Goodwin applied to music video: 'Shadowplay' - The Killers

 

The Killer's cover of Joy Divison's 'Shadowplay'

(Directed by Spencer Kaplan and Jonathon V.  Sela, 2007)

 

In 2007, The Killers covered ‘Shadowplay’ by Joy Division. The music video that accompanies the cover pays tribute to the late Ian Curtis of Joy Division as it features clips from the film ‘Control’, (a biopic of Ian Curtis’ life) and is also intercepted with band performance from The Killers. This video is extremely intertextual as it makes heavy reference to the early days of the iconic Joy Division and Ian Curtis. The fact that The Killers have made a music video comprising of clips from the film ‘Control’ really echoes their love for Joy Division and suggests that they have been musically influenced by the band. This cover version was included in the soundtrack for ‘Control’. 

The music video commences with the cast from ‘Control’ watching The Killers on television, which reinforces Goodwin’s theory as the notion of looking (screen within a screen) is apparent. A mid-shot of each band member flashes onto the T.V and this fast jump cut editing is synchronised to the beat of the drums in the song, creating a relationship between the music and the visuals. The images of lead singer/star Brandon Flowers from The Killers depict him with his head in his hands which is reminiscent of Curtis going through his life struggles. In addition, the video is captured in raw black and white which makes reference to the film which was also shot in black and white. This effect creates a sense of entrapment within daily routine and evokes a haunting mise-en-scene, linking with the montage of film clips shown in the music video which mainly reflect the darkness and loneliness Curtis experienced in his life. This visual imagery connects with the music as the signature chugging bass guitar line that The Killers have included in their cover, signifies the eerie mood and slow pace of the song. Therefore, the relationship between the music and visuals seems to be illustrative as they both combine to create a narrative.

At the beginning there is a mid-shot of Sam Riley (who plays Ian Curtis) with his eyes closed and the camera slowly pans around him, inviting the viewer to try and delve into the complex mind of the character. Although Riley is positioned in the centre of the frame which makes him a dominant figure, the camera is positioned at an eye-line match so the audience feel he is in fact quite ordinary. Soon after, there is a close-up of Riley opening his eyes which then cuts to a similar shot of Brandon opening his eyes and the direct link presented between the two draws them closer together, identifying them both as stars in the video. 

 
The Killers are shown singing into walkie-talkies on T.V and the effect of hazy black and white lines across the frame to emphasise that they are being watched. Furthermore, the use of the walkie-talkies is perhaps symbolic of the fact that they are trying to reach out to the troubled Curtis through music. The long-shot of the entire band then cuts to a close-up of Brandon, making him the focal point of the band and identifies him as the ‘star’. Goodwin suggested that the close-up predominates in music videos and this is evident in ‘Shadowplay’ since close-up shots of Brandon are very common and this prevalence aids his star image.  

Brandon is positioned in the centre of a mid-shot with an empty white background surrounding him. He sings the lyrics: ‘I was moving through the silence without motion, waiting for you. In a room with a window in the corner I found truth.’  These lyrics are filled with imagery of desolation, emptiness and alienation and expresses how Curtis used to feel isolated from the world ‘moving through the silence’ and would constantly search for ‘truth’. Goodwin’s theory about an illustrative relationship between the lyrics and the visuals can definitely be applied to this music video as the emptiness that almost engulfs Brandon in the mid-shot is representative of the sombre tone and meaning of the lyrics and the Ian Curtis’ life.

What is so fascinating about this music video is that is consists of clips from a film and the narrative structure of a film is usually logical, yet the footage has been edited as a montage of images to echo the style of a music video whilst still keeping elements of the narrative and also adding a second narrative involving performance from The Killers. The clips selected for the video are perfect, for example, the camera slowly tracks along a live audience featured in ‘Control’ capturing their shocked expressions which links in intertextually as audiences were often shocked to witness Curtis’ eccentric dances on stage, not realising that it was a result of his epilepsy.

A long shot is shown of Curtis (Riley) watching The Killers performing ‘Shadowplay’ on the T.V in a desolated living room which seems quite surreal since Curtis wrote the song. This emphasises once again how Curtis often felt that he was living in a different dimension to everyone else and his music acted as an escape from reality. The lyrics of ‘Shadowplay’ could be interpreted as a summary of Curtis’ emotions and by The Killers performing the song, it’s almost as if they are experiencing what Curtis once felt and their music video captures truly captures this. For example, a close-up of Riley writing the words ‘She’s Lost Control’, (a reference to the Joy Division song), then cuts to a similar shot of Brandon writing and then gazing into a mirror, perhaps representative of internal self-reflection. This use of cross-cutting is similar to the one at the beginning and again draws a parallel link between Ian Curtis and Brandon Flowers.

