This video begins with an open wide establishing shot, a common technique used in films and tv. This gave the music video a very professional feeling to it. The video is also shot in black and white with a high exposure of light behind the musicians. The colors makes the singers and music white, thus matching them to spirits (the main content of the song). Another link to the religious side of the song comes from the numerous images that pop up which have a religious content. These include a cross, flowers and lights setting over the sea. The images are shown in a fast cutting speed as to match the guitar solo, the images keep the pace of the song. The dancing that the musicians do at the beginning of the video is very unorganised and loose. This emphasises the feeling of the music genre.
One of the most memorable songs of the 70's is "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen. This was made particularly famous by its unusual and fickle music video. The song has several different styles and genres of music and this is continued through the music video.
the following is a link to the song's music video on YouTube; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ9rUzIMcZQ
The two main types of music video styles used are calm and fast paced. In the calm videos we only see the faces of the band, this effect focuses the viewer on the singing as at this moment the words are telling a story. In the establishing shot all we see is the silhouettes of the band and on the line "Open your eyes" the background becomes black and the faces of the band are lit up, once again focusing the audience on the words and the music. The black background as the lack of a body on shot makes the artists seem more personal and as if they are opening up to the viewer. The black could also connotes themes of death and an end, which the song is talking about.This is emphasized at the end of the song where the artist's lower there heads and the image fades to black, thus suggesting they die. In the fast paced up tempo areas of the song we see the band playing the instruments as if on stage. They are wearing a flamboyant white outfit which is used as a contrast to the other areas of the song which have all black. The cutting speed of shots is also sped up thus showing an increase in tempo and mood. The camera is now also more active as it zooms in and pans which is also used in contrast to the stationary camera of the previous shots. The shots are now also more exciting as they are showing the whole body of the artist, this makes the artists less personal and more like a celebrity. This illusion of the artist's status is also evident from the low camera angles.
One music video that is extreamely outlandish is "Apache" by The Shadows. This is at a time where people were getting used to seeing barely dressed women on tv, so the music video to this song was made with the one intention to over sexualise everything.
In the music video, the amount of time spent on the three women dancers is equal if not more than the time spent on the band. This obviously appeals to the male audience which is the most likely to know this song as it the generic genre based on that target audience. The use of cowboy and Indian related costumes is used to give a base for a narrative. This coming from the end of the 70's we are seeing more and more narrative sneaking into music videos. And even without words in this song we see that there is a narrative present.The colors of the clothes worn are very bright for the girls, this connotes innocence. Yet at the same time various dance moves are used that purposefully show more skin on the girls, thus showing more and more attraction to the male audience. The cutting speed of the shots comes at rhythmically suitable times as well as the dance moves. They are both in synchronization with the music as to relate the video with it.
No comments:
Post a Comment