With popular songstress Taylor Swift re-recording and releasing her Red album on her terms, she's put out a short film for "All Too Well." With new lyrics, it delves deeper into her romance with Jake Gyllenhaal over a decade ago and how the nine-year age gap proved to be insurmountable. However, as the short ends, it's worth noting that one particular Easter egg involving a red scarf serves a truly meta purpose.
"All Too Well: The Short Film" clocks in at just around 10 minutes, with Him (Dylan O'Brien) and Her (Sadie Sink) embroiled in a whirlwind love affair. Her moves in and leaves the scarf on his stairwell, but in time, the couple fight as Her craves something more while Him's into his friends and career. It's a clear-cut statement on Swift's brief three-month romance with the Gyllenhaal as Him and Her fall apart due to the age difference.
However, after they split, Her still loves Him, waiting the next few months to see her ex at art shows and even wishing he was there at her 21st birthday party. Sadly, he's moved on, realizing they were toxic for each other and more obsessed with the idea of love rather than being in love. Her then uses this for creative inspiration over the next couple of years, going on to become a famous writer, which culminates with a public reading in New York.
But in "All Too Well: The Short Film's" final moments, Him is outside the shop, looking in longingly and regretting what transpired. He doesn't go in, though, and leaves the premises, accepting they weren't meant to be soulmates. As he does, he wears her red scarf, proving he's still in love but wants to be apart as it's best for Her.
In addition, the scarf still means a lot to Her, representing a token of their passionate days. The cover for Her's book even recalls Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree, with the red scarf tied to a tree, blowing in the wind. Now, this scarf is quite meta because fans think she's referring to a real one the actor has kept as a memento of their past.
Per the lyrics, "I left my scarf there at your sister's house, and you've still got it in your drawer even now," and reconciling what happens in the short, it seems Swift believes -- or is hinting -- Gyllenhaal found and kept her scarf and may have even used it to try to reconcile.
Of course, that has never been confirmed, but Gyllenhaal's friends and even his sister, Maggie, have denied knowing anything about the scarf. Therefore, it leaves audiences wondering about the truth behind the piece of cloth and if it's real or fiction because, to Swift, it's clearly something that motivated her art over the years.