Ariana Grande released the deluxe version of her 2024 album “eternal sunshine” March 28, introducing five new songs and an accompanying short film titled “brighter days ahead.”
While I had a feeling the deluxe album would be more than satisfactory, I wasn’t sure what to expect from the short film and decided to watch it before listening to the new songs.
The five new songs not only perfectly continued the existing energy of “eternal sunshine,” but they added additional nuance to the emotional themes of the album. With the visuals of the short film to supplement, they shine light on different types of relationships — not just romantic ones, but familial ones as well.
Three of the new songs were featured in the short film, along with several from the original album.
Ironically, “warm” was given the cold shoulder by the short film despite being my favorite deluxe song. The pace reminds me of “don’t wanna break up again,” and I love the message of being okay on your own but wanting someone anyway.
Also not included in the short film was “past life” — a captivating song that stands out from the rest of the album. I didn’t immediately gravitate toward this song, but upon reading into the lyrics and understanding the growth it marks, I appreciate its place in the deluxe album.
I don’t feel strongly that “warm” and “past life” should have been included in the short film. The film included several snippets of songs, so I wasn’t missing out on a full “five-music-videos-within-one-video” experience.
The film, directed by Grande and Christian Breslauer, is set at Brighter Days Inc., a company that specializes in memory restoration. Grande plays an elderly woman, “Peaches,” who goes to revisit four core memories from her life before they are erased.
Seeing the aged Grande was initially jarring, but I think her makeup and special effects team did a good job at making her look somewhat realistic. I smiled at the maintenance of her long acrylic nails and the sight of her tattoos on wrinkled fingers.
The production quality of the film is astounding — something that doesn’t surprise me. Grande’s music videos spare no expense and can stand as mini films given their quality, such as “the boy is mine” video, but I still found myself in awe of “brighter days ahead.”
The sentiment of the short film is strong — at the end of my first watch, I took a pause before welling up in tears after processing what I just watched.
The four core memories centered around Grande’s relationship with her father and pressures with fame.
The first memory was a compilation of home video footage of Grande’s parents and grandparents with “intro (end of the world)” playing over it. Focus was concentrated on clips of her parents dancing, but I was touched by those of a young Grande playing on a beach with her brother, Frankie.
The second memory took me out of the world of the short film. I think that persisted throughout the rest of my watch because only portions of songs would be featured before abrupt cuts to new ones.
Young, pop-star Grande appeared for the second memory, using a sound mixer by her side and looking the camera in the eye for a remix-y version of “eternal sunshine.” I was mid head bump when the music faded into a sudden trumpet — cool, but a bit of an odd tone shift.
Grande begins singing the alluring “dandelion,” an R&B addition to the deluxe album. A trap beat always gets me hooked, so it was like Grande took candy from a baby when the song, again, abruptly ended to move on to the next memory.
The third memory opens with the new “twilight zone,” which isn’t my favorite song but has a cool 80s-infused tone and asks strong questions about whether her past relationships were even real.
A young Grande finds herself in a damaged, flooded house in the memory, fishing a pink necklace out of the water — which we later find out was gifted to her by her dad.
“Supernatural” begins to play as Grande steps out of the house into a neighborhood in destruction. She walks in slow motion past fires and rubble, and I couldn’t help but gawk at the cinematography of that segment.
Fitting with the song, Grande steps into the beam of a UFO and is lifted up toward the sky. I was reminded of the SpongeBob meme where he lifts up in a similar fashion while listening to music on an iPod — because that’s what Grande looked like and how I very much feel when I listen to “eternal sunshine.”
The fourth memory is where I felt the emotions come to a head. Grande’s father, Ed Butera, appeared as a Dr. Frankenstein-type character who carries a pocket watch with a photo of a young Grande.
Grande was estranged from her father for several years. I recalled the conversation around Grande being named “Ariana Grande-Butera” in the credits of “Wicked,” in honor of Grande’s personal “homecoming.”
In the film, Butera goes to his lab to reanimate Grande, as the lovely “Hampstead” plays in the background. “Hampstead” is named for the London neighborhood Grande resided in while filming “Wicked.”
After Grande is brought back to life, the memory closes out with her and Butera sitting at a piano, Grande singing as her dad strokes the keys. Peaches smiles with tears in her eyes, and the film fades to black.
It wasn’t until a gorgeous acoustic version of “we can’t be friends (wait for your love)” introduced the credits that a small wave of emotion came over me.
I didn’t find myself fully immersed in the “brighter days ahead” short film. The short snippets of songs and constantly changing scenery made it hard to settle into the world Grande built.
That being said, I know brighter days are on the horizon with the new deluxe songs on my playlist. They intensify the raw, introspective feel to the album that I once associated more heavily with songs like “bye” and “true story.”
I typically prefer more upbeat, head-bumping tunes, but lately, I want to feel something when I listen to music. Grande’s “eternal sunshine deluxe” album has satiated that need.
Unlike the nature of Brighter Days Inc., my memories of this album could never be erased.
