Jeri
Jacquin
This is
going to be a bit different for me as many of you know I am a film critic. I
don’t believe I’ve ever written a review about a film (or short film) that
lasted only three days in theaters nor have I written about the companion album
by the same artist. That being said, since music critics are driving down a
lane of misunderstanding, I’m going to do that as well but for completely
different reasons.
This
past weekend, from Taylor Swift Productions, fans were treated to the film
TAYLOR SWIFT: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl. This one hour and
twenty-nine-minute extravaganza invited the Swifties (and those who are
curious) into what it takes for this pop star to bring out the ultimate show.
The Eras Tour ended on December 8th of 2024 ending the 149-show tour
that spanned five continents in 21 months. It becomes clear that she really
hasn’t taken much time off in those nine months putting together the film. It
is as lush as one would expect from Swift, but then again, she has never been
one to cut corners. The Eras Tour was filled with visuals, costuming, staging
and music that captivated everyone who attended and even those who could not, thanks
to postings on the internet.
PARTY
OF A SHOWGIRL invites us into Swifts world of imagination, creativity and
visuals for her first track The Fate of Ophelia and how it came to be.
That’s not all, the entire film also plays the lyrics of each of the 12 tracks
with a brief explanation from Swift speaking on the story behind each one. By
the end of the film, everything is all out in the open with the finale of the
video THE FATE OF OPHELIA. The song is basically the story of a woman who has
come to believe that being alone is her ‘fate’. In the story of Hamlet by
Shakespeare, Ophelia is not treated well by the men in her life, so much so
that she comes to believe that ending her life is the only escape done by
drowning. Swift decides not only is that unfair, but her idea of melding her previous
experiences of love is a reason to change the fate of Ophelia which changes her
own fate. On Friday, fans flocked to the theatres dressed in their showgirl
finest to sing, dance and exchange friendship bracelets having the best three
days possible. Trust me when I say that there were people going each of the
three days. Why? Because, like the Eras Tour, people coming together is what
makes everything Taylor Swift does so remarkable.
The
costuming is vibrant and filled with beading, feathers, sparkle, silks, satins
and crystals. The set design is exceptional and reminiscent of so many, eras,
if you will. The Fate of Ophelia is filled with Shakesperean themes with
Swift deciding that Ophelia needed a different outcome to her life. In the
video she goes from blonde, to red, to brunette and all with costume changes
for different experiences and trust there are plenty of Easter Eggs from the
beginning. Immediately, I recognized the 1933 Busby Berkeley inspiration with
the big production of synchronized dancers (thanks Mom), theatre production,
showgirl backroom all to make it clear that love “dug me out of my grave and
saved my heart from the fate of Ophelia”. By the way, did anyone notice during
the swim sequence that it begins which her framing her face, just as she framed
her fiancé Travis Kelce’s face during the podcast of New Heights?
On
Sunday (10/5), Swift released the video for The Fate of Ophelia on
YouTube and it has reached over 5,018,533 views in a few short hours making it
the #1 streamed video on the service. It was a fantastic way to end the
screening of TAYLOR SWIFT: Official Release Party of a Showgirl. Shout out to the dancers from The
Eras Tour for being a part of the film. Seeing their lovely faces again was so
cool.
The many
variants-released album THE LIFE OF A SHOWGIRL, Swift has decided to go in a
lighter direction than her previous release THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT of
2024. The tracks of this album include The Fate of Ophelia, Elizabeth
Taylor, Opalite, Father Figure, Eldest Daughter, Ruin the Friendship, Actually
Romantic, Wi$h Li$t, Wood, CANCELLED! Honey and The Life of a Showgirl
(featuring Sabrina Carpenter). Don’t get it twisted, its happier but the
undertones of her words sometimes leak out messing with people and a hint of
sadness with a smile on her face, remember “I can do it with a broken heart”.
Since I
already spoke on The Fate of Ophelia, let’s move on to Elizabeth
Taylor. Swifties might remember that the 2017 song Are You Ready For It?
from her REPUTATION album features the line “He can be my jailer, Burton to
this Taylor…” referring to actor Richard Burton. The connection here is
that he was married twice (“been number one but never had two”) to none
other than Elizabeth Taylor. One of the first lines to the song is “that
view of Portofino was on my mind…”, where she was proposed to and
honeymooned with Burton. Swift sings of White Diamonds which has two meanings:
1) Burton gave Elizabeth a 69.42 carat pear shaped diamond and it is the name
of her perfume which I still have and love. The song talks about success in
Hollywood and Swift knows that, like Elizabeth Taylor, you are only as good as
your last hit. The song is smooth, sultry, polished and as elegant as Elizabeth
Taylor herself. I love the harmonies and hard hit that slides smoothly as the
song plays. You know it is worthy of Elizabeth Taylor when her son Michael
Wilding Jr., gave his thumbs up for the song with his mother’s name.
