Lady Gaga is signed to Streamline Records, an imprint of Interscope Records and this music video was released as the final single from her debut album The Fame (2008) and was written by Rob Fusari. This track could be consumed through the internet websites such as YouTube, on the radio and also on TV channel such as KISS &Starz. It has a significantly eerie narrative, however it contains elements of performance too. Although to an extent it is quite typical of a pop video, due to the bright colours, CGI effects and wild costumes, it subverts conventions far more. The opening is a pastiche in that it is quite cinematic along with the typography used, in which imitates that of a Hollywood movie during the 1950’s era.
The opening sequence is without music and reflects that of ‘Sunset Boulevard’, it illustrates the conventions of a Hollywood golden age movie. At the start the camera angle is a point of view shot which in effect, makes the audience feel as though they are spying on the couple and invading their privacy.
This video blurs the binary divides when the artist is on crutches, wears a metallic bustier, a matching helmet and has a robotic arm, ultimately alluding to the idea that she is part human, part robot. The presence of the paparazzi is evidently a common thing in Gaga’s life, however, the way in which they are presented in this video is exaggerated and slightly bizarre as she attempts to balance her love life as well as her quest for fame and success, this is done in order to make the entire video more dramatic and intriguing.
Similarly, the artist may also be conveying the idea that sometimes her life becomes so chaotic and animated that it simply feels surreal. In essence, the divide between the abstract and reality is blurred. Post-feminist readings could be extracted from this video in that she is seen as the dominance figure in the relationship, the one with all the wealth and fame as opposed to her envious spouse. Even at the end the female artist still holds the upper hand upon the man as she poisons him, ultimately, asserting her independence and authority. This subverts the stereotypical representation of females, suggesting that they are helpless and vulnerable and that men have control. The advantages of this is that it is not cliché and predictable.
This video conforms to the bright colours and funky outfits that the pop genre usually contains, however in many ways it is unconventional, and extremely untypical regarding her eccentric attires and unusual mannerism. Homage is used in the scene in which Lady Gaga is in front of a black and white swirling background is an idea taken from a film directed by Alfred Hitchcock called ‘Vertigo’. Laura Mulvey would disagree with the idea that she is on display for the male gaze, instead she would claim that the artist is asserting her right to dress and be sexually attractive. In addition, the artist gains power over the male in this video as she attempts to surpass his achievements and adopts the stereotypical male role to be aggressive and dominant. This video subverts the idea that women are just decorative objects despite GaGas eye-catching costumes, but perhaps here the artist is directly challenging this idea, provoking different interpretations.
Towards the concluding events of the music video, intertextuality is demonstrated as we see the artist dressed up as Minnie Mouse, once again the binary divides are not distinct, in addition to this, the idea that she is poisoning her lover is a malicious crime in which strongly contrasts the innocent and sincerity of Disneys’ Minnie Mouse character. Also, she subverts the sweetness and purity of this character by wearing a tight fitting outfit, in which despite her crazy make up and head-gear, still manages to generate sex appeal. Similarly, the black lipstick and inability to see the characters eyes, crafts a sinister and somewhat enigmatic sense.
The extremely odd imagery and concepts employed within this video add to the sinister theme of revenge and murder. The consistent use of the colour purple within the video becomes apparent that it has been used intentionally. Instead of a red carpet, there is a purple carpet perhaps to represent poison, impurity and deceit. This may suggest that the lives of celebrities are sometimes obscured in order to present themselves in a particular light and gain the high status they desire. The message behind the video could be that one may only gain popularity when they exceed expectations and pursue the extraordinary. Overall, although I find this video far too complex, I do acknowledge the range of features such as pastiche, homage and intertexuality implemented.
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