Building up to the bridge of the song, the camera slowly pans around Riley whilst he acts out Curtis’ extreme dancing which is edited to the rhythm of the progressive guitar strumming. The slow pan juxtaposes dramatically with the energetic dancing which represents how the outside world knew very little about what was happening in Curtis’ life, since the dancing often led to severe epileptic fits on stage. Moreover, another intertextual link is that the philosopher Plato wrote about ‘shadowplay’ and it was in relation to men chained up in a cave watching shadows on a wall, not knowing anything of the outside world, believing that the shadows were all there was to life. This idea fits perfectly with the lyrics: ‘In the shadowplay acting out your own death knowing no more’ and is another example of how lyrics can reflect the visuals in music video. Also, whilst Brandon sings: ‘To the centre of the city of the night waiting for you’, an extreme close-up is shown of the camera tracking rapidly along a road and this soon fades into a close-up of Riley driving into the distance to escape from reality; the transition shot highlighting the passing of time.

The climax of the bridge presents mid-shots of each individual band member alternate through fast jump cut editing to imitate the beat of the drums which again creates a relationship between the music and the video. Then an instrumental solo is performed and the imagery reflects upon Curtis’ eventual break-down. For example, a mid-shot shows Brandon in the dark watching Curtis on T.V who is presented in the light and then the power cuts off and Brandon places his hands on the T.V screen which suggests Curtis is a shining idol to him. Approaching the end of the music video, there is fast jump cut editing which alternates between Riley dancing and Brandon clapping to the beat of the music and since they are both placed in centre of the frame, they seem to blend together whilst alternating, presenting a musical connection between the two artists. 

In conclusion, Goodwin’s theories can be applied to this music video as not only is the relationship between the music, lyrics and visuals very illustrative and strong, but the close-up predominates between Brandon Flowers of The Killers and Sam Riley who plays Ian Curtis in ‘Control’ which treats them both as the ‘stars’ because this video and cover version of ‘Shadowplay’ is seen as a tribute to Ian Curtis and Joy Division. Lastly, despite the fact there is little evidence of voyeurism in this video, the sheer mass of intertexuality that can be drawn from it is extraordinary and adds so much interest and appeal to the music video.

Intertextuality and Music Video

The concept of intertextuality was coined by post-structuralist Julia Kristeva in 1966. She introduced the notion that 'any text is the absorption and transformation of another.' In addition, Kristeva implied that 'any text is a mosaic' and therefore, it can be proposed that music video is in fact a 'mosaic' of intertextual references.

Music videos are often described as postmodern. They frequently allude or reference to existing texts (such as other music videos, cinema, television, video games, art, fashion, photography, history etc) in order to spark recognition amongst the audience. Not all audiences will understand the reference but this doesn't massively detract from their viewing pleasure. However, it is argued that those who acknowledge the intertextual reference experience a greater pleasure and feel a sense of self-flattery as a result. Intertextuality can also be present in parodies. A parody/pastiche is a text which essentially mimics in an absurd or ridiculous manner, the conventions and style of another text, in order to derive humour, satire, ironic comment or affectionate fun.

John Stewart describes music video as 'incorporating, raiding and reconstructing.' This captures the essence of intertextuality; using something that the audience may be familiar with to potentially generate nostalgic associations and brand new meanings.

Examples of intertextuality in music video:

 

 Robert Palmer's 'Addicted To Love' (dir. by Donovan, 1986) famously references fashion photography. Shania Twain imitated the video for 'Man I Feel Like A Woman' (dir. by Boyd, 1999) and Tone Loc's 'Wild Thing' is a parody of it and gained heavy rotation on MTV. (dir. by Tamara Davis, 1988)

 

 

Red Hot Chili Pepper's 'Californication' (dir. by Jonathon Dayton/Valerie Faris, 2000) contains many homages to video games of its time such as 'Tomb Raider', 'Grand Theft Auto' and Tony Hawk's 'Pro Skater'. John Stewart suspects that the influence of video games will predominate for the younger audience.

 Madonna's 'Material Girl' (dir. by Mary Lambert, 1985) draws upon a cinematic reference to Marilyn Monroe's performance of 'Diamond's Are A Girl's Best Friend' in the film 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'. It is perhaps not so surprising that numerous music videos use cinema as an initial starting point, since the directors are often film school graduates looking to eventually establish themselves in the film industry (i.e. Lambert).

Blur's 'The Universal' (dir. by Jonathon Glazer, 1995) is highly-acclaimed and pays tribute to the 1971 film 'A Clockwork Orange', imitating the opening scenes set in the Korova Milk Bar. The band replicates the iconic costumes and eye-makeup worn by Alex DeLarge and his fellow droogs.

Beastie Boys' 'Sabotage' (dir. by Spike Jonze, 1994) uses television as a point of reference and is a homage and parody of 70's crime drama TV series such as 'Hawaii Five-O', 'Starsky and Hutch', 'S.W.A.T' etc. The video is portrayed as the opening title sequence to a fictional 70's-style police show called Sabotage, with the band members appearing as the show characters.

 

Oasis' 'The Importance Of Being Idle' (dir. by Dawn Shadforth, 2005) pays homage to the style of early 60's kitchen sink drama British films. It is based on the film and play 'Billy Liar', with Rhys Ifans adopting the role of Billy; a lowly clerk for an undertaker that dreams of life in the big city as a comedy writer. Noel and Liam Gallagher play Shadrack and Duxbry; the owners of the funeral parlour where Billy works. It was widely acclaimed at the time as being the best video Oasis had ever made.