The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Arts
Thursday, March 12, 2020 — 5
Badmouthed,
banned
and
ultimately
blacklisted
for
their unwavering
antiwar sentiment
in 2003, the Dixie
Chicks are battle-
tested.
After
a
14-year hiatus, the
ex-country music
superstars
have
proven
they’re
ready to go another
round
with
the
fiery single “Gaslighter.”
A
“gaslighter”
describes
a
manipulative
abuser.
In
the
song “Gaslighter,” this abuser
is lead singer Natalie Maines’s
ex-husband.
By
linking
the
narrative of Maines’s divorce to
the broader context of sexism,
the Dixie Chicks retain their
commitment to being political in
a form that’s easier to swallow
— a break-up song. “Tried to say
I’m crazy, babe, we know I’m not
crazy, that’s you / gaslighting,”
Maines sings in disgust. In a
moment stripped
of production, she
quietly
admits
“you broke me,”
giving light to the
hurt beneath her
anger.
The rest of the
song is explosive.
Co-written
and
co-produced
by
pop
whiz
Jack
Antonoff,
“Gaslighter” is expectedly catchy.
“Gaslighter,
denier
/
doing
anything to get your ass farther”
is chanted along to pounding,
building drums. Antonoff’s hand
in the track along with the rest of
the upcoming album is probably
a major red flag to any old-school
Dixie Chicks fan. But the richness
of the group’s harmonies and the
prominent use of banjo in the lead
single should put those fears to
rest, at least temporarily.
For now, all there’s left to do is
count down the days until May 1st,
the album release date, and shout
along to “Gaslighter.” Who knows
who or what the Dixie Chicks are
going to burn down next?
The Dixie Chicks burn
bright in single ‘Gaslighter’
COLUMBIA
In new music video, Taylor
Swift becomes ‘The Man’
‘The Invisible Man’ is more fact than horror flick
KATIE BEEKMAN
Daily Arts Writer
“The Invisible
Man”
Dir. Leigh Whannell
Feb. 28, 2020
AMC 20+IMAX,
Quality 16
MUSIC VIDEO REVIEW
SINGLE REVIEW
REPUBLIC
Just
last
year,
Taylor
Swift returned to her roots
as the flowery, love-struck
songwriter with her single
“Lover” and gave us an album
that sharply contrasted the
pointed rage from her 2017
album Reputation. Last week
Swift released a music video
for “The Man,” a song off her
latest album, and returned
to her targeting metaphors
and sometimes not-so-subtle
accusations.
“The Man” features Swift
in full drag as she portrays
toxic masculinity and takes
on the role of ‘The Man.’
She’s loud and rude, yells at
coworkers and gets rewarded
for doing next to nothing.
Through these brief incidents,
Swift pokes fun at what she
considers to be masculine
norms
and
highlights
the
double standard women face
by turning the tables.
Not surprisingly, Swift not-
so-subtly calls out Scooter
Braun, the man who bought all
of her masters and essentially
wiped Swift of the rights to
her own music. In the video,
Swift walks through a subway
and comes across a wall spray-
painted with the names of all
of her albums that Scooter
owns. On top of that, Swift
incorporated signs onto the
wall that read “Missing: If
Found Return to Taylor Swift”
and even a “no scooters” sign.
It’s no secret that women
in music face many obstacles,
and Swift has clearly had
enough with the misogynistic
nature of the music industry.
While her portrayal of men
seems a bit dramatic and
perhaps even unfair, the final
scene where Swift is revealed
as the director of the video
is empowering and the most
powerful part of the video.
In truth, Swift doesn’t need
to
aggressively
attack
the
male population to defy the
patriarchy — she just needs to
be herself and be an example
for other women through all
of the great things she’s done.
KAITLYN FOX
Daily Arts Writer
New ‘Saturn Return’ is an ode to womankind
FILM REVIEW
ALBUM REVIEW
“The Man”
Taylor Swift
Dir. Taylor Swift
Republic
“Gaslighter”
The Dixie Chicks
Republic
Who knows
who the Dixie
Chicks will burn
down next
Make no mistake — “The Invisible Man” is a true
story. When one considers its source material, an 1897
novel by H.G. Wells, this sounds like a wild claim.
