Halsey Releases New Trailer for Film If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power

Halsey’s new album If I Can’t have Love, I Want Power is coming soon – and with it, an art film that promises a harrowing story within each song.

Halsey has released the trailer for her newest album and film experience entitled If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power. The trailer, lasting for just under two minutes, appears as a cross between a horror film and an episode of The Tudors – or perhaps, with its red and blue lighting and mysterious shadowy figures, a sequel to Crimson Peak.

This film experience looks, in a word, opulent. Filmed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and featuring costumes by Law Roach (stylist for fashion icons such as Zendaya and Celine Dion), the film will no doubt be visually stunning. I am looking forward to the new music that Halsey will debut, with titles such as “Lilith” and “I Am Not A Woman, I’m A God” that evoke the very same images presented in this newly dropped trailer.

My only concern is that the music may not reach the level of intensity that the trailer presents. As a pop artist, will Halsey’s music evoke the same majesty and anticipation that the film is already doing, even at such an early stage? Artists such as Beyoncé and Janelle Monáe who have debuted albums and accompanying films have managed to present a seamless transition between the songs and the visuals. They are not two separate works; rather, the album elevates the film, and vice versa. I am interested to see if Halsey can achieve the same, and given that the album is being produced by Nine Inch Nails members Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, I am optimistic. If Halsey can deliver an album with a more punk-rock sound that matches the emotionally charged feelings that the film is already promising, this will be a very impressive fourth album.

Tickets for showings of If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power went on sale on Tuesday, August 3rd. The film will begin screening in IMAX on August 25th, and Halsey’s album of the same name will be released on August 27th via Capitol Records.

This article was originally written on August 6, 2021.