A deconstruction of the music video The Middle by Jimmy Eat World for my A2 Media Research & Planning.

1. Music Video
Deconstruction
The Middle – Jimmy Eat World (2001, Interscope
Records)

2. Goodwin‟s Features Of Music
Videos
 Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics (eg. Stage
performance in metal video, dance routine for boy/girl band).
 There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals (either
illustrative, amplifying or contradicting).
 There is a relationship between music and visuals (either
illustrative, amplifying or contradicting).
 The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of
close-ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which
recur across their work (a visual style).
 There is frequently reference to the notion of looking (screens
within screens, telescopes, etc) and particularly voyeuristic
treatment of the female body.
 There is often intertextual reference (to films, TV
programmes, other music videos etc).

3. Feature One
 The whole video features around the band playing at a house
party, which fits the generic idea of punk-rock focusing on the
performance side of a band video, rather than the narrative
or conceptual aspects.
 There is a storyline running parallel to the video, but it is not
focused on in an entirely narrative way, seen almost as
irrelevant to the lyrics or music at first.

4. Feature Two
 The lyrics talk of independence, and being yourself: “don‟t
write yourself off yet, you know you‟re doing better on your
own”. This relates to the narrative in the video as the teenage
boy who is made into the main character is trying to resist the
peer pressure of joining in the party in his underwear.
Alone even when in
a crowd!

5. Feature Three
 There is a slight relationship between the music and
visuals, but it is not very defined. There is a bit of on-beat
editing where the camera cuts on beat to the track, which
denotes the power of the beat somewhat.
 The crowd are jumping in time to the drum beat which
creates a connotation of them listening and enjoying the
music, even if it was actually silent when the video was being
filmed.
 When the camera is underwater in the swimming pool, the
track sounds muffled to reflect this.
 The camera underwater >

6. Feature Four
 There are lots of close-ups of the band, which promote them
as a group. Also, the close-ups always seem to heavily
feature the lead singer, which is similar to lots of punk-rock
videos, such as The Ramones‟ “Poison Heart”
(deconstructed below).
 The idea of the band playing at a high school type party is
connoted by the young adults and the fact that it is in a house
as most typical student parties were. This relates to the
album cover nicely which is of high school trophies, and the
whole album “Bleed American” featured along the same
lines.

7. Feature Five
 The idea of looking is presented through the main
character, who watches the crowds of people, whether when
he checks the fridge, looks through the window or just
watches in general.
 The treatment of a female‟s body is shown as quite
voyeuristic because of the nature of the party; everyone is in
their underwear. The girls are all presented as being quite
attractive and shown in bras and underwear, being „checked
out‟ by the other guys and girls present.

8. Feature Six
 There is intertextuality within this clip in the idea that the
whole video focuses around knowing what is happening; a
house party with what are connoted as young
students, possibly at college or university.
 This can only be worked out if one has been to or seen on
television a generic American house party. They are shown in
television shows very often which would mean that lots of
people would understand the reference.

9. Overall...
 The video contrasts slightly with The Ramones‟ video, in that
the narrative is integrated with the performance rather than
flicking between the two.
 The comparison of close-ups and ideas of music/lyric/visuals
relationships are all pretty similar, especially the promotion of
a logo or image relating to an album cover.