All Too Well: The Short Film

A film adaptation of her critically-acclaimed song “All Too Well” (2012), it is set against the backdrop of the uncut, 10-minute version of the song released in 2021. It stars Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien as a romantic couple whose up-and-down relationship ultimately falls apart, compounded by their age gap. Swift cited the works of Barbara Stanwyck, John Cassavetes, and Noah Baumbach as artistic influences upon her film.

Produced by Saul Projects and Taylor Swift Productions, All Too Well: The Short Film was released on November 12, 2021, in select theaters by Universal Pictures and on YouTube by UMG’s PolyGram Entertainment and Republic Records, in conjunction with Swift’s second re-recorded album, Red (Taylor’s Version). After a premiere at the AMC Theatres in Lincoln Square, New York City, it had a limited theatrical release in major cities as well as special screenings at the 2022 Tribeca and Toronto film festivals. It received critical acclaim, with particular praise directed towards Swift’s direction as a debut filmmaker as well as the acting, script, drama, and production values.

The film garnered several awards and nominations from music and film organizations, including an American Music Award, a Grammy Award, a Hollywood Critics Association Award and an Art Directors Guild Award; at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards, it won Video of the Year and Best Direction, making Swift the first act in VMA history to win Best Direction for a self-directed work.

It also functions as a music video for the song. A literary quote from the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda—”Love is so short, forgetting is so long”, from his poem “Puedo Escribir Los Versos”—opens the film.[note 1] The story chronicles the relationship of two doomed lovers, Her and Him, compounded by an age gap. “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” plays throughout the film, except during a dialogued conflict between Her and Him. The song details a blooming romance between two people, and its subsequent dissolution and resulting heartbreak. The nearly 15-minute film is divided into seven chapters—”An Upstate Escape”, “The First Crack in the Glass”, “Are You Real?”, “The Breaking Point”, “The Reeling”, “The Remembering”, and the epilogue “Thirteen Years Gone”—describing the relationship between Her and Him through various phases.

The story starts with the couple lying in bed together, Her mesmerized by Him. They venture into upstate New York in a car. Her leaves her red scarf at a house belonging to Him’s sister. Their relationship takes a turn at a dinner party, where Him ignores his girlfriend with a hand gesture, as he is busy catching up with his friends, making Her uncomfortable. They fight afterwards; Him is arrogant and dismissive, while a distraught Her is heartbroken but still wants to stay with Him. He apologizes and kisses Her to end the argument, and they dance in the refrigerator light. Him starts to distance himself from Her, eventually breaking up with her. A devastated Her weeps in bed, ignoring his phone calls. Her is seen typing on her typewriter and crumpling paper sheets. A montage shows Her alone at parties and sorrowful on her 21st birthday.[note 3] Him’s life carries on as he walks alone down a Brooklyn street, recalling some of the happier moments in his relationship with Her. The film then jumps 13 years into the future, where Her has become an author and released her book All Too Well,[note 4] presumably detailing the heartache she went through with Him. She reads from the book to an audience in a packed bookstore. Outside the store, an older Him stands in the snow, watching Her through the window, wearing the same scarf she left behind 13 years ago.