Beyonce video analysis

1. Lacey’s Repertoire of Elements – Beyoncé
Beyoncé’s prettyhurtsvideorecreatesabeautypageant,inwhichwe see femalecharacters
changingtheirappearance towinthe competition. The videoreflectsthe preparationgirlshave to
go throughbefore enteringpageants. The firstscene showsaseriesof shotsof a groupof female
characters gettingreadyina dressingroom.We can see these charactersphysicallychangingtheir
look,puttingthemselvesthroughpainandsufferingthroughthe waytheirphysique andfacial
expressionsare shown.Anexample of thiswouldbe whenafemale isshowninabacklessdress,
pinchingthe skinonherbody.Thisis an emphasisonstereotypesof girls inbeautypageants losing
weightandwillingtochange theirlooktowin.
The appearance of the womeninthe video contrastsinthe beginningandtowardsthe end.Atthe
start we see female charactersgettingready,applying makeupanddresses.Howevertowardsthe
endthese same charactersare shownwiththeirmakeuponanddressedinelegantdresses.This
conformsto stereotypesof womenbecomingobsessedwiththeirimage,alwayswantingtoimpress
male.Asthe onlymale character inthe videoisthe judge,thereforethe girlsare tryingtoimpress
the man. The girlsinthe videoall appearunhappy.Thisagainisemphasisingthe girlsare puttingon
a showto impressthe male character,usingthe false smiles,hairandmakeuptodo so.
The musicvideoshowsthe storyline of girlsenteringabeauty pageant,competingtobecome the
winner.The narrative isshownclearlyasthe storycarrieson ineach shot.Howevercrosscuts are
usedshowingBeyoncé standinginfrontof a shelvesof trophies.Thisremindsthe audience theyare
watchinga musicvideo,switchingbacktoBeyoncé singingthe song. WhenBeyoncé says“My
aspirationinlife istobe happy.”The camera thencuts to Beyoncé destroyinghertrophies.This
showsshe isnot happyinthe pageantas she has topretendto be someone she isn’t.The narrative
isshownclearlythroughthe waythe videoiseditedinchronological orderapartfromthe use of
cross cuts and cut awaysto Beyoncé singingthe song.HoweverBeyoncé singsthe songduringthe
talentpart of the musicvideo.Thismakesthe storymore believable anddoesn’tconformtoanykey
featuresof a typical popmusicvideo,withhighkeylightingandoverexaggeratedacting.

2. Propsusedin the scene are iconicof a beautypageant.Examplesof thisinclude;trophies,elegant
dresses,crownsand makeup.These propsare commonlyassociatedwithbeautypageant.Thisisa
contrast to the propsthat are seentothe girlschangingtheirappearance whichreveal more of the
seriousside behindpageants.Forexample thereisascene inwhichBeyoncé isseenwithherface
outlinedwithadottedline asasurgeontakesa needle toherface.The prop of the needle
emphasisesthe seriousrealitybehindbeautypageantsandremindthe audience thatwomenin
realitydochange theirappearance toimpressotherpeople.
Inthismusicvideothe settingisvaried.The mainsettingsare the stage where the competition
takesplace and the dressingroombackstage.Thisisdone toshow peoplesexpectationof a pageant
or a competitionandthenalsoshowthe realityof thembackstage.Neitherof these settingsuse
highkeylighting,thisisdone foradramatic and darkeffectwhichlinkstothe message andnarrative
of the songand video.Ithinkthisissuccessfullydone to emphasise the darkerside tothe narrative.
Thisagain goesagainstour expectationsof apopgenre musicvideo.The settingisalsousedtostate
the clear locationof the musicvideo.The stage anddressingtable show clearlythatthe video isset
duringa beautypageantas well asthe propsand characters.
The song‘PrettyHurts’ isusedboth diegetically andnone diegetically throughthe musicvideo.
The soundbegins of justa nondiegeticasthe womeninthe changingroomsare gettingready.This
isdone to introduce ourcharacters before goingstraightintosong.Beyoncé isintroducedtothe
stage by the pageantshowhost.A mid-shotshowsBeyoncé stoodbehindamicrophone she begins
to sing.Inthisscene the song isdiegeticasshe issingingthe song.Howeverthe camerathencutsto
the nextscene the songstarts againonlythistime nondiegeticasit is playedovershortclipsof
Beyoncé preparingherself forthe pageant.Forthe restof the videothe soundvariesbetween
diegeticandnone diegetic,showingboththe narrative andperformance style inthe video.

3. Beyoncé’s ‘PrettyHurts’musicvideodoesuse Lacey’srepertoireof elementsas characters,
iconographyandnarrative evensare used.Eventhoughthe musicvideoisamixture of the
performance andnarrative videothe contrastworkswell tosuccessfullyandclearlyshow the linear
narrative of the storyline.