkable. The audience magically switches moods, as we change music genres, and enter into one of her newer albums, Evermore. In this album she sings a song called “Marjorie”, which is a song about her grandma who passed away in 2003. Taylor exits the stage and prepares to perform her Reputation album and the audience is ready for it. In this era of music, Taylor wears her famous one-legged Reputation jumpsuit which perfectly describes the boldness of this album. The audience joins in on some of the traditional chants during this album, and scream along to the songs such as “Ready for it”, “Delicate”, “Don’t Blame Me”, and “Look What You Made Me Do.” After her performance of Reputation, the audience then prepares themselves to experience her third album, Speak Now. Despite there being only two songs from this album on the set list, she makes up for it by performing her songs “Enchanted” and “Long Live”, in a very unforgettable way. The next era she plays is Red. She does something a bit different in this album, when she gives away her 22 hat during the song “22” to a very lucky fan. In the film, the lucky fan is Bianka Bryant (Koybe Bryant’s Daughter). The final song she plays for Red is “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault).” This amazing song has a very important meaning going deeper in Taylor Swift’s love life that left her feeling like a crumpled up piece of paper, and this song was also the longest song to appear and top the Hot 100. The next album she performs is one she wasn’t able to go on tour for: Folklore. She sings popular songs such as: “The 1”, “Betty”, “The Last Great American Dynasty”, “August”, “Illicit Affairs”, and “My Tears Ricochet.” Taylor has found enormous value in this indie folklore album because it shifted her focus from musical success to creating the music she truly wanted to make. After Folklore, Taylor Swift performs her best selling album: 1989. She plays some of her popular songs from that album such as: “Style”, “Shake It Off”, “Blank Space”, and “Bad Blood.” Even though she plays “Wildest Dreams” in the actual Eras Tour, the song was not played in the movie because of time constraints.
One of the most unique aspects of the Eras Tour is the incorporation of surprise songs into her setlist. Essentially, Taylor performs two songs here that aren’t on her typical set list and could be from any album of her career. These surprise songs add a sense of suspense and excitement to the Eras Tour. The first surprise song that she plays during the film is a song from her debut album called “Our Song.” This is an iconic song that nearly everyone knows, and it’s a fantastic illustration of the beginning of her career. “You’re On Your Own, Kid” is the second surprise song and is from Taylor’s album Midnights. This song has quickly become a hit and is a fan favorite among many.
Lastly, she sings songs from her most recent album Midnights. She starts off by singing lyrical masterpieces “Lavender Haze”, “Anti-Hero”, and “Midnight Rain.” Perhaps the reason these songs have become so popular is because of how relatable and meaningful they are. These songs are composed of incredibly inspirational stories. She finishes off the album with songs “Bejeweled”, “Mastermind”, and “Karma.” These tracks truly demonstrate Taylor’s growth from the start of her career as well as her bravery in experimenting with different musical genres. There is amazing choreography throughout this album. The tracks “Midnight Rain”, and “Bejeweled” leave fans in awe of the amount of time and effort that went into creating them.
The level of intimacy that the audience has with Taylor during this film is a perfect example of how magical this experience is. During this film, fans feel as though they have been transported to the actual Eras Tour. The result of this is an unforgettable experience. Even if you aren’t a Taylor Swift fan, this film is a must-see. It will blow your mind with the amount of dedication and hard work put into it.
Image from the official Taylor Swift Store.
The Bishop Kelly Newspaper 