Music Videos

Let me preface this with the following video:

Fantastic, no? Okay, then.

If you couldn't glean from the title or the previous video what this entry's topic is, it's music videos. And I'm a little crushed by the fact that you needed it to be stated abruptly like that. In particular, today's discussion will be on history's fantastic music videos. I just that Cracked TV is hilarious. On that note, what happened to Michael Swaim? I miss him. Sorry, I rambling again. Without further ado, let's begin.

As you're probably aware, musical groups have recently begun to create little videos to accompany their delightful music. Some of these videos are fantastic, some are nightmarish horrors of terribleness, and others are just completely nonsensical.

All of history's greatest music videos originated in a mysterious time period known as the '80s. Not much is known about the '80s. It remains a mysterious time, one shrouded in peculiarities, and its people hidden behind potential-neck-trauma-sized hairdos. I have spent little time researching this time period, and have created a short list of exactly one video that illustrates a proper music video. Now, I'd like to remind you that this is only my opinion. My expert opinion, sure, but still just my opinion. Your's may differ, your opinion would be wrong, but it could absolutely be different the expert.

Not only is the song ear-meltingly fantastic, but the video is definitely fantastic as well. The creativity behind it was, and still is, unbelievable. It mixes animation and film on a level not seen until Who Framed Roger Rabbit hit theatres. This can definitely be attributed to the weirdness of the decade in which it originated.

Now let's contrast that with a terrible music video:

Now, I just may be a bitter, jaded internet user, but I hate this video. Even posting it here has gotten my blood to a boil. Countless times I've clicked on a link expecting to see something of interest, a new trailer, only to have this abomination appear. You can't react quickly enough. The intro plays every time, and you catch a glance of Rick, and you have the strongest desire to punch his teeth down his throat.

Music videos have only gotten worse over time. Their lyrics, too. Now I'll leave you with the worst of all time. Rebecca Black's Friday. Enjoy.

Citizen Kane

Dubbed one of the greatest movies of all time, Citizen Kane, released in 1941, was renowned director Orson Welles' first feature-length movie. Welles was riding off the success of his War of the Worlds hoax, and was given funding to make his movie.

In my opinion, which is of paramount importance, Citizen Kane was worthy of all of the praise that it recieved. The key word being was. At the time, Citizen Kane was absolutely worthy of the title. It was revolutionary at the time. Shots were filmed from multiple angles and the camera was moved around in some shots. Citizen Kane was revolutionary in that it changed storytelling conventions. The plot was not linear as many other movies at the time were, it used interviews and flashbacks to break up the story. Some scenes were further in the past than others, breaking chronological conventions.

Many scenes were filmed from different angles. The opening scene, for example, moved in closer and closer. At one point, the scene was inverted, looking through a reflection on water. Still in the film's opening, a scene was filmed through the broken glass of a snowglobe, with a fisheye effect enveloping the shot. There are a number of shots filmed next to mirrors, including a very notable one toward the end of the movie with very large mirrors on either side of Kane as he walks down his hallway. At yet another point, during a flashback to Kane's childhood, actually, the camera is moved back through the set, focusing on different depths simultaneously, moving through a table at the end.

I love that many of its directorial qualities are still employed by directors today. I love that many of its storytelling elements are, too. Without a doubt, Citizen Kane, is a phenomenal film. Mostly because of the era in which it debuted. If Citizen Kane was released today, versus fifty years ago, I don't believe it would still receive the same acclaim. I thoroughly enjoyed the film, but I can say without even a sliver of doubt, that it can thank the time period in which it was released for its praise. That said, it definitely has had its influence on film making, and without it, we wouldn't have movies with the same level of ambition and innovation today.

Like the fantastic I am Number Four.