Music Video Analysis - (Bruno Mars) It Will Rain

Directors: Phil Pinto & Bruno Mars (2011)
IMAGE

Costume:
Bruno's costume throughout the video is of a casual style, (jeans, grey t-shirt or checked shirt, cardigan, converse, watch, bracelet and necklace).  The casual style is reflective of the narrative idea behind the video. 'Often, music videos will cut between a narrative and a performance of the song by the band' (Steve Archer). Here the video for 'It Will Rain', the star is seen switching between narrative performance and song performance, yet the casual costume is suitable for both. Also Steve Archer says there are 3 ways in which music videos relate to the song they were created for. These are disjuncture, illustration and amplification. This music video relates to the song through illustration, as it illustrates the meaning of the lyrics and the emotions created from the feelings shared by the lyrics. The grey t-shirt is worn throughout the song performance shots and this cold colour is reflective of the lonely, lost and sad mood.

Bruno's hair is in his trade mark quiff style. Bruno is always seen with his hair in this style and this helps to keep the continuity of the star image and this is present through all the shots used in the video. This reflects Dyers ideas surrounding the star image and how it is created rather than real. Bruno is wearing minimal make-up, reflective of the mood of the song but also the fact that his is male.

Pete Fraser has stated that usually 'the main singer plays the lead role in a narrative performance' and this links to this music video as Bruno plays the lead role in the narrative performance shots.

Eye Contact:
Little/no eye contact is made between Bruno and the camera, removing the ability to directly address the audience. However this is reflective of the feelings portrayed by the lyrics of the song and how the video has been constructed to illustrate the song lyrics and genre, directly linking to Steve Archers ideas surrounding disjuncture, illustration and amplification. Through the use of no eye contact between the star and the camera, this emphasises loneliness and feeling lost and broken inside, whilst representing how the star is lost in his own little bubble. Also through the use of no eye contact, the narrative performance and song performance are clearly linked together as the same feelings are created in both sides of the performance.

Set & Location:
Both the narrative and song performances are set in an apartment. However there is a clear difference between the two. The narrative performance is set in a decorated homely looking apartment, whilst the song performance has been shot in a room of the apartment with bare walls and floorboards, with a stool which the star is positioned on, There are also a lot of buckets spaced out around the floor space to catch the drips of water from any leaks, reflecting the idea of crying and how broken and upset the star is. The lighting in the song performance shots is also duller, again reflecting the mood felt by the star and portrayed through the lyrics. This is contrasted with the brighter lighting in the narrative performance sections, reflecting the generally happier mood and the idea of happy memories and good times during the relationship.The lighting does become slightly duller towards the end of the narrative performance however, emphasising the decline of the relationship, the changes in feelings/emotions and how Bruno came to be alone.

Body Language:
Throughout the music video, the body language of Bruno is tailored to the specific shots and sections. In the narrative performance shots, his body language is happy and bold reflecting his mood whilst he was in the relationship. This is contrasted with his slumped body language and lowered head in the song performance shots, clearly expressing his lost and lonely feelings.

Colour:
The whole video has been shot in colour. For the song performance, colder colours (blues and greys) have been used again to reflect the mood of the shot. Warmer and brighter colours have been used in most of the narrative sections to reflect the happier times and memories.

Types of Shot used:
This video uses a lot of push pull focus, especially throughout the narrative performance. This makes the shots appear slightly blurry and allows the audience to see that these are memories. Also in these push pull focus shots, the woman and Bruno tend to remain in focus whilst the background is blurred, showing that his memories are focused around them and their relationship rather than where they were at the time of the memory. Also the use of push pull focus might reflect how he his looking back at the memories through teary/ watery eyes.
The push pull focus is also combined with a lot of close up shots, allowing the audience to focus on the facial expressions of Bruno and the woman, again helping to reflect the feelings and emotions felt in the memories. The close up shots allow intimacy with the star and links to Dyers paradox 2, as Bruno is both accessible and distant in the music video.
Also many two shots are used throughout the narrative performance, emphasising the interaction between the woman and Bruno and the feelings emotions of the song are clearly reflected. This links to Steve Archers ideas surrounding the three ways in which music videos relate visuals to the song, as this music video is illustrative of the song and the emotion behind it. 
Master shots are used in the video showing furniture in the apartment, but also the contrast between the rooms for the narrative performance and song performance, allowing the audience to see the contrast between the dark and happy times. The shots of furniture also help to contrast the homely feel of the narrative performance shots with the cold lonely environment of the song performance shots.
Near the end of the video a close up shot of rain on the window is used, reflects the sad and unhappy emotions at this point in the song, and also the idea of fallen tears. This shot is combined with a mix of short song performance shots showing Bruno alone and this reflects his feelings towards the loss of the relationship, presenting his feelings and emotions clearly to the audience.
2 Low angle shots have also been used to represent contrasted meanings. One low angle shot shows Bruno walking up and down the room used for most of the song performance shots, emphasising how he feels lost. The other low angle shot shown instantly after the first shows the woman and Bruno sat playing the guitar in the apartment, reflecting a strong happy relationship between them both. These narrative and song performance shots are linked together but the feelings and emotions created from them couldn't be more different.
The first and last shot of the video shows Bruno with his head lowered leaning against the window with the rain falling outside. This repeated shot gives the idea of him being stuck where he is and seeing no way forward. Also it creates the idea that he has so many things going round in his head but her hasn't moved from where we first see him, giving the impression that the audience has been allowed into his mind to see and experience what he feels. This also helps to connect the audience to the music through the star, and this idea links to Dyers theory about the relationship between the music and the audience. Also as we can see the rain falling it amplifies where he is mentally and how this has affected him.
Some of the shot lengths are quite short in places, (e.g. near the end of the video when the music's pace slows down and the beat drops out). This gives the idea of time passing quickly, possibly creating the idea of how the happy times didn't last very long.

In conclusion, the illustrative nature of the video through the mixture of song and narrative performances, allows the audience to relate to the feelings and emotions of the song and link it to similar experiences they might have had. This helps to create a relationship between the star and his/her audiences based on the idea that they have experienced similar things.