Take on MeA-ha

Genre characteristicsThe clean cut sound of the synthesiser, the fast tempo, the choppy guitar rhythms, the agitated tone all identify the music as synthpop, which was extremely popular in the 80s and seems to be making a return in recent years. Synthpop can also be identified as a division of new the new wave genre, and as such we can see characteristics of new wave in the video. So, we can see some conventions of the genre in the theme of the piece- there is the idea of a romance (presented in a decidedly alternative fashion), the idea of escapism and fantasy, all of which are common features of New wave videos. You could also argue that because New Wave was a post punk movement, elements of the alternative, or features that made a departure from mainstream music conventions- such as the animated style of the video- are to be expected.

Casual yet stylish- above, we can see a few examples of costume: much like the indie genre, New Wave was intended as a departure from previous kinds of pop genres, and the star persona that came with them- so, rather than trying to sell a lifestyle as before, New Wave videos such as “Take on me” tend to play on relatability as a USP. Casual costume is an excellent way to achieve this, and in “take on me” this takes the form of flannel shirts, overcoats, and jeans.

Instruments are used here as in many synthpop/ new wave videos- to promote the groups’ skills and establish their star image as a group. This also provides a link between music and visual as defined by Andrew Goodwin.

Audiences In this video, the audience are the observers. There is not so much of a direct mode of address; but this is not the only means of communicating with the audience. The target audience for this would be male and female in equal parts and primarily middle classed young adults who, might identify with the themes in this; romance or love at first sight of the kind that is shown in the video may be an ideal that a young adult audience would aspire to. In viewing something which so heavily narrative based the audience would experience a sense of escapism; intensified by the fact that a major theme of the narrative is just that- escaping into another world, although this isn't always positive. In short, this video would have great appeal because of its romantic, escapist themes and the narrative; which provides the audience with huge opportunity for investment into the storyline and characters. Here's a kick in the teeth though; in the sequel song "The sun always shines on TV" the man turns back into a sketch and disappears. Let's hope you didn't invest too much into the storyline.

The outcome is not entirely positive; this is the cost of mixing reality and fiction. This is actual fact a metaphor for relationships, and the progression from a blinded-by-love daze to the collapse of that fiction.

The escape itself; being drawn into a different world by a handsome stranger.

Embracing said stranger in

a whirlwind romance.

NarrativeThe linear storyline narrative is an example of amplification; the director has clearly had some freedom with the way in which he interprets the lyrics. There is a very clear representation of lyrics; but rather than having a very literal representation the director has chosen to use a more indirect means of addressing the audience; making it seem almost like a story.The narrative centres around the romance between the comic book man and the reader. There is a certain hint of the "against all odds" "love conquers all" stereotype present within the video- a popular theme within the new wave genre.

AnalysisI think that the contrast between reality and fiction is a key theme within the piece. In terms of mise en scene, there is an opposition between the neutral beige and brown tones of the filmed portion of the video  and the dramatic contrast of the black and white of the animation. The reality is dull, "beige" in a very literal sense- while the escape from this reality is dramatic and intense and altogether much more entertaining. The camerawork in the video supports this idea of a contrast between fiction and reality. To do so there is the extensive use of close ups and mid shots in juxtaposition with shot reverse shots; this has the effect of creating dramatic tension and additionally promotes the band by presenting the front man Morten Hackett as the romantic hero of the piece. As was identified by Goodwin, this aims to fulfil the demands of the record label by establishing audience recognition of the artist- and by presenting him in a romantic light increasing his and he band’s appeal to their young adult audience.

A particular shot which interests me would be this two shot. The different components which form the mise en scene of this shot  is a clear representation of the divide between reality and fiction; and yet with the arc movement the line between the two is blurred. Initially; the man stands on one side of the mirror- which to suit the style and context closely resembles a comic panel. Through this he becomes real, while the woman becomes drawn- and thus part of the fiction.

From this... ... to this. It’s an interesting role reversal.

Believe it or not, the image above represents Hackett in an attractive, romantic light. It was a different time.

