Textual Analysis of Past Students Music Videos- 2

Save You by Matthew Perryman Jones (A Grade)

Lyrics:

The video illustrates the lyrics with the use of the narrative that is shown. The storyline in it emphasises and brings out the lyrics about losing someone you love and if you could save them. The lyrics are very heartfelt and emotional which tells a story people could empathise with.

Music:

The song is sung over just the sound of a piano at quite a slow tempo to make it feel more emotional and emphasise the lyrics more. The cinematography in the video moves along with the music making the video look professional and the transition between shots smoother.

Genre and mise en scene:

The song is a pop ballad following quite an emotional and serious story. The two actors in the music video are a boy and girl that are playing a couple and they show a lot of emotion in their facial expressions, especially the girl, to help tell the sad story that is being portrayed in the music video so the audience feels empathy and will relate to the song even more. The costumes used are a 40s style to illustrate the era that the video is meant to be set in. The use of lighting in the video is effective as it i light but also had a lot of shadowy shots to show that even though part of it is showing a happy story, that it is also tragic and emotional. There are props used like old books to again reinforce the era the video is set in and a photo which is in black and white making it look fitting with the era and also to add to the story being told.

Cinematography:

The video has a mix of shots to make it more gripping and cinematic. There is the use of close ups to show the characters emotions so the viewer feels empathy for them and the story being told.

Editing:

The editing and cuts have been done in time with the music of the song. There is continuity editing as you don't notice the cuts while you are watching the video making it easy and professional looking to watch.

Intertextuality:

This is one piece of intertextuality with the book seen at the beginning of the video, 'Tales from Wonderland' which is an old book that goes with the era the music video is set in.

Narrative:

There is no performance in this music video, just narrative so the audience gets caught up in the story that is shown along with song. The fact that there is only narrative means that it isn't clear about whether the artiste is in the video or not.

Star image/ brand:

As there isn't any performance it is unclear as to weather the artiste is in the video or if it is just an actor. However, even if the artiste doesn't feature, the music video shows that they are sensitive and relatable based on the story they are telling which a lot of fans will connect to and feel closer to the artiste because of this.

Voyeurism:

The whole video is watching the woman and looking back on memories of her and her partner. We are drawn in by the video being set in the 40s which was a glamorous era and also from the heartbreaking story being shown.