For elite pop stars trying to keep their money trees lush and leafy through the cold months, a new strategy has emerged at the multiplex: Transpose your history-making, millions-grossing summer tour into celluloid and watch the seats fill up all over again.
With the respective box office successes of “Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé” and “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” two of civilization’s most famous voices have made the migration from the stadium to the big screen appear pretty much effortless, as if the line between a pop star and a movie star were simply something to be stepped over. As for the rest of us strugglers whose money trees resemble dead houseplants, the pros and cons feel tightly intertwined. Yes, these movies make the outrageously expensive act of mainstream concert-going more affordable, more accessible — while still allowing those concert ticket prices to remain obscene. And yes, these films might create a surrogate live music experience that feels surprisingly intimate and freshly communal — while still allowing these hyper-exposed celebrities to encroach on new precincts of the cultural mindshare. If you’re short on cash for overpriced things and flush with attention span for overpraised things, this is your time.
