Sunday, August 15, 2010

Taio Cruz - “Dynamite”



There’s something really wrong in the town where Taio is filming this video.

First, we’re at a chop shop of some kind, with cars and bits of cars all over the place. Chop shops are basically illegal, so I’m sure it was purely an accident that the producers filmed here, because they would never promote illegal activities, right? Anyway, the wrongness continues, because all of the busy little workers are sweaty, skinny women wearing tiny pieces of clothing. It looks like the wardrobe department bought one outfit and everybody had to share, getting a swatch or two and maybe a button.

So some of the skanky girls are running machinery that they’d never even seen before walking onto the set, while others are lounging about on and in the cars. Maybe the loungers are suffering from heat stroke, because they keep fanning themselves with erotically-shaped tools, or there’s a union issue about how many people can be touching machinery when there’s that much sweat in the room.

While one girl wearing a hardhat appears to be giving herself a bikini wax with a socket wrench, Taio drives up on a motorcycle. (We seem him arrive twice, just to make sure you see how cool he is.) He swaps his helmet (safety first!) for a pair of shades, hops off the cycle, and then immediately bursts into song, singing in a really high voice, so there must have been some chafing on the way over.

I guess this voice sounds really sexy in person, because most of the girls start touching various body parts and arching their backs. When Taio suddenly darts off to some unknown destination, two of the girls grab metal briefcases and run after him, so maybe they’re practicing to be flight attendants. So then we watch Taio marching across the salvage yard, accompanied by his hooker business associates who have learned the critical skill of stomping their thigh-high boots to the beat.

Along the way, we get lots of shots of more sweaty girls sticking their booties at the camera, bent over abandoned cars for no apparent reason, digging around. (Is this a scavenger hunt at the Playboy Mansion?) It’s a really big yard, so it takes them a while to get to their destination. Which turns out to be right where we started, because we see this same girl again, using a welding torch on what looks like a garbage disposal. (Really good editing, eh?)

Oh, now Taio is singing about throwing his hands up in the air, and then he does just that so we can understand what he means. (The camera focuses on his arm extending skyward, so the slower folks can understand where “air” is.) I guess Taio thinks that was fun, because now he’s doing lots of hand gestures. I’m not sure what any of these movements mean, but I believe I hear a plane land.

Then we start getting glimpses of this really trashy girl in the backseat of a car. She has a female companion with her, but you don’t really notice her because the main trashy girl flops around and waves her Cosmo about, hogging the scene. Her legs are dirty but she doesn’t care because she’s got a really skinny headband that’s way cool.

Hey, Taio just found a convenient stage in the middle of the salvage yard. He hops on it, and it’s instantly nighttime and hundreds of girls are gyrating near the stage with total sexual abandonment, because he’s that good. (If good means repeating the same words over and over while he wiggles his hips to show that not all people have been blessed with rhythm.)

Wait a minute. Depending on the camera angle, it’s daylight in some scenes and night in the other. Seriously, who hired the editor on this thing? Was she one of the tired girls passed-out in the flatbed of a pickup we saw earlier? Complicating all this is that some other idiot keeps welding during the concert, and sparks are flying all over the place. You know that fire could spread through that sea of hairdos in mere seconds. With that amount of hair product, it’s like jet fuel up in here.

Short scenes with a couple of the hooker associates wearing Stevie Nicks scarves, sitting on her couch, and pulling dynamite out of one of the briefcases. That looks entirely safe, yes? We turn away before we learn who they might be mad at.

Okay, why is Taio now marching across the salvage yard again? Wasn’t he just on stage, helping the entire female population achieve sexual release? Making matters even more confusing is the hooker associate marching behind him on the right. That supermodel swimsuit thing she’s wearing cannot be comfortable. But she’s a trooper, pausing to lean against a car and play with her hair so we know she’s okay.

Taio sings that “hands up in the air” bit again, but this time his arms remain at his sides, so I’m assuming someone told him that other mess was silly and he should stop doing it. Instead we get close-ups of sweaty, barely-constrained breasts. Oh, and more shots of mean-faced girl with her Cosmos. Her partner has one, too, and they way they are rubbing against each other indicates that somebody, somewhere has been watching “The L Word”.

