Music Video Textual Analysis Take On Me A-ha http://www.youtube.com/watch?

?v=djV11Xbc914&safe=active The video begins as a black and white pencil drawn animation. This visual effect is representative of the new wave genre, as surrealism is a common convention. The opening scene (introducing the narrative and the male cartoon characters) is a fast paced montage of close-ups of two motorbike drivers and parts of their motorbikes. The shot reverse shots of both the characters emphasise the rivalry between them (could apply to Levi Strauss Binary Opposites theory the emphasised contrast between the characters could be hero vs. villain). This fast paced editing builds the tension and matches the beat of the music. As the vocals enter the song, the video changes from animation to real life, and the song is calmer. The viewer discovers that the cartoons were in fact part of a comic book being read by a woman in a cafe. The first shot of the woman is a medium close up of her face, which establishes her as the main female protagonist, as no other characters (apart from the male protagonist) receive this kind of attention from the camera throughout the video. The repeated close-ups of her face give the viewer a clearer understanding of her emotions and reactions towards the comic book, and we find that she is quite amused with it. A close up shot of a square of the comic shows the cartoon man holding a champagne bottle, giving clear connotations that he is the male protagonist as he has won the race and is a champion. Also, this shot gives the first suggestion that the comic book characters will come to life, as the still frame animation moves and changes. As she turns over to the next page, the close up of his face in the comic informs the viewer (and fans of the band in particular) that he is the lead singer of A-Ha. We are shown the womans interest with yet another close up of her face. The picture again changes as he winks at her, further reinforcing the idea that the man in the comic book may not just be an animation. There is then an extreme close up of her eyes; they widen a little showing shock and surprise at the movement of the cartoons. The shot then reverses to an extreme close up of his eyes. This shot is typically used in love narratives, showing that the two characters are looking intently into each others eyes, confirming the audiences expectations of romance.
After this we see a medium long shot of the woman at the table jumping back as an

animated hand reaches out of the comic book. An extreme close up of both their eyes again reminds the audience of the moment that they had previously shared, encouraging both her and the viewer that she should take his hand. Her face softens, as if to agree to enter his world, and we then see a medium close up of their hands touching, which again heightens the romance in the narrative. The heightened and emphasised facial expressions with the use of the extreme close ups portray the emotions and reactions of the characters, and this

is common in new wave music videos due to the lack of speech involved. Subsequently, the audience understands the narrative through the characters actions. A fade transition is applied as we enter the animated world, and both the man and the woman are part of it. This transition emphasises the shift between reality and the cartoon world. There is a comic strip panel box, which the man goes behind and is shown as human. The box seems to be a portal for the characters to switch between real world and cartoon, and gives the viewer the chance to see what he would look like as a human, which gives further confirmation that he is the singer of the band, especially as he starts singing. The visuals match the sound when there are quick shots of band members performing, so the video is not wholly narrative based. The band members are playing the guitar, the drums and the keyboard in animation, but a box is placed where their faces are so that the viewer is familiar with who is on the screen, and making the video more personal. The shots of the band disrupts the narrative (disequilibrium of the narrative - Todorovs Equilibrium) to move the audiences attention towards the music that they are playing rather than the narrative, but the short lengths of the shots and the fact that they are performing in the narrative setting show their insignificance in the video compared to the narrative, and the focus is then brought back to the romance between the man and the woman. The instruments being played are commonly used in new wave music, and the video therefore follows the conventions of the genre. As the song goes on, the animated images become more fast paced to go along with the fast pace of the song and the urgency and tension of the situation when the villains are chasing the protagonists. This conflict between protagonist and villain is characteristic of both Propps Characters theory and Levi Strauss Binary Opposites. The narrative throughout the video applies to Todorovs Equilibrium theory; the equilibrium is the romance between the man and the woman in the animated world, the disequilibrium is the villain chase in the middle of the video, and the new equilibrium is found at the very end of the video in the real world, and shot reverse shots of them smiling at each other implies their happiness. At the end of the music video, the male protagonist enters the real world and is throwing himself onto the walls to fight off his cartoon effect. Every time he slams into the wall the camera cuts, causing it to feel more powerful and intense for the viewer. The way all the characters are dressed is typical of the 1980s era, and this is particularly presented at the caf. This and other props such as the fan light on the ceiling add to the verisimilitude of the setting. There is an evident link between the visuals and the music as the music speeds up when the shots become more frequent. The cuts match the beat of the song. Also the lyrics correspond with the narrative. The lighting in the real world is dim and dull, contrasting to the brightness of the animation world. This highlights her disinterest in the real world and how much she is intrigued by the comic book. The mixture of both the surreal world and the real word throughout the

video is conventional of the new wave genre, as it conforms to the eccentric and exciting style of image, and reflects the irregularity of the music too. We will apply the love interest and romance within this narrative to our product, by incorporating the shot reverse shots of the extreme close-ups of the eyes of two main characters. We will also apply two different worlds into our music video; real life and the world of our main characters daydream. We might also use a pencil drawn animation within our music video, for our animated icecream.