MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSIS 1

Pink - Fucking Perfect

LYRICS

Made a wrong turn, once or twice
Dug my way out, blood and fire
Bad decisions, that's alright
Welcome to my silly life

Mistreated, misplaced, misunderstood
Miss 'No way, it's all good', it didn't slow me down
Mistaken, always second guessing, underestimated
Look, I'm still around

Pretty, pretty please, don't you ever, ever feel
Like you are less than, less than fuckin' perfect
Pretty, pretty please, if you ever, ever feel like you're nothing
You're fuckin' perfect to me

You're so mean when you talk about yourself, you were wrong
Change the voices in your head make them like you instead
So complicated, look happy, you'll make it
Filled with so much hatred, such a tired game
It's enough, I've done all I can think of
Chased down all my demons, I've seen you do the same

Pretty, pretty please, don't you ever, ever feel
Like you are less than, less than fuckin' perfect
Pretty, pretty please, if you ever, ever feel like you're nothing
You're fuckin' perfect to me

The whole world's scared so I swallow the fear
The only thing I should be drinking is an ice cold beer
So cool in line, and we try try try
But we try too hard and it's a waste of my time
Done looking for the critics, cause they're everywhere
They don't like my jeans; they don't get my hair
Exchange ourselves, and we do it all the time
Why do we do that? Why do I do that

Why do I do that?

Yeah, oh, oh baby, pretty baby
Pretty, pretty please, don't you ever, ever feel
Like you're less than fuckin' perfect
Pretty, pretty please, if you ever, ever feel
Like you're nothing, you're fuckin' perfect to me, yeah
You're perfect, you're perfect
Oh pretty, pretty please, if you ever, ever feel
Like you're nothin' you're fuckin' perfect to me

MEANING

This song has a lot of emotion in it and lyrics portray a knowledgable person that can empathise with the rough life that a certain person may be going through. This song targets young people suffering from anxiety and depression. Pink is speaking from first hand knowledge in an outcry to the sufferes to let them know that there is light at the end of the tunnel and that although you may not be in a good place at the moment you need to always remember that you are special.

We understand that she is speaking from personal experiences as her oepning line states "made a wrong turn once or twice" by this lyric she is connecting with the listeners letting her know that everyone makes mistakes.

Pink then vaguely tells her story of what she has been through "mistaken, always second guessing, underestimated. Look I'm still around." This is showing people that she has gone through very harsh times but she has never had to end her life over the issues.

Her chorus lyrics have the most impact on me persoanlly. She is speaking to the people that she once was explaining that they are loved. It is evident from this that these emotions were how she was feeling when she was younger and therefore she needs to ensure they know that harming themselves is not the answer.

Pink tries to empathise with the sufferes telling them "look happy, you'll make it" she is speaking from her own expereinces. She felt the same as them and she wants them to know that if she can make it they can too.

She finishes by telling them that they're perfect to her. This may make the listener connect with pink on a personal level knowing that she has suffered just like them.

The video has a 16 second long introduction. In this we see the actress having sexual intercourse with a man. A wide shot is used in this to show the activity. It then cuts to a close up of her face- she conveys a scared look on her face, this has a larger impact as there is silence. Only 4 different types of shot are used in the first bit of the video where there is no music. These are a wide shot, a close up, a mid shot and the zoom is used to zoom into her bear and into her face. It is evident that the bear is significant from the start as it is a solo object that is broguht to our attention even more by being zoomed in on. The setting that she is placed in conveys her vunerability as she is naked and exposed. As well as this she is partaking in an activity which should be enjoyable but the expression on her face shows concern.

24 seconds in it cuts to a video of what we interpret as her younger self. A point of view shot is used to portray that these are her thoughts at this given time. The bear is filmed again being thrown on the floor. This clearly links to her lyrics about being mistreaten. The video shows a young girl then retaliating to the boys actions. A mid shot is used to show the girls sad expression as the boy takes her teddy-this is also used to show her setting which is a playground. A focus pull is used to highlight the importance of the teddy bear as the background is all blurred out. It has a significant meaning to the character clearly as it is shown in the first clip also. 7 different types of shot were used during that clip. The movement of the actors is keeping in time with the beat of the song. We understand from this short clip that the little girl was the same character as the lady in the first clip, this is through the use of the bear as they have the same teddy. Shooting the child from such a young age conveys the idea that the way she has been mistreated has been happening from such a young age.

