The video opens to a shot of the drummer striking the drums in time with the beat, creating immediate synaesthesia. A lot of close-ups are used to display the lead singer and other band members. This allows the audience to clearly see they are playing their instruments which is a very important convention of the genre. Low angled shots which show the lead singer leaning into the camera are very common as it shows her dominance and may give an indication to her stage presence. Portraying her dominance in this video is significant in the progression of the narrative. Unlike a lot of videos of the same genre, this video has a very strong narrative concept running throughout which seems to parody the portrayal of High-School in American teen dramas. Parallel editing is used, allowing the narrative to progress while cross cutting to the band preforming. The pace of the editing changes throughout the video; shots of the band tend to be a lot faster and jerkier than shots in the school setting.
Camera movement is essential in maintaining the pace created by editing. Lots of fast cuts combined with fast pans and zooms creates a very disorienting effect which is meant to accompany the music style. This idea of chaos is also reflected in the bands setting which has ‘Riot’ written all over the walls and floor. This is to relate the video to the album in which the song is featured but also suggests the band may be trouble-makers within the school narrative. The band’s costume design also contributes to this idea and breaks common conventions of the genre as we would expect to see them primarily in darker colours.
The narrative was chosen because it illustrates the lyrics and amplifies their meaning. This conforms to Andrew Goodwind’s theory, because it not only has a clear link between the song and the visuals but also contains both MEAT shots and intertextuality. The video also breaks conventions such as voyeurism, which almost seems to be parodied in the video; when the lead singer removes the bullies breast enhancers and wipes of her makeup. This also has a deeper meaning, implying she is hiding behind her make-up which is why she is so confident.
Throughout the entire narrative sequence the camera follows the girl as she walks down the corridor. She is usually shown with a low angle to show she feels better than everyone else and has power over them – This idea is amplified when she pushes the boy with his arm in a cast. He is shown from a higher angle, representing him as powerless.
This video opens to an establishing shot of the band sat at a table. The scene has very clear association with the image of the last supper, indicating religious links. The lead singer is sat in the place of Mary Magdalene, a decision which could be influenced by the singers Meta Narrative as she tries to maintain her ‘bad girl’ image, considering it is often suggested Mary Magdalene was a prostitute and was cleansed by Jesus of several demons. Despite this historic context we can still see that one of the band members is wearing headphones which modernises the scenario. When the singer begins to pour the water it is implied that she is Jesus, she also moves to the central seat for some of the shots. This relates to the very end of the video when she lies on the table as though she is on the cross. While she does this a row of famous, dead artists appear behind the table. This suggests the lead singer has died and is in the same league as them all.
At the beginning of the video while the lead singer is sat down we see she is wearing a white costume with a veil. White is often associated with the idea of ‘pure’ and is very relevant within the context of the video, however, when she stands up it is revealed to be very provocative and highly sexualised. A lot of MEAT shots are used, getting close up angles on the singers face. She often follows the camera movement to maintain eye contact which adds to the sense of voyeurism created by her sex appeal. The way the video is edited reflects the tone of the song very well with some shots being sped up and cut together quickly. This gives the impression that it might all be in her head or that she’s insane. The visuals illustrate the beat of the song; such as when the singer smashed a glass over someone’s head. This creates synaesthesia which is extremely common in almost all music video genres.
The visuals of the video don’t represent the majority of the lyrics, instead using a few lines to create a concept which in this case because the theme of religion. The two main lines in the song which relate to the visuals are “I don’t need to be saved” and “There’s a man who’s telling me I might be dead”. Both of these lines amplify the religious context. This video breaks a lot of the conventions of the genre, mainly because we don’t see the band performing; instead they have chosen to keep the attention centred on the lead singer.
This video has a wide variety of technical aspects.
The majority of the video is shot in the same corridor the camera movement and editing making it seem as though the band are progressing through it. The Mise-en-scene suggests that the video is set in a hospital; the walls are extremely white, there are dancers dressed as nurses and props such as a heart rate monitor are used.
Very fast editing is used throughout the video which represents the rhythm of the music and is also very disorientating to fit the theme of the song. The video opens to a pulsing heart on a computer screen which beats in time to the music, this helps the audience to visualise the sound. This technique is used a lot in this video in a variety of different ways. For example, during time without lyrics a transition is often used in which the camera passes quickly through an empty corridor.
Lighting is also used heavily in this video, it is usually overexposed or flickering to create atmosphere. Coloured light is also used to simulate a dance floor when everyone is dancing.
For most of the video the camera angle is very similar but there are some close ups of the lead singer, this is known as MEAT and is a very common convention in almost every music video.
Digital effects were used very subtly in the video with the only notable occurrence being the brief moment when we see the dancer's skeletons. This is very fitting to the setting of the video as it is done in an X-Ray style making it relevant to the hospital setting.
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