Slightly low camera angle and directional shading gives sense of dynamismStrong contrast between black

and white- visually impressiveNeutral colours give an impression of a mundane setting- lack of vibrancy

(other band members are also depicted.)

The link between visuals and music.

In addition to the use of camerawork and mise en scene to construct the image of the fictional world as being more exciting, editing is further used to support this. It is the editing is particular which forms a link between music and visuals: for the greatest dramatic effect, jump cuts are used, which are very well suited to the synthpop style as they support the jumpy, agitated tone of music and the up tempo beat. This helps to maintain the momentum of the piece and also forms a link between music and visuals. In this sense too, the video conforms to Goodwin’s theory of music videos. The animation itself is an important an important aspect of the editing process. The technique used for the animated segments of this video were created using a technique called "rotoscoping" in which each frame of a piece of footage is traced over to create a moving animation-this allows for the smooth motion seen in the video that is effective in establish the sense of visual momentum that reflects the momentum of the music.

The link between lyrics and visualsThe video is an example of narrative amplification, so while there is absolutely a strong link between lyric and visual, the visual is not a direct illustration of the lyrics.

In this close up, the accompanying lyrics are “take on me” – the visuals very strongly reflect this in the sense that this shot depicts the male character’s hand motioning for the woman to follow him. In this way, both the lyrics and the visual are enticing both the girl and the audience to be with him.

This high angle shot gives the impression that the male character is weak, vulnerable and hurt- this is further supported by the fact that the paper the image is drawn on is crumpled, which is effectively a metaphor for the collapse of that character’s reality. This sense of loss, weakness and ultimately desperation is representative of the lyrics at the conclusion of the narrative “I’ll be gone in a day or two”. Not only this, but this idea of disappearing or being “gone” is something which is also reflected stylistically at the very end, in which the character phases in between being real and animated- human and fiction. The root of the amplification can be found here: essentially, the visuals are a metaphoric means of expressing the instability of both the character and his relationship. When viewed in this light, it is easy to see this link with the lyrics strongly and consistently expressed.

Intertextual referencesThe entire piece is arguably one enormous intertextual reference to comic books. This is reflected not only stylistically by the appearance of the animated portions, and the fact that the majority of the piece is literally set inside a comic book, but the narrative expressed is also reminiscent of a comic book narrative: having a clearly defined start middle and end, a hero and an enemy who is to somewhat caricatured.

Bold, high contrast lines with areas of solid black give the impression of this character as being serious, and dangerous- with props such as the wrench which in this context connotes threat and violence , this character is identified as the villain.

Low angle of lighting casts an upward shadow, making character appear menacing- exaggeratedly so, which is very much the conventional means of presenting an enemy in a comic book.

The hero is the binary opposite to the villain- good looking, strong and charming. Aside from being the stereotypical comic book hero, there is also the sense that the star is presenting this kind of personality as ideal- which is an expression of the band’s ideology and consequently a means of constructing star image.

A more obvious example of intertextual reference can be found in the first screenshot; while in second we see a slightly more subtle example in which the setting consists of empty comic panels.

Voyeurism and notions of lookingWhile voyeurism does play a small role in the video, especially towards the end, the notion of looking is far more prominent, so much so that the video begins with an example of this. In this wide shot we see the female character looking through the comic book. She appears entirely engrossed in it. Initially this provides a level of distinction between the girl’s reality and the comic book character’s reality in that the girl is simply an observer of his reality as opposed to an actual part of it. This is further enforced by the use of this shot reverse shot sequence, which is conventionally applied to two people- here, however it applies to the girl and the comic book. In this way, the notion of looking is used not only as a means of staging the narrative, but also as a means of guiding the audiences’ focus toward the comic book- and the reality within it.

Voyeurism has a much less significant role in the video, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t present. However, in a break with convention, it is applied only to the male character- and even then it occurs within the space of about ten seconds at the conclusion of the narrative. It took a lot of pausing to capture this still at just the right moment, but this is a perfect example of the unusual combination of sweaty skin and “sultry” expression that presents itself as being attractive, hence this shot was intended as voyeurism.