Opalite
is a snappy and
catchy song about letting go of the past and finding love, especially when your
family is on your side. Her brother says her Swift’s past relationships as “eating
out of the trash” and Mom Swift says, “it’s alright, you were dancing
through the lightening strikes” and friends, that is relatable on both
counts. Yet, the song is upbeat and giddy, reminding us to “make your own
sunshine”. Father Figure is a song about mentorship and, in Swift’s
case, when your eyes open up to the fact that the person who is supposed to be
looking out for your best interest…isn’t. This past year, Swift finally was
able to purchase her masters back and creates the lyric “you made a deal
with the devil, turns out my check (clean version) is bigger”. The mob boss
phrases lets those who need to know who the boss really is.
Swift
talks about the song Eldest Daughter as the emotions and expectations
that come with being just that, the eldest daughter. If you are one, then you
can absolutely understand where this song is going. As the eldest daughter
myself, I understood totally the line “every eldest daughter was the first
lamb to the slaughter, so we dressed up as wolves and we looked fire”. Once
again, Swift reaches a wide audience of eldest daughters with a slower song to
let us grab every word and let it in only to remind ourselves, to ourselves
that “I’m never gonna let you down”. Ruin the Friendship returns
to her high school days musically to tell the story of the question we all ask
ourselves from time to time with “what if?”. What if we had said those words or
shared our feelings? And, as Swift tends to do, nails it perfectly with “should’ve
kissed you anyway” at the prom etc. realizing that life changes so quickly
that it makes us wonder (especially when we get older) what would be different
if we had said or done the one thing we were afraid to.
Actually
Romantic had me
laughing so hard because it is so me! Not only that, it is filled with lines
that might make TTPS fans giggle as well. The song is about someone who clearly
has nothing better to talk about than Swift. Learning about it, she basically
says “it’s actually sweet, all the time you’ve spent on me, it’s honestly
wild, all the effort you’ve put in, it’s actually romantic”. Every time I
listen to the song I can’t help but crack up and what has been in most of our
heads is now out in song and it is, actually romantic. Wi$h Li$t is a
tale of what people want in their life and Swift wishes them well, but what she
wants shouldn’t surprise anyone. What does she want? “We could have a couple
kids, got a whole block looking like you…and now you got me dreaming ‘bout a
driveway with a basketball hoop” and, as should everyone, we wish Swift
gets everything on her list. The music is charming and happily sappy and I’m
here for it, especially the jabs as recognizable individuals she doesn’t name
but hey, we know what we know.
I
suppose we can’t not talk about the song Wood since it has flooded the
internet. Yes, it is campy and filled with double-entendre and so damn
what. Anyone taking the time to look at the lyrics knows Swift is being her
usual word-smith-Swift sitting by waiting for the world to lose its mind. Well,
first of all, let me be clear here and I saw this on the internet, “Moms, you
used to listen to Madonna’s “Like a Virgin”, Donna Summer’s “Love to
Love You Baby”, Meatloaf’s “Paradise by the Dashboard Light”, Prince’s
“Cream” (among many others), George Michael’s “I Want Your Sex”
and Madonna’s “Justify My Love”. Your daughter (or anybody) will be just
fine”. That being said, again, SO WHAT? The song is hilarious with “seems to
be that you and me, we make our own luck” and if you look further into the
lyrics, it’s just more of Swift’s playing with words based on superstitions.
Make what you will of it but it reminds me of Swifts performance of “Vigilante
Sh*t” meant to shock and awe – me? I’m the laughing type. CANCELLED! is
that song that is smirk-approved by me because it has that hard-hit beat letting
you know Swift is about to call throw down and call out facts like “at least
you know exactly who your friends are, they’re the ones with matching scars”.
She makes it clear that she’d rather hang out with people who have been through
the rumor mill blitz because, as I say to people, if you truly know me then
rumors are laughs, not truth. If you are missing a bit of REPUTATION, this is
the closest to it and the grit isn’t playing around.
Honey, Swift explains, is a song that
changes the meaning of the terms ‘honey’ and ‘sweetheart’ when they are said by
the right person. “You give it different meaning cause you mean it when you
talk” and she isn’t wrong. Listen up lovers, Swift is talking the talk! The
Life of a Showgirl is glitz, glamor, feathers, sparkle and everything else
you’d expect from a song about, well, a showgirl! Swift tells the story of
Kitty, a showgirl who she meets believing that being a showgirl is the life.
