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<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\nMy husband and I recently saw the Taylor Swift film<\/a>. Since tickets<\/a> to her San Francisco show cost $49-499 (plus fees), were hard to come by, and averaged $3,801 on the resale market, we got quite a bargain with our senior rate of $13.25 each. Even the risk of a parking violation for exceeding the 2-hour limit would have made it a steal. And we got much better seats!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s the sum total of my Taylor Swift knowledge before I saw the three-hour film of her last 2023 Eras Tour concert in the U.S, in LA\u2019s SoFi stadium:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Actually, they both have pretty tight ends. That much I picked up from the movie, as Taylor strutted her stuff, musically and physically, non-stop for an energetic 3-hour extravaganza. Early on, I leaned over and whispered to my husband, \u201cIs this a prequel or a sequel to Barbie<\/em>?\u201d Taylor and her fellow female blockbuster bear a strong physical resemblance, and both can be interpreted as either sexualized objects or the embodiment of feminist power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At any rate, my husband and I only made it through the first two hours not because we didn\u2019t like the movie, but because (a) bladder size; (b) we were worried about getting a parking ticket; and (c) we wanted dinner. We didn\u2019t feel we were missing out on that much since there\u2019s no plot or character arc to complete in a live-concert film. We got the gist of her pleasant music, generosity toward her fans, sexpot\/wholesome vibe, and fabulous production values.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Plus, according to Business Insider<\/a><\/em>, some far-right commentators blamed Taylor Swift for election losses on November 7 after she encouraged her fans to vote. Swifties are also aiming their wrath at the far-right candidate in Argentina\u2019s presidential election<\/a>. So that alone makes me a fan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Still, I couldn\u2019t help but wonder if Taylor ever missed the time when she was just a girl with the voice and a guitar alone on a stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Joan Baez was that girl. To a large extent, she still is. Right after we saw the Taylor Swift movie, we took in the new documentary, Joan Baez: I am a Noise<\/a><\/em> (senior rate: $9.75 each). It makes for an interesting double feature if you\u2019ve got five hours to spare and no fear of parking tickets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The two\u2014the films and the women–could not be more different. Although there\u2019s music in I am a Noise<\/em>, it\u2019s by no means a concert movie. But it is a portrait of a full and complicated person\u2014a sister, a daughter, a musician, an artist, an activist, an ambivalent lover, wife, and mother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I knew a lot about Joan Baez before this film:<\/p>\n\n\n\n What I did not know is that Joan was also a great visual artist; came from a family with extremely complicated dynamics, including a father who probably sexually abused his daughters; had intense love and rivalry with her sisters; and suffered from debilitating anxiety and depression from a young age. She described herself as being great at relating to thousands of people at once, and pretty terrible at one-on-ones. The documentary was one of the most honest self-appraisals I have ever seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although Joan\u2019s inner life is rich with pyrotechnics, her stagecraft had virtually none. When did this change? Was it MTV? Skyrocketing ticket prices demanding more than just a great musician? Audience attention spans of fleas? More likely I\u2019m just another old fogey who thinks things were better in my day. I am definitely of the Joan Baez rather than the Taylor Swift era.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Taylor Swift\u2019s tour was built around her albums as eras, while I am a Noise <\/em>covered the sweep of some of America\u2019s\u2014and Joan’s own–more turbulent eras. It is more of a Coming to Terms movie than a Coming of Age one. And how could it not be? Joan is in her 9th<\/sup> decade, Taylor just mid-way through her 4th<\/sup>. She hasn\u2019t lived long enough for a true retrospective, but is as important to her era as Joan was to mine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Long may they both reign. I hope they always hold dear the era of being the girl with the voice and a guitar, alone on stage, and already enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n –<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" My husband and I recently saw the Taylor Swift film. Since tickets to her San Francisco show cost $49-499 (plus fees), were hard to come by, and averaged $3,801 on the resale market, we got quite a bargain with our … Continue reading \n
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