Naughty Boy and Radiohead video analysis'

Naughty Boy ft. Sam Smith – La La La

The videos narrative is similar to the Wizard of Oz storyline, however there is a difference between the represented Bolivian legend, and the common childs story.

It’s about a little boy who is deaf and finds an old man who is being stoned by villagers, whilst being taunted and ridiculed. By screaming the little boy resolves the situation and revives the old mans heart. In the video this is represented by the little boy buying the man a new heart. In the Wizard of Oz, the lion is bought a heart for courage. Together they meet a disfigured man, the dancer in the street in the video and the tin man in the Wizard of Oz. The disfigured man then reveals that he is a prophet who was cursed by a demon – El Tîo – because he did not worship him and abandoned the area where the demon ruled. El Tîo is a demon who considered to be the lord of the underworld. To get his protection, people offer gifts to him and anyone who could hear him would fall under his control. However because the deaf boy is deaf, he is able to overpower El Tîo’s voice.

The camerawork is very simple but effective. For example, the majority of the cinematography isn’t still, it’s moving with the characters, making the audience feel as if they are travelling with the characters. The camera angle is also eye level, letting the audience almost see what they’re seeing and feel like they are in their shoes.

 

The editing for the music video was quite basic, it was cut on the beat not off beat. It was also edited so it seems like the actors affect the music. For example, in the beginning, the father hits the table; this is when the music starts.

Street Spirit – Radiohead

The narrative behind Street Spirit (Fade Out) is suggested to be inspired by the novel The Famished Road, written by Ben Okri. The music video was filmed in a Los Angles desert. In my opinion, I think at points the video represents death and the final stages of death. This is because at points, the cast of the video (whom are the band) look like they are defying gravity, and if you were to defy gravity, you would float up to heaven.

 

The cinematography is rather basic, however the editing makes you focus more on the video than the song. However this means that the audience will remember the video and therefore like the song.

The use of cross fading is frequently used throughout the video suggesting the characters are drifting in and out of consciousness (like in your last moments when dying)