Explaining that being a showgirl isn’t all it seems, it doesn’t stop Swift from
taking that route with “I’m married to the hustle, now I know the life of a
showgirl, and I’ll never have another…now I know the life of a showgirl babe,
wouldn’t have it any other way”. Joined by Sabrina Carpenter, both women
learned the pitfalls of their profession and yet, still manage to be the best
showgirls in the world right now. Swift, in the video lyrics, shows up in
blonde hair, full on makeup and a stunning outfit that is total showgirl
reminding us all “I’m immortal now, baby doll”.
I was
saving my write up until the dust settled but we know all things Taylor Swift
don’t settle quickly. That being said, I would like to address the critics who
seem upset by THE LIFE OF A SHOWGIRL. What is it they don’t know? Well, the
Swift ride is a slow burn of a journey as each album links to her life. Years
of exploration is something many critics just don’t understand. They put their
quill in the jar of poison ink to write scratching on an album they are
clueless about. Driving outside their lane, the Swiftie army laughs watching
the writer crash and burn. There might even be a little dancing around the
flames while exchanging friendship bracelets.
Every
time this woman releases an album, critics rush in to say how bad it is and,
like all things negative, it spreads quickly – EVERY FRAKKEN TIME. Yet, like a
slow burn love, her albums stay on the charts for weeks, months and even more.
Maybe the ‘critics’ should stay in their own musical lane because their work
shows one thing for sure – THEY AREN’T LISTENING with Swift ears. Those who
have followed the trail she lays out are having a wild ride doing it. Critics
throw down their ‘wordings’ and move on to trash the next album because it’s
their paid job. So, take their words with a grain of saltiness and let them
continue their search for “unhappy” Swifties to the liking of Goggle because
their algorithms love it, and let them glue their blank spaced eyes to the
click bait numbers that will downfall quickly. Because the Swiftie army is
clearly stronger. In the meantime, those of us willing to listen, have fun and
know that this is a happy Taylor are having the best time this past weekend.
Here’s
the thing – it takes time to vibe with Taylor. She gives people time to jump on
the Swift train to ride at their own pace. This album is spirited, racy, makes
moves, hilarious and bites at the bit. She has come out from behind the
tortured poets shadow of hurt and decided to be cheeky, fun, witty, smart, make
us want to dance a bit, jaw-drop and, dare I say, be happy in her happiness.
With our country they way it is right now, I’m up for some happy so I’m all
about it. Who cares if she writes about her happiness with fiancé Kelce, did
anyone care when she was writing sad songs about all the others that did her
wrong? No, they embraced it, all 237.6 million people (google it if you don’t
believe me). So, the question is, if we are all so willing to embrace the
gut-wrenching songs – why can’t we also come out from under that shadow and
celebrate like crazy with happiness?
The
music is such a mixture that only Max Martin and Shellback can bring out of
Swifts lyrics. Back together again, Martin and Shellback have worked with Swift
on her albums RED, 1989 and the still freaking awesome REPUTATION. Side note,
REPUTATION remains the only album Swift hasn’t re-recorded and it has her army
wondering if it will ever come to pass. Getting together for THE LIFE OF A
SHOWGIRL brings references that people over forty get a good giggle about and
the feel of tunes from the 70s which might by why this
particular 65-year-old grandmother is jammin’ to this album. The interpolations
come from George Michael, Swifts early songs, the Jackson 5 and so many more
offer up such a vibe that it’s infectious. Swifts time on the New Heights
podcast had her saying, “This album is about what was going on behind the
scenes in my inner life during this tour, which was so exuberant and electric
and vibrant.”
What
the album does shows is that she finally has found love and is silly about it
in many of her songs while also giving her legion a peek behind the curtain of
fame and what the life of this particular showgirl brings. The whole album is
the kind of different I actually didn’t know I wanted until I sat through the
whole album, then played it again, then played it again (not to mention the CD
in my car). Each of her albums are an era and THE LIFE OF A SHOWGIRL is the era
of “come on and join me in being happy with a little bit of snark, camp and
word-smith fun” and that’s what millions are doing. Many might carry a pocket
dictionary/thesaurus so we get music, detective work and a bit of an Shakespeare
education and there’s nothing wrong with that.
You
don’t have to love it right now, just enjoy it and, like a cardigan under
someone’s bed – it might end up being your favorite!
