It is evident that the purpose of Michael Jackson’s music video produced for his 1983 hit single “Thriller” was purely to entertain. The fourteen-minute video is considerably longer than the song, which lasts approximately six minutes, however, it incorporates a narrative featuring Michael Jackson and Ola Ray in a setting inspired by horror films of the 1950s. The easy-to-follow storyline attracts an audience of all ages.
The video opens with a car driving down a
street at night. The car eventually stops because it has run out of gas and the
camera cuts to the front seat where Michael Jackson, wearing a jock jacket, talks
to his dolled up, soon-to-be girlfriend. I presume that Jackson intended to
present his audience with a familiar movie scene to suggest that he was going
to present nothing more than a simple story that could be easily understood by
a broad audience. Further into the video, the two characters share a
heart-warming moment in which Jackson asks the young lady if she would like to
be his “girl”. Expectedly, she says yes. The video presents an evolving story
that is intended to captivate and maintain the viewers’ attention. As a full
moon is revealed, Jackson suddenly turns into a frightened werewolf and chases
his girlfriend throughout a nearby forest. The definition of the word
“entertain” is “to amuse or interest an audience.” What person is not intrigued
by a scared, innocent girl being chased by a terrifying monster? Just as the
werewolf is about to kill the girl, the camera cuts to an audience sitting in a
movie theater watching everything previously described as a movie. In the
audience sits Michael Jackson and his girlfriend, clinging to his side, her face
buried in his arm. This is another familiar movie scene in which viewers can
find comfort in and relate to. However, the scene serves no other purpose but
to entertain. Following some resistance, Jackson’s girlfriend eventually leaves
the movie theater because she is so afraid. Jackson chases after her. As they
walk down the street together, he breaks out in song, introducing “Thriller”.
After they pass a graveyard, zombies begin to emerge from their graves. They
circle Jackson and his girlfriend until he becomes a zombie himself and reveals
his eccentric dance moves.
In addition to the simple story line and
Jackson’s electrifying dance moves, the “Thriller” music video’s intent to
entertain is evident due to the absence of heavy, serious material. There is no
“deeper meaning” in this video. Jackson did not create this video in the hopes
that the viewers would donate money to help starving, blind children in the
deserts of Africa, rather he created this video so that it would be enjoyable
and entertaining to its audience.
Thanks Caitlin. I have a couple things to offer. First, this post is technically very well written. I found it quite easy to read.
ReplyDeleteMy only real issue is that the majority of your analysis, which you present in your second paragraph, reads more like a summary than actual analysis. I am noticing this in a lot of responses. While I agree that Jackson's primary intent might have been to entertain, I think you could have extracted more specific, or substantive details to prove this. Most of your analysis just reads like a summary, with sentences like, "The video presents an evolving story that is intended to captivate and maintain the viewers’ attention," interjected. This really isn't analysis.
You do a pretty good job establishing how an audience might be entertained by stock scenes (i.e. the monster chasing the girl and the scared girl in the theatre). However, I think it is too simple to simply state that these scenes entertain. Why did Jackson choose these scenes? What is the relationship between the horror story and the love story? There appear to be several stories nested into one another in this video. It is quite complex. You don't address any of this. Again, I agree with your statement about Jackson's purpose. Unfortunately, you offer very little to explain or justify this interpretation other than the fact that he uses traditional scenes. Perhaps the greatest proof that Jackson seeks to entertain, and that he is successful, is that the audience in the theatre reacts favorably. This audience proves that Jackson accomplishes his purpose.