The video 'Stan' is about an obsessed fan who writes to Eminem about how much they are alike and how they they should be together. Eminem does not get his first letter and so the second letter that gets to Eminem is more angry. After no response, Stan is in a car with his girlfriend in the trunk talking in a recorder about how he realises they can not be together. He then drives the car into the river. The video is unconventional for a hip-hop music video as hip-hop music videos are usually different. This song shows how society thinks of celebrities, and that people admire them and are inspired by them similar to Stan in the music video. This also shows that music videos does not have to have to be the same music video genre convention to be a success, as this was one of the biggest hits in 2000.
The
music video 'Stan' is narrative piece that is similar to the style of a short film. The video
starts on a rainy night as the camera zooms into the window. A pregnant woman is lying on the bed and then shows the main character in the bathroom. The main character in this also looks like Eminem. It then shows the woman walking down the hall way and hitting the door. This then turns into an argument between them both. He also shouts at her for calling him Stanley. This may show that he is trying to be someone else. After this, it then goes to the lyrics. The first line of the lyrics is "My tea's gone cold I'm wondering why I got out of bed at all" which is linked to her life such as the place she lives in and her relationship. Her life in the lyrics is described as "my teas gone cold". During the lyrics, the camera then goes beneath the
floor and into the basement where we see Stan. This type of shot links the two places. This type of shot is used a lot through the video like when his girlfriend is trying to get in the bathroom. During his lyrics, we see him mouthing them while writing the letter as if he he talking to Eminem. He is shown as his biggest fan in the video and this is shown with posters all over the walls and the television in the basement. The room that he is in is filled with pictures of Eminem and later shows Stan sticking a picture of him over his girlfriend. At this part, the lyrics are "P.S. we should be together" which shows that he loves
him. In the video, from Stans point of view, it is seen as Eminem is ignoring him and the camera angle show his expression and how he is annoyed at him.
The lyrics also become more angry at him. Before, he is trying to show that they are alike but then, he trys to show that he is
different to him. The lyrics show this by saying "Hey Slim, that's my girlfriend screamin in the trunk but I didn't slit her throat, I just tied her up, see I ain't like you". This then finishes with Stan driving into the river. The next part then shows Eminem receiving Stans letter. While Eminem is in the train,
you can also see his reflection on the window. This can be interpreted as ghostly as Stan had just died.
The video scene changes with the beat of the music and the lightning flashing which gives it more of a dramatic feel. The storm also symbolizes the emotional feeling of the character. There is also a shot from above at the beginning when Stans girlfriend is trying to get into the bathroom. There is also the shot of when Eminem is in the basement which is a dark room and is raining. Instead of a happy relationship, Stan is showed to be in love with Eminem more than he is with his girlfriend.
The song is also sang from a fans point of view and also through writing letters. The last part of the video is calm when Eninem is writing back to Stan. There are also small references to another Eminem songs like 'Bonnie and Clyde' when his girlfriend is in the trunk of his car. Stans objective in the song is to make Eminem feel guilty for not being an active part in Eminems life.
One music video which I like is Coldplay-The scientist where Chris Martin opens the song and the rest of the band joins after the first chorus. The song is very popular for its reverse narrative and Martin is seen mouthing the lyrics in the reverse footage. In order for him to do this, he had to learn the song backwards which took him around a month to do. The music video shows him going back through the suburbs where he then appears in the woods. It then shows Martin in a car where the car then goes back up the hill, through the fence and on the road. It also shows the woman taking of her seat belt which hen leads to her death.
Another is A-ha- Take on me which was filmed in two places. The video used a pencil sketched animation called rotoscoping. This took 16 weeks to complete and 3000 frames were rotoscoped.
and Los Angeles. It is longer than an original music video as it is similar to a short film. Following the music video, a 45 minute documentary was released which was shown heavily on MTV for a time. MTV also paid $250,000 for the exclusive rights to show the documentary.
Another is Gorillaz- On melancholy hill which has an animation for its music video. It has a small beginning where the ship is under attack by two planes. It then skips to Noodle shotting at the planes with the music starting.