Analysis of Video

31 seconds in, the video montage starts to fade out, and it zooms out to show pink in the scene ad the video plays in the background. A wide shot it used to get a clear picture of pink and the character that is thought to be her younger self. This shot is used to show a comparison of her then and now. Her clothing is all black, this is to 1) reflect her personality and what type of character she is and 2) to not draw attention away from the video which is in colour. 45 seconds in it cuts to a close up of pink, this is used to connect with the singer emotionally and you can see the passion in her eyes. Pink uses her hands a lot whilst singing, this is to express her hurt and true meaning in this song, it also shows her stress and trouble that she has had and how much this song is a representation of her true feelings. Pink says 'look im still around' this is sung as the video of her younger self is shown upset, this is cleverly done to connote the narrative of her life that although things were bad and she was upset, she is still here now-it then cuts to a close up of Pink singing again, to prove this lyric is correct.

The whole of pinks video is a narrative of her personal expereinces in life and it shows you the impact that they have had on her as a person. In this montage of pictures is a story line of what pink has been through as a child. Through the use of mise en scene we understand that she used to feel trapped, there is a mid shot of her in a toilet cubicle as an adolescent, this toilet cubicle is a representation of her life, she is isolated from the world. She also takes drugs, this shows that her only escape is through the usage of drugs. Her makeup is very gothic which we instantly link to more depressive people. In this clip, close ups and mid shots are most frequently used to just show the character alone, rather than anything around her. The videos at the end fade into eachother, this is a good use of editing as it shows how time is moving on. Throughout this timeline, a lot of close ups and wide shots are used. The wideshots are used to set the scene and also there are point of view wideshots to show how inferior she is to the other characters in the videos. The close ups are used to show the hurt in her eyes-she has strong eye contact with the camera, this connots to the viewer that she is the character in which we should empathise for due to the expereinces that she has suffered. A wide shot is used to show her on the scales, this is an immediate indication that she has got anorexia as she is very skinnys and her underwear is hanging losely on her, it then quickly cuts to a close up of her back which has slight bruising on it and we can also see her spine up close which is very prominant, this confirms that she is suffereing from anorexia. The music is in time with the camera movement, which is quite slow.

There is a really distressing scene in pinks video. This starts 2.26 seconds in. The character is naked again to show her vunerability. An extreme close up is used of her picking up the razor blade, instantly we understand the emotional pain that she is in and the measures that she has had to take to escape. Through this scene there are quit cuts to each different camera angle, this is to get a good perspective of what is happening. A mid shot is used to show the pain on her face whilst she is self-harming. Alhough we cannot see it we understand what is going on as we have seen her take the razor blade and now her face is hurting. It very quickly cuts to a less the 1 second image on her piercing her skin, this is to show that it is real, they have used a close up to show it in detail. The camera continues to zoom into her face, each time she seems to be in more pain. A 3 second clip of the blood in the water is shown, this is to connote the loss of her pain-by self-harming, although it may physically hurt her, it is her emotional escape. The blood helps to give us an idea of what she has really done to herself. We see the razor blade quickly fall to the floor covered in blood, with an image of her lifeless eyes. This clip in the vide is really used to show how bad things really were in her life but her lyrics linked to how she has overcome that and changed. There is a quick cut to the teddy bear that we have seen throughout the video. This shows how her life has moved on but her has always been there-its her viewing of the teddy which makes her get out of the bath and move on. We know this as we get a point of view shot of it and then a mid shot of her looking in that direction, and that moment is when she sits up.

In the last scene we understand that she has had a revelation. Although the words have stayed the same throughout it is clear that the character is now connecting with them. In this clip there is an extensive use of close ups, this is to show how her expression has changed. At the start of the video there were close ups of her face and eyes and they were always miserable. Now they are happy, this is to contrast her then and now and show how as time has changed so has she. Her clothing is now colourful and her hair is styled. This compares with her teenage self where she was not wearing colour and her hair hung on her face.

The final image on the video is a picture of a man and then it cuts out. This is significant as it then cuts to a mid shot of her and the same man.The video represents her timeline of her life and the final scene is her now alive and happy. She is naked in the last scene, however, she is no longer alone and vunerable, instead he has his arm around her to show he is protecting her. We get a point of view shot of the teddy, which has been there with her throughout the whole of her life and has played an important role in keeping her alive as we saw in the bath scene. She finally places it on what we believe to be her daughter as we get a wide shot of a childs bedroom. The final cut we get is an image of the character, it is a close up singing "you are perfect to me" we realise that she is supporting the little girl as she wishes someone had done to her. The close up helps to show the passion in her eyes and also how healthy she now it. It is a powerful way to end the video as it has such emotion which has involved that character from the start.

By Daisy White