Taylor Swift's Miss Americana: Parts of a Narrative

I am not the biggest fan or follower of Taylor Swift. Everyone who knows anything about Pop music knows who she is though. They have heard a song or a scandal or more than likely multiples of both. She dates too much. She's a white feminist. The multiple interpretive identities of Taylor are out there to be consumed, chosen, and stuck to like glue.

And Taylor believes she's the rubber band for all of it.

Documentaries are difficult to review. If you are looking for a recommendation the real question is: do you care? I care about Music and therefore I care about Music documentaries. Taylor Swift's last two albums have been a defiant shift in a direction that feels better and more personal - to some degree. Personally, Reputation was a better album than Lover, which felt like she took the best of Reputation and the best of her older career and made a marriage of the two. Again, I'm not a big Taylor fan, I've just been exposed over time.

But the hard part about documentaries is that one assumes that they are there to tell objective facts. To present objectivity, not subjectivity of the subject at hand. And when one sits in front of a screen for ninety or more minutes while a variety of sources tell you something about things that are true or that they have opinions about, it makes a story that you either can or can't believe. In Miss Americana, that subject is Taylor Swift - and most likely you already have your opinion about whether or not you do believe her.

I am undecided. And watching the documentary did not help. At once, it shows a person - going about her day, making her music, and responding and thinking on the criticism's about her character that have gone around since she was seventeen years old. Success at a young age makes an incredible impression and the Pop industry is no stranger to taking young teenagers and turning them into early twenties sex symbols and radio stars. Taylor Swift was equally part and parcel of this machine. And much of the documentary follows her, raggedy makeup, hair in a tight ponytail, fiddling with her music and lyrics with a producer, friend, co-star, trying to just make this music that is her calling in life and has been since she was a little girl.

This is the part I like. This is the part that feels like a curtain is being pulled back. That there is something personally at stake for Swift in this documentary, that she's truly fighting a battle against being misunderstood and underheard throughout the years.

I feel however, in painting this picture that Ms. Swift sells herself short precisely because she's acting in the role of a salesperson for much of the documentary.

First it should be mentioned that a good portion of the documentary focuses on Taylor Swift's political advocacy, which is a recent move on her part and is more or less very strong and seen as the triumphant moment in the film. The moment when Swift throws off her bondage of being a pop singer and moves towards being socially active as a role model for her fans and audience. This despite the fact that she has expressed numerous views and philanthropic effort in regards to political positions throughout the past decade, including winning an award for a music video aimed at combating homophobia. While it was new for her to endorse a political choice, it's made as if Taylor Swift has somehow been a politically vanilla person until that choice, and that just isn't true.

Second when she picks and chooses songs she's making to show off in the film a lot of it comes from the far more normal sounding Lover album than the fiery rage filled Reputation album. It's really difficult to separate the idea that she created this documentary in part to show off Lover as the album where Taylor Swift has finally arrived at a mature expression of herself - although I'm fairly certain that's what the Reputation album had shown off. Even before that, it wasn't like Swift stopped making music whenever people questioned her dating, or when she got criticism from communities of people that agreed with Kanye.

These two positions just seem like stagings that benefit Swift in ways beyond just what the documentary is trying to say. I believe that Swift sees herself this way, but in dramatizing the moments beyond their impact, in choosing the weaker album, it makes it appear like more of an advertisement than it's meant to.

That brings me to my least favorite moment in the documentary. Taylor Swift receives the call regarding Grammy nominations for Reputation. It explains that she received only one nomination and it was not in any major category. This is meant to be like a defeat moment at the start before she wins for the rest of the documentary.

I'm sorry Ms Swift, but I don't feel bad for you. Not only are overblown industry awards like the Grammys and the Oscars not how you should personally track your success in the arts, but you also have unprecedented success to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars in your personal networth. I get that each piece of art created is like a baby and you want people to like your baby. I just don't believe that Taylor cares so significantly about the criticism she receives when she's done nothing but publically and obviously push ahead and rarely miss a beat in publishing content and music. She has always possessed more steel than she expresses in this documentary.

