I think this video is very unique, I have never seen a music video that stars somebody else singing rather than the artist. Also, I think the narrative is very unusual, it has a very controversial topic of the obsessiveness and mental breakdown. I think the video portrays Grint in a way that is childlike and in a dreamlike state, in addition to this I think the video represents the divide between celebrities and 'average' people, and the idea that people have unrealistic goals in life. I think the video also contains slight humour by the use of actors and the fact they are very similar. They could of just used a 'regular' lookalike actor, but instead they chose someone iconic. This could make the song and the video increasingly popular by using Rupert Grint. Some people may be massive fans of the Harry Potter actor, and less of an Ed Sheeran fan, but people will be drawn to the song because the video stars one of their favourite actors.
The first part of the video shows Rupert walking down a corridor but cuts occassionaly to shots on a crowd at a concert. I think this part in the video represents the dream he has and maybe his thoughts as he walks to the venue. However, because the actor and the actual singer look so similar, for someone who has never seen the video before this would be very unexpected and could just simply seen as parellel editing.
There is an over the shoulder shot of Rupert walking down a path. The location is very flat, slightly over grown and not very pretty. This could represent the actors life as a 'normal' person and how without his dreams his life would be very plain and average. The long path in the scene could represent the long journey he will have to take to achieve his ambitions or, alternativly, how his dreams are out of reach and that its an endless road.
The shot of Rupert infront of the door bus is a mid shot but from quite a long distance away and he looks very much like Ed in the shot. The shot is still aswell and could mimic a photograph of the singer.
In terms of costuming, the 2 men wear very similar outfits, but not identical. This is the jeans, tee shirt and unzipped hooded jacket. The fact there not identical could show that Rupert and Ed are still very different and althought they may look similar, Rupert still has a long way to go before achieving his goal.
I have also studied some of the lyrics in the song and the scene they are sang in in the video.
One that stuck out to me is:
I'm gunna paint you by numbers
Colour you in
If things go right we can frame it
Put you on a wall
In my interpretation, the lyrics to me seem to connote the idea of being a child and doing dot-to-dot pictures, and if all the lines are drawn correctly, the picture can be put on display and this as a child would be something to take pride in. In terms of the song, the actor could feel like a child looking up to an idol. Also, he could be taking pride in his possessions with an 'Ed Sheeran theme'. He might go into a childlike state when he sees the star and become excited like a child would if they were to see something that was extremly important to them or they idolise. This can be supported by Ruperts facial expression, when he is looking in ore at his new piece of artwork. His facial expression looks quite vacant aswell, but this could symbolise a fantasy world or dreamlike state.
Lego is a prop that is used on occassions throughout the music video. I think that this prop is used, mainly because of its title and it could appear in this way to someone who just wants to watch the video, rather than think too much into it and interpret it. The lego could represent the idea that dreams can easily be pieced together, but just as easily broken, this links to the midshot of Rupert playing with a Lego helicopter, then dropping it and it smashes on the floor. I also think the lego represents the theme of childhood dreams as it is popular with young children. It can be made into anything you want it to and this to me connotes the idea of out of reach dreams. The use of the multi-coloured lego bricks supports the idea of childhood.
Ruperts facial expression changes frequently in the video, in my opinion this could link to the idea of growning up and how times changes, emotions come and go. I think that this could also show how Ruperts dreams can't be a reality and how angry this makes him feel.
The video also contains other props such as handmade dolls and a scrapbook, which are again very childish, but also very artist and symbolises the mind of a child which is artistic, creative and has no limits. Rupert looks at these props in a way that shows realisation, yet he still pretends to talk to the dolls, but then his face changes to look sad. This could show the end of his dream to be the singer.
Towards the end of the video, it seems as if Rupert is starting to begin to realise that this fantasy is over. He starts smashing up all the 'Ed related props' and looks angry and distraut.
Finally, after Rupert sees Ed at the end of the video, he looks shocked and in ore of him. But after this the lift doors shut and I think this represents an ending, this could be an ending of this dream, his goal to meet him or just simply the end of an era.
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