The Writing’s On The Wall Analysis

Genre

The genre of this song is pop and soul. The artist’s genre is pop, soul and rap.

There is a clear narrative in this music video. Strickland Banks feels that his relationship is almost over and, while at a gig, has an affair with a fan. Meanwhile his wife is cooking dinner for them both.

I would have expected such a clear narrative from this music video as the lyrics of the song have a very clear story.

I didn’t expect him to not come home as the song is about him worrying about his relationship.

There is one intertextual reference to Stevie Wonder’s Superstitious as the name of the song is The Writing’s on the Wall, which is the second line in Wonder’s song.

Narrative

The story of this music video revolves around a celebrity who feels that his relationship with his partner is soon going to end and he ends up having an affair with a fan.

There are two main themes in this music video:

·         Love

·         Trust

This music video shows the first three stages of Todorov’s five stages:

1.    Equilibrium

2.    Disruption

3.    Recognition of disruption

This music video demonstrate three of Propp’s main character types:

·         False hero – Strickland Banks

·         Princes – Strickland Banks’ wife/partner

·         Villain – The woman he has an affair with

The music video directly reflects what is heard in the lyrics of the song.

Representation

Representation of gender is stereotypical in this music video as the male in the relationship is seen working and making the money while the female is seen both applying make-up and making dinner for the man.

Plan B (playing Strickland Banks in the music video) is represented as a very popular artist, as the establishing shot at the beginning of the music video shows a board saying that the show was sold out. It could also be seen that he is held back by his partner.

Visual Codes

The video seems to be set in the ‘70s or ‘80s as the style of the house would suggest this time. Also, Strickland Banks is shown using a payphone, which, if it was set in modern-day, would be incredibly unlikely, as firstly, there are very few working payphones still around today, and secondly, he is clearly very wealthy and so would easily be able to afford a mobile phone.

During the scenes in the house, the mise-en-scene is very bright and colourful, connoting the woman’s innocence. However, during the performance scenes, the predominant colour is blue, connoting Strickland Banks’ sadness as his relationship comes to an end.

The only writing used in this music video is at the beginning, saying, “Strickland Banks Sold Out”, denoting his popularity.

There are lots of low angles on Strickland Banks in this music video, helping both to compensate for his below average height and also to connote his popularity.

There are lots of extreme close ups on his partner and also the meal she is cooking. This helps to show her emotions, which is stereotypical of females in the media.

When his partner is on the phone, there is an extreme high angle, connoting that her partner is mistreating her.

Technical Codes

There are lots of close ups on the pans as the food bubbles and rises, possibly connoting her love rising. Later there is a long shot of the woman burning her hand on the pan, connoting that she has been burned by her relationship with Strickland Banks.

There are some POV shots, from the point of view of Strickland Banks, when he looks at the woman in the bar.

The editing of the video is fast paced, which is typical of many music videos.


Audience
The target audience for this music video is teenagers and people in their early 20s. This is evident as a large part of the video is set in a night club.

Institution
The 679 Warner Music Group has ensured that Strickland Banks is portrayed as a celebrity, as shown by the show being sold out.