A new Swiftie phenomenon, the “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” movie, debuted across AMC theaters on Friday, Oct. 13. The two hour and 48 minute film showed off taped versions of Swift’s SoFi Stadium shows in Los Angeles, CA this past August. Breaking records in the box office and being categorized as the highest grossing concert film, the movie made around $96 million in the span of a weekend. Fans gathered, decked out in Taylor Swift merchandise and even copying outfits that she wore in popular music videos and concerts.
Due to the Ticketmaster fiasco in mid Nov. 2022, an abundance of fans were disheartened when the general sale got canceled due to the over mass of tickets sold during the verified fan presale, a couple days prior. Viewing the movie was a perfect opportunity for a variety of fans. For those who went to see her live it was a chance to reminisce, and for those who were unable to, it was a chance to make their own experiences.
“I actually didn’t go to the real concert but for the movie mostly everyone was standing up, singing and dancing near their seats. I really enjoyed the energy in the room,” junior Kansiri Sukduang said.
The popular tradition of trading friendship bracelets, created during the Eras Tour, continued as fans came, blinged out in a variety of slogans pertaining to songs and other fandom references. Another touch was the community that was created; unlike regular movies, fans were standing, singing and dancing throughout the movie.
“There were lots of people dancing and singing just like the concert, it was a really fun atmosphere,” junior Maddie Elgin said.
Beyond all of the positive views, some fans were quick to notice that Swift had cut songs that were originally played live. These songs included “The Archer” from her Lover album, “no body, no crime” from “evermore”, “Wildest Dreams” from “1989”, “cardigan” from “folklore” and “Long Live” from “Speak Now.” Speculation is ongoing as to why Swift decided to not include those particular songs. Some fans believe that it may have been because of timing, as the film would have been about three hours and 15 minutes if they were added.
“I was really upset at first because I like different songs so some of them like, ‘The Archer’ and ‘cardigan’, ones that were my favorites, were cut,” freshman Becca Dodek said.
