The overwhelming impression that you leave the cinema with is that Katy Perry is truly loved by her fans. Loved isn’t really a strong enough word, idolised might be better. As we hear from fans at the start of the film, “Katy tells us it’s okay to be different”. Hardcore fans take Katy’s words as gospel, and it’s a little scary. For them, she symbolises hope that they can achieve anything they want to which is a little cringe-worthy at the start, but sweet by the end.
For a girl who sings “I kissed a girl” and “I want to see your peacock, cock, cock”, it’s a surprise to learn that her upbringing was strongly religious (so much so she couldn’t eat lucky charms as luck is of the devil....right). This might not seem like the beginnings of a pop star but it turns out her start in gospel was her first experience of recording.
Katy Perry certainly seemed like an overnight success; one day the world had no clue who she was, the next everybody wanted some cherry chapstick, but this documentary makes it clear she’s been at this for a seriously long time. Her never-failing demeanor of bubblegum and rainbows gives off the impression that a lot has been handed to her, but seeing her hard work and dedication to her career and relationship changes that.
Of course, a documentary about Katy Perry would be nothing without the inclusion of Russell Brand. They were the golden couple, cute Katy making an honest man of badboy Russell. He briefly appears at the start of the film to join in a group huddle, and it’s difficult as an audience member not to think that we already know this won’t last. As Katy jet sets over the world, flitting back to America every few weeks to see Russell, we do feel sorry for her. Even if ‘Teenage Dream’ is your worst nightmare, no-one will be able to remain impassive at Katy’s breakdown moment. Before the platform rises to reveal Katy to the crowd, she forces back the tears and plasters on a smile for the fans. Not many of us can say that if we had our heart broken we’d be able to keep a smile going for thousands of fans, so she gets credit.
Fans love Katy’s fun, wild and free personality and we definitely see her out-there side when she goes to a cafe in Tokyo where you pay to hang out with cats, and it’s hard not to find her kookiness endearing.
Katy describes a lot of her life and performances as a ‘fairytale’, taking inspiration from Alice in Wonderland and the Wizard of Oz. And it’s clear that’s what the fans love; her rise from weird girl to superstar and the hope that they too can get their fairytale ending. Katy’s Prince Charming turned out to be a dud, but at the end she shows us that she’s still living the dream.
This is clearly a must-see for KP fans, but even if you only know a few of the words to ‘Firework’, it’s still worth a watch to see how far she’s come. Unless you hate cheese and glitter, then avoid like the plague.
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