Analysis of Eminem ft. Dido - Stan

Category –

The video is a mixture between narrative and performance. This is because it contains a visual story, which is easy to follow, but it also contains Eminem performing and rapping.

Genre –

Hip Hop

Goodwin’s analysis –

Andrew Goodwin identified six points of music videos.

1) Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics

It demonstrates genre characteristics because at one point we see Eminem performing on stage with Stan watching him from the crowd.

2) There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals

The lyrics act as a narrative device. For example, when he mentions him and his brother waiting out in the cold for 4 hours, it shows them stood outside the venue.

3) There is a relationship between music and visuals

As the music starts to become more intense Stan becomes increasingly angry.

4) The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups

There are many close ups of both Stan and Eminem lip-syncing to the song

5) There is frequently reference to notion of looking are particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.

Stan watches video clips of Eminem on his TV.

6) There is often intertextual reference

There is no intertextual reference in this video.

Camera use –

There are birds’ eye view camera angles when Stan is in the bathroom and when his girlfriend is sat on the toilet. There is an extreme close up on the envelope addressed to Eminem, because the song is about how annoyed he is that his idol has ignored him. Shallow depth of field is used when Dido is singing and looking in the fridge, and when Stan is watching Eminem on the TV in the background. Mid-shots are used when Stan is destroying his room full of Eminem posters, so you can see his body language and the force that he swings the bat at. This gives you a sense of how angry he is. Throughout the video, especially when Stan is in the car on the bridge, close ups are used to show the angry face expression he has. When the car falls off the bridge and into the water, the camera is handheld, to give the impression that the camera is in the car with Stan. Long shots are used in the scene where Stan’s brother is visiting his grave with the woman. This allows you to see the scenery as well as the way in which they are stood.

Use of props, costumes –

What Stan is wearing is very similar to what Eminem is wearing because he is constantly trying to be like his idol. We see him dying his hair at the beginning the same colour as Eminem’s as well.

Locations –

The music video is mainly set in Stan’s house. It is filmed in 4 different rooms in his house; his bathroom, his bedroom, his basement and his kitchen. By showing something Eminem related in every room, the audience could clearly see Stan’s Eminem obsession. The house also looks very run-down, symbolizing Stan’s deteriorating wellbeing, and it almost looks as though he is idolizing Eminem because of this.

Lighting –

The lighting is bright when it is showing Eminem, but when it is showing Stan, the lighting is dark. Also when Stan’s brother and the woman are visiting Stan’s grave, lighting is used to give the effect of lightning, to add to the somber mood of the shot.

Editing –

The flashbacks are blurred and black and white. After the car is pulled from the water, there is a news report, while Eminem remembers what he saw on the news. There is writing on the screen with the news reporters name and the name of the news channel. The speed of the editing is quite slow when the tempo of the song is also slow. It speeds up as the song progresses to indicate more intensity in the lyrics and as he gets increasingly angry.

SFX –

When Eminem is in his trailer, he thinks about the story he heard on the news about Stan, and then there is a lightning flash, and his face appears in the window next to him in a bloom affect. When Stan is looking in the mirror, he sees Eminem in the mirror.