And of course, what video that objectifies women would be complete without a bathing sequence? So here we go, with nymphets splashing about in an oversized tub and blowing bubbles at one another like it’s the most fun thing ever. (Insert odd shot of Taio on his motorcycle, revving the engine so the rear wheel spins but the bike isn’t going anywhere. Surely this doesn’t mean that Taio is sterile, does it?) More bubbles and wetness, with one girl waving about a pink flamingo. (If Divine suddenly walks around a corner, the madness will be complete.)

Then it’s time for more of that “hands in the air” chorus, and Taio has forgotten the notes from the director and throws his hands up again. To show their displeasure, the producers set off a bomb directly behind Taio’s stage and flames fill the air. The crowd of girls thrills to this development, and anyone who hasn’t had an orgasm by this point does so now. (One dirty girl even does a backbend, she’s in such a frenzy..

More welding sparks sprinkle across the stage, but no one cares about their hair anymore and everybody shimmies all crazy-eyed while Taio finishes out the song, the girls basically slam-dancing in a nice soft-porn tribute to Cinemax After Dark.

As the simulated copulation fades away, Taio gets on his motorcyle and rides off into the night. Or day. Depends on whether or not they fired that editor...


Click Here to Watch the Video on YouTube.


Friday, August 13, 2010

Eminem, Rihanna - “Love The Way You Lie”



  Well, then. This is NOT a happy video. Someone needs to call their pharmacist. (Oh, and side note before you watch this thing: It’s Eminem, so there’s a bit of graphic language. This thing does not need to be playing when your boss walks by. Just sayin.)

  Anyway, we start out with Rihanna, sporting a startling red hairdo and a leather hoodie thing that Grace Jones might have worn back in the day. She likes the way it hurts, apparently. Quick shot of a couple in bed. They apparently can’t afford a blanket. Then we have a shot of the woman from the bed sitting on a boring floor and holding a burning flame in her cupped hands. Poor thing. Is she cold? Did somebody not pay the light bill?

  Rihanna keeps singing, despite the poverty and the sad people. It looks like she’s standing in front of something else that’s burning, but we really can’t see because her earrings and hairdo are fighting for your attention.

  Then the woman wakes up and she is very unhappy that her name (or somebody’s name, not clear) is written on her partner’s hand. She jumps out of bed and then starts beating on her partner, because that’s a natural reaction when you see a name written in marker on flesh. Meanwhile, Eminem has started rapping, but for some odd reason he’s doing so in the middle of a cornfield. No explanation is given, and the corn doesn’t seem very pleased about getting trampled.

  Oh, and the guy in the bed, tussling with the angry woman, looks like Charlie from “Lost”. Apparently the woman didn’t like his performance on that show, because she spits in his face and then bounces around in her panties while slapping at Charlie. He shares his own opinions on the matter by walloping her back. I’m thinking the National Organization for Women might have some harsh words about this video.

  The couple gets bored trying to kill each other on the bed, so they move into another room. This seems to have been a good idea, because there are more props that they can throw at each other, and we have a wall that Charlie can shove his fist through. That bit of rough-housing seems to excite both of them, because they suddenly start making out as Rihanna starts wailing again. I don’t think I want to party with any of these people.

  Rihanna keeps holding her head while she sings, so somebody should probably get her some aspirin. Eminem keeps mucking around in the field, not sure where the recording studio is with the rest of his crew. The couple continues to make out, fight, make out, fight, pause to let the camera linger on their seedy sweatiness, and then start pounding on one another again.

  Then I guess we’re having flashback scenes to when this entirely-compatible couple first met. Charlie’s in a bar, and here comes the woman, stroking a beer bottle like she really means business. They decide that beer is just not going to cut it, so they run off to a liquor store so Charlie can steal some hooch while the woman stands around and shows us that she can steal as well, having ripped-off Angelina Jolie’s hairstyle.