I would've loved to see what Taylor Swift is - a passionate, dedicated woman who runs her own business, writes her own music, and crafts her image and sound to benefit her fans around the world. Instead, it seems like we must spend ninety minutes first believing what she thinks are her weaknesses (despite few of them really being weaknesses) and watching what she believes are her strengths.

So, do I feel like I wasted my time? No, of course not. I love music documentaries, I love every peek behind the scenes to how the music is made. I like listening to someone discuss a monstrous amount of public protest about themselves. I just don't have a lot of patience for the Kardashian-esque feel badding of a millionaire talking about how hard their lives have been. I don't like the feeling that she makes herself weaker to appeal to people. I don't like the feeling that she ignored a stronger more aggressive album for a more by the numbers appeal. I just do not see Taylor Swift the way she does.

And I suppose that in and of itself is her point. She sees herself this way and wants others to see that. But she's grown. She doesn't care as much anymore. That's why she made this documentary for you. Also Lover is out in stores now, look Brandon Urie is on it.

I think Taylor Swift should keep making her music. And honestly, if she wants to do more documentaries I would watch them also. I like Taylor Swift, I just don't always like what she's serving for dinner.

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Taylor Swift's Miss Americana can be streamed on Netflix. Netflix doesn't offer affiliate programs for blogs like mine to make money sending them there. But you should have Netflix, after all they have The Crown and other shows I like. If you'd like to support the blog, try Amazon Music or buying Taylor Swift's Lover album - despite my analysis within this review it is definitely a quality album of pop music.

Aladdin (2019): Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

Disney's live action adaptations besides being one of the most unfortunate capitalistic schemes imaginable (not only are we just remaking our animated films that you all love, but we're going to do almost shot for shot reimaginings of every frame of animation with realistic CGI! What could possibly be shilly or greedy about this) have also mostly been of a single flavor.

Guy Ritchie's Aladdin remake however begins and continues through with bigger ambitions. Rather than copying word for word beat for beat wholesale the original Aladdin, this film version decides to rather change up a significant amount of the characterization.

For instance, rather than being a mostly humble thief, this Aladdin rather slips up quite a bit. He's not infinitely charming or infinitely handsome. This actually coincides with Jasmine's characterization, which is that rather than simply being a princess, she is a strong willed woman - perfectly characterized by Lindsay Ellis as Disney's revisionist feminist the #GirlBoss.

Even Jafar and Genie get new characterizations, with Jafar having a similar background to Aladdin and his goal as Sultan seeming more naturalistic than lustful. Genie is a bigger playboy so that it makes sense to have Will Smith playing the role instead of the more lovable Robin Williams.

Let me address this while the monkey turned elephant is in the room. Will Smith plays a great Genie. In fact, when it comes to thinking back Will Smith is going to wind up being one of my favorite parts of this film. There's a dumb myth when it comes to stunt casting like the original Genie and Robin Williams that when someone lands a role they can't ever be replaced. See: Wolverine and Hugh Jackman, Johnny Depp and Jack Sparrow, and many many other roles throughout the years.

It would be one thing if like most Disney live action remakes the Genie in this version was entirely unchanged. Instead, it appears that Will Smith got to have his version of this role. Yes, he still performs most of the same plot actions as Robin Williams Genie, but just like the other characters, the flavor is different.

If each Disney remake had the same goals as this one - not to re-enact perfectly shot for shot the animation - the artistry and loveliness of which can't ever ever ever be replaced by physical cameras and sets - but to liven up the stories, to tell altered versions, to deepen the characterization and to add cultural beats and elements to it, that would be something.

At one point Jasmine gets her character moment, to stand up to the corrupt Jafar, to show her passion and power as a voice of leadership to her people, to stand up to sacrifice to alter the situation she's standing in by voicing her feelings. This Jasmine is entirely different to the damseled Jasmine of the original film.

