Over the past year, Taylor Swift has reached an astounding level of fame, with her tour starting back in March, a new NFL boyfriend, and the debut of her fourth concert film: “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour.” Its debut racked $92.8 million, making it the second highest grossing film for this month. There were multiple other movies with the same release date — “The Exorcist: Believer,” “Dumb Money,” “Ordinary Angels,” “The Persian Version,” and “What Happens Later,” — but they were moved up to make way for the blockbuster film.

With the astounding popularity surrounding the tour itself  (and the lack of ticket availability), this movie was a way for fans to see the concert in a more accessible way with all of the fun components along with it. In the theater, nearly every “concert goer”was standing up, singing along for the almost three-hour show, and trading friendship bracelets in true “Eras Tour” fashion.

Something Swift has always loved to do is share with her fans. Whether it be a music video filled with Easter eggs, a new album, or a cookie recipe, she gives and gives, so it was no surprise that she would be releasing an Eras Tour film. In the days following the movie release, Swift released a single of “Cruel Summer” live from The Eras Tour. 

The movie follows the same setlist from the tour, and although it excludes some songs, it doesn’t skip over any eras. The movie starts with an aerial view of SoFi Stadium — where she was filming — and then transitions into her “Lover” era, and then so on and so forth, following the same order as the tour.

However, the film was not exactly like the tour. The clips used in the film spanned the first three shows in LA, so she repeatedly wore the same outfits, unlike the other shows, and took the extra mile to prevent any errors. 

She also cut five songs from the film that are on the setlist: “The Archer,” “no body, no crime,” “Long Live,” “cardigan,” and “Wildest Dreams.” Fans suspect that she removed songs from the setlist that didn’t have a lot of choreography in them. Every show had two “secret songs” — acoustic and piano — that made the concert a special experience for the audience, and for the film, the “secret songs” were “Our Song” and “You’re On Your Own, Kid.”

Senior Lily Weems and junior Ruth Gemechu were both unhappy about how Swift cut songs from the setlist. “I think they should have included all the songs that were covered in the setlist, plus all the surprise songs,” Gemechu said.  “Especially the song, ‘cardigan.’” “cardigan” was a shock for fans, since the song is one of the focal points of her “folklore” album. 

One specific song that was cut from the setlist, “Wildest Dreams,” made fans do a double take. It’s always been a fan favorite and is one of her most streamed songs. “Some of my favorite songs were cut, so I was upset,” junior Jiya Chadha said.

Aside from the song cuts, Weems thoroughly enjoyed the concert film. “It was like I was really there,” Weems said. 

Juniors Kailyn Fetterman and Chadha agreed. “If you couldn’t make it to the concert, I would say the movie makes you feel like you were there,” Fetterman said. 

Even though she doesn’t technically have every era in the tour, she made sure to include her seventeen years of music within the movie, which is likely why “Our Song,” a hit from her debut album “Taylor Swift,” is on the setlist. Out of the six surprise songs she could have chosen, these two encompass the kind of music Swift has made and will continue to make.

The concert film was very much a one-of-a-kind experience, and the environment was like being at the actual concert. “[Swift] talking to the audience about how much she cares for them [is my favorite part],” Weems said. “And how [she says] ‘The Eras Tour’ is the best part of her life and how she thanks us for that.”

Gemechu, Weems, and Fetterman all believe it is one of the best movies of the year, if not the best. Fetterman rated it a 9.5/10, and Gemechu and Weems a 10/10 because they believed it did an amazing job of giving the audience a feel of the concert. They all attended the tour as well, and loved the tour and movie equally. 

“Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” felt like a magical whirlwind of the concert. The camera angles made it look like the audience was experiencing the concert with her, rather than watching her. For the transitions, each era had a special CGI introduction. One that especially had fans going crazy was the “reputation” — Swift’s sixth studio album — era due to the overall hype around the album and also the CGI snake that wrapped around the stage. The amount of effort that was put into this movie was undeniable. 

The community of fans who all love Swift make every experience more than special. Either at the concert or the movie theater, the audience fosters such good spirits. Being in a place with like-minded people with similar interests is a rare experience, but the fans make it seem like an everyday occurrence. Niche things that surround being a fan — friendship bracelets, surprise songs, inside jokes, and spending hours decoding hidden messages within Swift’s work — enhance the experience.

“I felt like I was there again,” Weems said. “It was so much fun to relive the magic of ‘The Eras Tour.’”