Details from IMDB:
Original title: Taylor Swift: Folklore – The Long Pond Studio Sessions
In “Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions,” Taylor Swift performs each song in order of her album, “folklore,” and reveals the stories and secrets behind all 17 songs.
Initial Thoughts:
While she has lots of naysayers I contend that Taylor Swift is not only a gifted songwriter, singer and performer, she is also a great person who gives millions of dollars to charity and I think is truly rare, a billionaire who has not lost touch with reality, loves her fans, and has not stepped on everyone beneath her on her rise to the top. Ok I’m off my soapbox, as you may now I’m a recent Swiftie (seeing her in concert does it!) and I am slowly watching any media she did that interests me, this documentary being one of them. It was snowing last night (so didn’t go outside for a fire) and decided to give this a watch.
Main Points:
Folklore is not one of my favorite albums by Taylor, in fact I don’t have a single song from it on my Swift playlist but this film got great reviews and after my wife and her friends watched the final concert from the Eras tour this weekend, I was in the mood. Whether I start listening to any songs from Folklore remains to be seen but what I can say is that this documentary shows how incredible the writing is and how this album is truly a product of it’s time (came out in 2020) and focuses on how many of us felt during the pandemic (for a few songs in particular).
I quite enjoyed how Taylor, Aaron and Jack discuss each of the songs before they perform them, you really learn a lot about the writing/recording/collaborative process and gain insight into what each song is about. I agree with Taylor about the need to get away, granted I’m not famous and don’t have people taking pictures of me from two miles (insane!) away but the older I get the more I long for solitude and being away from people. I think like Taylor said that “The Lakes” shows how writers hundreds of years ago formed their own town in England and enjoyed being around like-minded people, I would love to spend time with writers/creative people/friends more often as long as it was near the ocean. I only have a few issues with this film, shame on Disney for censoring it! It makes little sense how they will put up a show like “Pam & Tommy” (granted made by Hulu but still showing on their service) with all sorts of nudity, sex and language and yet they won’t let Taylor say “fuck” when it’s a lyric in “Betty”? Makes no sense. That and I would have liked to see footage of Joe Alwyn singing “Betty” (which he co-wrote with Taylor) or at least see him interviewed about it (he co-wrote another song too) but that is fairly minor.
Final Thoughts:
I’ll admit that I enjoyed the talking parts more than some of the songs but that’s just my own feelings on “Folklore”, I have always preferred Taylor’s more upbeat/pop songs (with a few notable exceptions). Taylor did a great job directing and I really liked how she did a lot of overhead shots of the recording studio, Long Pond looks like a lovely quiet spot! I also would have liked to see more of Taylor’s house and her cats but I can understand her value on privacy. I give this a solid 8 out of 10 and would reccomend to any Taylor Swift fan, I’m not sure anyone who doesn’t like her music would enjoy this and in fact probably shouldn’t watch it. There is a little bit of coarse language (shit I think a few times) but would be fine for ages 13+. If you’re a Taylor fan this is a must watch, be prepared for it to stir up some feelings, especially if you suffer from depression or anxiety.