Lady Gaga is an H.R. Giger stan. She must be. One example: the “Bad Romance” video. Giger is the Oscar-winning, mind-melting artist behind many designs in Alien, inspiring paintings and sculptures, and some sick album covers . He’s one of the defining artists of biomechanical art, a style that’s all over Gaga’s Chromatica Ball.
Gaga’s new concert documentary, which has a real shot at Best Variety Special, shows her Chromatica Tour’s stop in Los Angeles. Co-directors Gaga and Kerry Asmussen captured in all its human and inhuman glory. The show is a bit of a trip to another world, both wonderfully alien and deeply human.
Is it wrong to call Gaga Chromitaca Ball one of the best sci-fi movies of 2024? Maybe, but I just did.
The concert opens with Gaga trapped. Bit by bit, she breaks free and explores many facets of humanity. It’s not just a concert, it’s a story. The pursuit of self-expression and freedom is all there in the visuals, which are operatic and every bit as alien and mechanical as Giger’s infamous work.
In Gaga’s Chromatica Ball, there’s a bit of an identity crisis or duality explored. There’s a bit of a war between two sides: the artist vs. the loud, tech and pop-culture-driven capitalistic world. It’s the artist that comes out on top.
As BIG as the production is, it’s personal. Gaga defeats the machine, if you will. The show strips down a bit and, at one point, the audience is one-on-one with Gaga at a piano that’s mechanical and organic. Again, total Giger; advancement and deterioration.
The concert documentary captures the feeling of attending the Chromatica Ball Tour. That’s right, I was there, man, and even in the cheap seats, the visual storytelling was powerful. Gaga’s Chromatica Ball is a trip through her imagination, her struggles and joys, and most infectious of all, her love of art. At the end of the epic sci-fi journey, the hero’s passion for creation defeats the machine.
Gaga Chromatica Ball is now available to stream on Max.