I haven't seen Jungle Book or Lion King yet, though I hear Favreau's realism is out of this world, but I can't help but think this is my favorite of the live action remakes. If we have to have these unnecessary retreads with their apologetic political tones and their unnecessary responses to Internet criticism, then perhaps they can take this bit into heart: use this time to deepen the original products rather than cash in on the hard work of the creatives that came before.

If the direction of the Star Wars franchise shows anything, it's that Disney may well be in a place where they want to dial back experimentation and actually play it safe for a while. This would be exceptionally detrimental to the art, creativity, and product coming from them in the future. Take the by the seat of your pants approach with these live actions as you do your Marvel series and other projects and we could have something truly great - eventually. As long as you realize when the film doesn't need to be a musical.

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I was able to rent Aladdin because of our access to Disney+ streamed through our Amazon Fire Stick. You can get one of these for your home by clicking the image below, which will also assist the blog in kicking me back a few bucks. Thanks for your support!

Fast Color (2018): Mothers, Daughters, and Heroes

When it comes to stories, I have a type. Slow-boil, magical realism, family dramas. Hell, the novel I'm writing is exactly that kind of story. So when I sat down to watch Fast Color - looking for lighter fare to watch around the kiddos - I wasn't expecting it to be that right up my alley.

Ruth played deceptively stoic by Gugu Mbatha-Raw, is a recovering addict on the run. While we don't get to know what she was addicted to we get to know why - she experiences seizures which cause her superpowers to cause deadly earthquakes that affect the areas around her in devastating ways. The film lives in the mystery of what she is, why she is, and if she can gain control of these powers but to think that this is the core of the story would be a mistake.

Instead the core of this story is family - in fact, Ruth's story mirrors that of Rue's from this Euphoria season 1, if that character were slightly older and far more distant from her family. Having used drugs to escape an uncomfortable mental situation she returns now to her Mother's house - and her young daughter, both of whom possess the same magical power she does.

This story of not just coming home for protection, recovery, and hope but to rediscover and rebalance who Ruth is has far more narrative focus and weight than anything about powers or the government scientist - played by Christopher Denham in a way reminiscent of Martin Wollstrom's Tyrell Wellick in Mr Robot. The film is incredibly slow boil and at one point I paused to see how much was left to realize I had another eighty minutes. Don't let that sentiment make you think I didn't like the film.

I am a fan of stories like these - the ones that lure you in with genre premises and then hits you over the head with solid drama. Ruth is dangerous and her Mother is guarded from letting her back in. Ruth is navigating the similarities and differences between herself and her daughter Lila. Swirling in the background of this story is this environmental apocalypse setting that reminded me of Mad Max or The Rover, here used much more to underline the stressful living situation they find themselves in.

There are likely some who will watch this film and say something along the lines of "I really wish they had more powers" or "I wish they'd explain the water shortage more" but it's those details that get lost by the wayside. Some might view that as poor concept exploration or ask "why even have it there?" and I can't criticize the thinking, although I wasn't personally distracted too much by that.

Ever since I've had kids I've been touched by stories that deal with Mothers and Daughters. Having watched someone go through pregnancy, childbirth, and raising a few babies paints a delicate picture. Especially having a rough mother child relationship myself and hoping that the mother child relationships I see forming in my own household go well, it's incredibly touching to see the redemption and changes the characters in this film go through. While it takes a bit to set up, and some might think it focuses too much on these relationships, the climax of the film takes the cake as one of those deceptively easy wrap ups and finalizes itself on a lovely sentiment.

"I know the back of her head more than her face," Ruth describes these words her mother said to her to Lila early in the film. And it's this sentiment by which the arcs are completed. What it means to leave in disgrace versus what it means to leave in search of more love, more safety, and more growth.

Yeah, there were some dad tears with this one.
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I watched Fast Color on Amazon Prime and you can to. If you don't have Prime Video follow this link, and you'll get Prime free for 30-Days. Then you can tell me how right I was about Fast Color.