Song: 'Stan'
Artist: Eminem, Dido
Track Time: 8:10
Many artists have different styles of music videos when is come to their genre of choice, and like Andrew Goodwin, the author of 'Dancing in the distraction factory', said was that "Different genre music videos may have specific iconic and typical specific music video style" (E.g Guns 'n' Roses - sweet child of mine, would stereotypically be a live performance). So with Eminem's video's, everybody normally knows that he is the 'rap' and 'RnB' genre, which normally consists of a story-telling style of video, normally along side the main artist raping along to it in various ways. (Other people like Busta Rhythms and Lil Wayne follow this description).
The video starts from a black fade transition along side a camera zoom-in towards a window. Thunder then suddenly flashes allowing us, as an audience, to examine the setting of the video as well as the dramatic effects cause by the thunder.
Within the Mise En Scene of the first few seconds, the thunder allows us to see the scene out side the house. Like the fact we can tell its raining, and that the house is a tacky or worn down. The thunder and rain help to set the scene of a horror/Shocking story within what we would beleive to be an old or abandoned house. reason to beleive that is by the way the house's outer design is falling to pieces and basically rotting away. The curtains within the window are also helping to prove this by being a faded yellow colour, instead of a pure white which would implicate pureness (you can tell that the curtain use to be white by over time it has inherited this colour of old), It represents the old fashion imagery to help again give the house a sense of old or out of it time. The way the curtain glides over the camera with a ghost-like movement further my point of the set being a horror/shocking film based.
Next we are then zoomed towards the first human seen in the music video, at this point the music moves a little bit more towards non-diagetic sound and way form the diagetic sound of rain, thunder and the wind. The Non-diagetic music consists of violins which give the woman a sense of tenderness around her. The room is dark with the acceptance of a lamp left on and a mirror reflecting the light, which is contrasted on to the woman. When the lightening is stricken again, it presents the whole room which the woman is asleep in. The mise en scene in the room is shown to be very plain with a damp/worn out floor panels with a black-grey wall to match. The atmosphere gives no emotion out to the audience except from the only bright coloured woman, who is surrounded by 'Blue'. (Blue vest, blue covers, blue dressing gown and blueish sheet).This scene is then very quickly uses a dissolve transition from the medium shot to a birds eye view shot, souly focused on to the woman who has now completely dominated the screen by becoming central and even reflected in the mirror. She is also surround by more blue in this shot, with blue items such as a pair of blue slippers and the bed sheet (which has darkened from a very light blue into a deep blue).
We are then zoomed towards the woman who is rubbing her pregnant belly (or presumed this up until the lyrics later say so), we still hear the rain and see it's shadows, the lightening still effects what is heard and seen as well, this proves that the set idea of the shock/horror film is going to be consistent and not giving it up.
Another quick cross dissolve transition is seen as it goes into a medium close up camera shot of the woman, these very quick cross dissolves are hardly seen but do give a more softer effect on the video, adding a more tender viewing upon the woman. She wakes up, cuts to her grabbing her gown within the previous birds eye view shot.
We are then cut to a new setting, a lighter, greener setting when compared to the previous. The Mise en scene continues this broken atmosphere with the broken wall which looks like it could crumble in the background. the shot is a steady close up, just above the sink line. The shot's scenery is disrupted by a guy (of whom we later know is 'Stan') who seems to be washing his hair or rinsing it out, we still hear the non-diagetic sound dieing down within the background (such as the thunder and rain).
Stan easily has the imagery and mise en scene of 'Eminem' with his typical short spikey blonde hair, a tattoo on his left upper arm, and a white tank top and finally with a Dog tag chain around his neck which match with how Eminem who always wears a chain.
We then cut transition to a medium close up where we finally see Stan's full face which is quickly followed by the Diagetic sound of thunder with it flashing upon his face . Allowing us, as an audience, to understand that he is going to be a part of the horror which will transcends on characters in this video. This also give us our first full view onto the character 'Stan', who look exactly like Eminem, allowing the audience to recognise the artist. A sudden cut to a bird's eye view shot that shows Stan getting annoyed with his girlfriend as she demands to come in. with her face leaning on the door to help show her desperation, Stan is quickly anger and became fanatical, starting to open the door and pull her in forcefully and slam the door behind, leaving ehr alone in the shot.
The song begins with the mian chourus by Dido, starting with the line 'My tea's gone cold and I'm wondering why I got out of bed at all'. Already, the tone and lyrics have set the scean work well with the pattering of the rain and keeping everythign within the mood of depression and the utmost sympathy for Dido's character. It also begins to reveals more about the chaacter by the Mise-en-scene, were it suggests that she is unhappy with her life and wants to change it for her and 'stan'.
The next part follows on with the line "The morning rain clouds up my window, and I can't see at all" however, reveals that her future is unforeseen and dark. And since this was all shot inside the barthroom and even pans away frm her shows that she is not that significant to the main music video and that stan is the main interest of this video.
The chorus continues and repeats as the video shows Stan
