Kennedy Park

                               

U2's Bonofied Videos Over The Edge of Time

What started out as just a 70's high school band in Dublin, not only turned out to be one of the greatest alternative-rock bands of all time but one of the few bands to continue generating new music over the past three decades.

1980’s “Pride (In the Name of Love)” (1984)

Album: Unforgettable Fire

Director: Donald Cammell

Context: This song was written as a tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. and his politcal platform of peace. The video is intended to serve as reminder for humanity to appreciate the shared moments of hope and promise.

Content: In the video, Bono (lead singer for U2) is showcased singing this song in an empty “rehearsal setting” with the rest of the band while young children have snuck in the back to watch.

Form: The video features a few takes of close-up shots, which primarily consist of Bono’s face. However, the majority of the video is comprised of panning, where the shot continuously moves from the right of the frame to the left, while the subjects remain in the moment of their thoughts and actions. Between each of these shots are faded transitions. The band playing gradually fades into Bono's face and then gradually fades into the children smiling the back. In the opening and closing portions of the video, you see Dublin’s abandoned plants and warehouse from aerial shots. In the 80s, it was common to see worn-down industrial buildings being showcased in films as symbolic embodiments of the economies’ decline in production. Yet the most 80’s aspect of the film occurs at the end of the video when Bono is shown epically jumping of the stage in slow-motion.

Industrial Shot

Fade Transition

Close-up shot

1990’s “Even Better Than the Real Thing” (1992)

Album: Achtung Baby

Director: Kevin Godley

Context: The music video incorporated doppelgängers, instead of the real band members. The small portion of footage that is actually of U2 is cut from them performing previously at various venues.

Content: The “look-alikes” are performing the song while in an optical fantasy of television.   

Form: This video is all about the special effects. In fact, it won the 19992 MTV Video Music Award for “Best Special Effects” for its 360-degree camera rollover rig that was specially designed for the video. This camera films its subjects in a continuous circular motion from the top of their heads to between their legs, a revolutionary approach for its time. Continuing with the technological theme, the video also possesses a portion that features the depiction of scanning through channels, giving the audience the idea that this is all occurring through a television. It then features transitions of images from television segments that appear lighting fast, one right after the other, with video clips positioned off to the side.

TV Excerpt Pasted onto the Video

Top View of the Drummer from the 360-degree Camera

2000’s “Magnificent” (2009)

Album: No Line on the Horizon

Director: Alex Courtes

Context: This video was filmed in the Moroccan city of Fez.

Content: The people of the city are worshipping a newly found hope in God and life.

Form: This video features the handheld shot of shaky and uneasy frames to not only create a sense of realism but to lure the audience into the lives of the people. Another technique that is utilized is the low angle shot, which occurs in the scenes of the man rejoicing in the sun. From this point of view, the man fills the majority of the frame, giving the audience the sense that he is larger than life, or more importantly perhaps, the feeling that he is experiencing. The main aesthetic of the video is the animated white sheets that are gradually being lifted off the city. The effortless movement of the sheets floating in the sky creates this utopic feeling of relief. The video is designed to establish a moment of introspection for the audience instead of being purely for entertainment. A video constructed for deeper meaning.

The White Sheet Animations

The Low Angle Shot