After all, nobody (that we know of) can become
invisible,
even
centuries
after
the original book was published.
Yet, this 2020 remake, which at
first glance appears to be another
desperate Hollywood cash-grab, is
more true to life than most other
offerings at the movies today.
While the particulars of what
Cecilia, played by Elizabeth Moss
(“The Handmaid’s Tale”), endures
are science fiction, they are simply
imaginative means to a very real end.
Adrian (Oliver Jackson-Cohen, “The
Haunting of Hill House”), a wealthy
inventor
and
Cecilia’s
abusive
ex-husband, is so inflamed by Cecilia
leaving him that he terrorizes her
by turning invisible. The invisibility is fantasy, but
Adrian’s arrogance, emotional manipulation and
violence, which come from a deep, white-male
privilege, are anything but. This gives the movie’s
already well-made scares a core of indelible truth,
making the story feel truly real.
Writer-director Leigh Whannell (“Upgrade”)
throws the viewer into Cecilia’s situation with
razor sharp efficiency. The grungy, gray-soaked
cinematography turns even the sunniest of days into
something terrifying, making viewers wonder what
lurks in every shadow. Sometimes the camera lingers
on stillness, like a rack of knives or sheets in a dark
bedroom, leaving the viewer waiting, breathless, like
Cecilia. Waiting for what they know
is coming but can’t possibly see until
it’s too late.
The soundtrack crawls deep
under one’s skin and stays there,
coloring the visible horrors with
stomach-churning
blasts
of
unnerving synth. The script oozes
with hand-wringing tension that
never lets up, providing gut punch
twists that blast the story forward
even when it already seems to be
hurtling at an impossibly high
speed. Moss, as always, gives an
immaculate performance that has
one’s sympathies from the very
start, ratcheting up the tension in
every possible moment. For most other actors, a
scene where a character is beaten up by an invisible
man would be awkward at best, hilarious at worst.
In Moss’s hands, it is one of the scariest, most heart-
wrenching scenes in recent memory. “The Invisible
Man” is no haunted house attraction, and you will be
sickened, afraid and exhausted once it’s over.
Horror this stupendous does not come around
often. The movie is not for the faint of heart, but
should be seen by anyone who can stomach it. It’s
especially satisfying once Cecilia fights back, giving
viewers a look at something that rarely happens
offscreen — a rich, white, male predator brought
to justice. From film directors to the Commander
in Chief, many of these abusers stay invisible even
when their crimes are in plain sight, hidden behind
their privilege. Others are only unmasked after
vast swaths of damage have already occurred and,
because of their status, can stay relatively invisible,
unscathed by the harsh justice they deserve. It’s
satisfying to see one of these monsters put through
the wringer, even if only on the silver screen.
“The Invisible Man” is a marathon of scares and
heart, proving, like “Get Out,” “The Babadook” and
“The Witch” before it, that horror can be one of the
most meaningful, optimistic and authentic genres. It
also may be the most vital — even in 2020, America
still needs to learn that the monster never, ever
should get away with it.
What does it mean to be a woman? Statistics,
the media, society –– many of them would answer
that womanhood lies in the gender wage gap, the
tampon tax, abortion rights; the drawn out Harvey
Weinstein legal battle or the #MeToo movement;
in the Kardashian empire, Ladies Night at the local
bar, or TikTok videos of preteen VSCO girls; broken
stilettos, a Brazilian body wax, fake eyelashes. At
least, these are the superficial labels that dog the
steps of womanhood.
More often, womanhood is understood only
in contrast to the patriarchy. Womanhood is a
battle –– armor worn from girl-hood until death,
triumphantly painted in the colors of the conquest
of man. Yet even here, in the fiery protest against
gender-conforming shackles, there is no woman
without man. Let us rewrite the question: What
does it mean to be a woman in spite of man?