  Quick scene with Charlie displaying a tattoo on his back and then screaming in angst. Why are these people so mad about everything?

  Back in the present, Charlie tries to give Angelina a teddy bear, because stuffed animals always make people feel better after having been almost killed in a trashy apartment.

  Eminem is still in the field, and Rihanna still has a headache, but they’re troopers and keep singing.

  Suddenly, we’re in the bar again, and Charlie walks up to some guy and smashes his head with a bottle while Angelina fondles a cue stick. No other details are shared, and we go back to the trashy apartment, where Charlie and Angelina are doing yoga. Then they start seeing things in the air that don’t exist, and they play with these things. Charlie decides to smash a mirror and then gaze at Angelina in one of the fragments. Folk, this is why they created tranquilizing drugs. Speak to someone, please.

  Back to Rihanna, where we can see more of the structure behind her, and it is indeed a burning building, probably set afire by something that shot out of Rihanna’s warp portal. Eminem has joined her, having finally made it out of that field. Right now he’s doing some type of two-step while Rihanna finishes up her section of the song and shows us that she’s lost her pants at some point.

  Then Eminem starts rapping again while Rihanna picks up with the two-step and waves her arms like she’s been cleared for landing. Meanwhile, the fighting couple is now just staring at each other, trying to remember their next lines. Angelina decides that she doesn’t care what the next words are, and she and her cut-offs start marching out of the apartment, which apparently doesn’t have a wall on the side where the camera is. Charlie is not pleased with her departure and takes it out on the furniture.

  Next we have things in the apartment, like an odd lamp and the bed, bursting into flames. We don’t actually see Charlie doing this, but we’ll assume that he did, because Angelina is too skinny to hold a lighter. Then we’re magically transported to another part of the building, where the couple keeps fighting and we are treated to the sight of somebody’s jockstrap hanging from what I think is a deer antler.

  Then Rihanna, still missing her pants, and Eminem, still missing an actual plot, are singing in front of the burning building again. (You’d think they could grab a bucket of water, right?) Then we see Charlie on fire, probably not a good thing, followed by Eminem back in that damn field, also on fire. He really burns for a long time. Cut back to the couple, with Charlie miraculously un-burnt, and they start making out again. Did Eminem’s possible death in the cornfield bring them back together?

  Oh, maybe not, because now Angelina is on fire, in the apartment that’s not burning anymore. (Who wrote this?) But she survives as well, probably because Eminem and Rihanna have stopped singing and are staring at the apartment, using their mental powers to put out all the fires.

  Final shot is the couple back in that bed where this mess all started. They are slumbering peacefully, without any fighting, so they’ll probably have a nice nap before Angelina discovers something else written on Charlie…




Click Here to Watch the Video on YouTube.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Buggles - “Video Killed The Radio Star”



  Trivia tidbit: The was the first video ever played on the fledgling MTV network back around 1981-ish. This factoid will not change your life in any way, just thought I’d mention it.

  Anyway, prepare for a shocking display of primitive art, because nobody knew what they were doing back then. And here we go…

  We start out with a cherubic little girl in a red jumper thing fiddling with what I think is supposed to be an old-timey radio, but really looks like a washing machine. There’s a black and white image of some guy with odd glasses and a microphone who keeps intruding from the left side of the screen. It takes exactly one second for this to get annoying.

  We pull back so that we can see a full moon shining down on the tyke as she continues her ministrations with the radio washer. I have no idea what the moon means. Maybe the girl is going to turn into a werewolf if she finds the right station, but werewolves won’t become popular for another thirty years, so who knows.

  Oh look, the girl DID find a station, and she throws her hands back in a crappy simulation of surprise. She’s a terrible actress. No wonder we never saw her again. Cut to some guy wearing a suit made out of silver Saran wrap and playing some keyboards. He doesn’t seem happy to be here. Maybe he’s the little girl’s agent and just saw her performance.