An answer (by no means the only one) can be
found within the heart of The Secret Sisters’ new
album, Saturn Return. The Secret Sisters have
written an ode to womankind; a dedication to
womanly mind, body and heart. It is an album
which finds its truth in the contrasting sharp
edges and soft curves of womanhood. Here, man is
irrelevant, obsolete. He is not torn down or ravaged
in fury –– these are not the songs of a battle waged
against patriarchy. Rather, man holds no place in
Saturn Return because these are stories of women,
of womanhood, not of mankind or masculinity.
To be “Woman” –– Saturn Return explores this
independently of patriarchal contrast, in its own
basking glory.
Saturn Return can be broken down into four parts,
four core songs that make up The Secret Sisters
exploration of Woman: “Silver,” “Fair,” “Nowhere,
Baby,” and “Water Witch.” Each song presents a
different aspect of womanhood, examined and
experienced in the context and lens of women alone.
“Silver” is a dedication to the relationships
between mothers and daughters. It is womanhood
defined by motherhood, but confined to the special
bond between women, and not the limitations of
marriage or patriarchal oppression. The only song
on the album that prominently recalls the country
roots of previous work by The Secret Sisters, “Silver”
is comforting and a touch haunting. The harmony
of the duo’s voices holds something ancient within
as the pair recalls the memories of those women
who came before: “Look upon your mother and the
silver in her hair / Consider it a crown the holiest
may wear.” The song makes a point to acknowledge
the sacrifices and abundant strength of mothers
who have raised us, who have created the world we
know by giving and nurturing life. “Silver,” the first
song on the album, sets the tone of Saturn Return
with its poetry and mix of ancient sentiment in a
modern package. “Last night in my slumber came
the matriarchs I miss / They said, ‘Do you wanna be
anointed with age’s lasting kiss?’” The silver hair of
years spent in motherly toil is a badge of honor. Here,
the Secret Sisters find a little-uttered truth: That
motherhood is a mark of the unyielding strength
and devotion of womanhood. It does not have to
be a mark of oppression, as it has been and can
certainly be. Motherhood is more than childbearing
–– it is the eternal connection between mother
and daughter, and every ancestor and descendent
stemming from them.
“One is given wings and one gets more than she
can bear / God in Heaven, can you tell me how that’s
fair?” In the song “Fair,” The Secret Sisters weave
a story of the lives of two very different women.
Through circumstance, one lives a life of ease
–– of good choices –– and the other a life of hard
choices. They are united in their womanhood, their
respective difficulties, despite the opposition of
their paths. Here, again, men are absent from the
narrative. One might guess that in the background
lies the patriarchal system that has led to “frownin’
from the pages of hard times,” but there is no
nefarious villain to conquer. There is simply life to
be lived, in all its beautiful and terrible simplicity.
What is most enduring, however, is the evident
love between these two unnamed women. Their
friendship does not seem tangible, but rather their
affection is bound in the solidarity of their identities
of shared womanhood.
“Nowhere, Baby” is a short breath of fresh air.
The Secret Sisters do lonesome journeys and somber
ballads so well, but “Nowhere, Baby” takes a chance
to celebrate self-validation and victory. “And it’s time
I showed myself exactly what I am made of / And
that’s not a cop out, not a dream drop, not a ‘close, but
no cigar’”: Self-doubt is banished to embrace inner
strength, courage, and determination. A tale of a
woman who spent a lifetime climbing “nowhere,” it
is hopeful rather than deprecating. Moreover, it is
a universal narrative: Life and time gets away from
us, and suddenly we’re stranded too far from the
starting line to go back, and the finish line too far
away to grasp. Womanhood is life –– yes, it can be
unique, but The Secret Sisters do not shy away from
normalizing shared narratives.
UNIVERSAL PICTURES
ANDREW WARRICK
Daily Arts Writer
MADELEINE VIRGINIA GANNON
Daily Arts Writer
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