  Okay, now the black-and white-dude is taking up the whole screen. He’s very proud of his curly hair and his odd resemblance to Elton John before EJ did that fake marriage thing. He slides to the right and continues singing while we get another shot of the bad actress, once again jacking around with the radio knobs. I think she’s supposed to leave that thing alone now. The song is already playing. She’s a bad actress AND she doesn’t know what’s going on. Wait, is that Vanna White before she started flipping letters in sparkly dresses?

  Then we get a couple replays of the child’s horrid attempt at method acting, throwing her hands up in some slight seizure as she finds the radio station again and again. Even the radio can’t stand looking at her, and just decides to explode. The little girl then just stands there and looks at us, like she did nothing wrong, but we all know she’s been very, very naughty.

  Now we have TWO of the black-and-white singer guys, bellowing from both sides of the screen. It’s crappy now, but was very high-tech at the time and probably indirectly led to two Lindsay Lohan’s appearing in a Disney movie. You know, that movie she made back in the day when she was still interested in having a career.

  Another shot of the worthless little girl standing there, but this time she transitions into a woman sporting a strange outfit that is probably supposed to represent futuristic fashion, but really just looks like the wrong people were going to design school at the time. This woman is very accusatory, and points her finger at us. Hey, I didn’t break the damn radio, that little girl did.

  Shot of reels of magnetic tape turning. Fascinating. Could do this for hours.

  Then the singer guy is there, as a real person and not a distorted image. He’s walking around in what might be a stage, because Shiny Jacket Guy is playing a synthesizer, but it might also be a laboratory, because there are computers and such. Then Stupid Outfit Woman suddenly appears, sliding down the inside of a giant test tube and clutching at her heart while slumbering. She wakes up, does a short mime routine, and then freezes still.

  No idea. Please don’t send questions.

  Then we cut to a monitor of some kind, showing just the heads of two women wearing matching wigs and more stupid sunglasses. They seem to be having difficulty figuring out where to look as they sing the chorus. (Shot of the keyboard player still mad about whatever.) Then the main singer is back, playing peek-a-boo behind another giant test tube. Oh, and there’s the little girl, apparently not fired as she should have been, and now she’s staring at frozen Stupid Outfit Woman. Even Stupid Outfit Woman doesn’t want to be around the little brat, and zips back up the test tube.

  Quick shot of the Wig Girls doing hand movements to the lyrics. They’ve finally agreed to look in the same direction, it just doesn’t appear to involve the camera. Then we have several odd-angle shots of people playing instruments, and another turn at watching Stupid Outfit Woman shoot up that tube.

  And now the brat is climbing some stairs so she can be on top of some cardboard set decorations. This leads to another explosion. You would think these people would have figured out by now that Damian had a sister and she’s on this set.

  And how sad, the aftershock has caused the Wig Girls to lose their temporary synchronization skills, and they are no longer staring in the same direction, standing rigidly as if there were a few inadvertent enemas a few moments ago. Then TV’s start coming out of the ground, because this always happens when the director tries to get too arty. Several jump cuts around the studio/laboratory, ending with Main Singer also pointing an accusing finger at us. The people in this video are just vindictive and unwilling to accept any responsibility for what is happening around them.

  More keyboard playing, followed by Stupid Outfit Woman flying (twice) over the set, like a very unfocused super hero. If we’re lucky, she’ll snatch up the little girl and throw her into a volcano, thus saving the world. Instead, walls start sliding out of the way and we have Main Singer and Mad Keyboard Guy playing instruments, and a new musician whose issue seems to be that his tight plastic pants are neutering him. Stupid Outfit Woman is back in the test tube, so she’s either resting after all that flying or she’s hiding from the little brat, who is currently unaccounted for, not having been seen since she caused that second explosion.

  And that’s basically it. We finish out the song on this same set, with the camera whirling all over the place because somebody thought that might be fun. Stupid Outfit Woman decides to do an interpretive dance in her tube, and no one bothers to make her stop because there’s only a few seconds left and she seems to be very invested in her writhing.

  And that, ladies and gentleman, is how a new network was born.

  I’ll give you a few moments to think about that…



Click Here to Watch the Video on YouTube.

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