Vernallis Analysis

Vernalis' theory centres around 4 key concepts that all relate to the way the music video is constructed. They are:

1. Narrative
2. Editing
3. Camera Movement and Framing
4. Diegesis

Justin Timberlake - Cry Me A River

1. Narrative

Justin Timberlake's video is, as Vernallis states, a visual response to the music. There is not always a balance between the narrative and performance we see, and the narrative is partial and fragmented, with the structure of the video disjointed in parts. The narrative in this clip is what drives the video forwards, firstly with Timberlake speaking of how heartbroken he is, and although the resolution is not entirely clear, finshing with vague closure in the sense that he gets the last laugh. The narrative/theme does seem to be displayed in a montage style.




     2. Editing








(an example of a jump cut, from one shot to the next)


The editing matches the lyrics/beat of the song, and there is very little continuity (which is a clear convention of music video editing). There are jump cuts quite regularly throughout at the end of a line of the song or on the beat. The editing can be referred to as 'foregrounded', where it is really obvious as oppose to the invisibility of continuity editing. Although there are some smooth transitions used, for example when he enters into her house, far more often there are jump cuts, breaking of the 30/180 degree rules, cutting against the movement, extreme jumps in time and space, and juxtaposed frames.


     3. Camera, Movement and Framing






According to Vernallis, when it comes to camera framing, common conventions in music videos are extremes, for example Extreme Close Ups or Extreme Long Shots, both of which are true for Cry Me a River (extreme close ups or 'beauty' shots of Timberlake's face and master shots are cut to frequently, as pictured above). The camera also moves in time to both the lyrics and the music throughout.


    4. Diegesis


Vernalli's theories about Diegesis are as follows:

• The diegesis can be revealed quite slowly
• Actions are not necessarily completed
• Characters/object movements may move to the music
• May be gaps in the audience's understanding of the diegesis - in time and space, music, performance, and narrative
• Some frames may be more important than others
• May be many repetitions

Most of the above statements are true for Cry Me a River. Although it is true that the story is about an affair from the start, more elements of the story unfold throughout the music video. His actions are not always completed or explained, and a lot of the movements of both objects (such as the car), and himself (his dance moves, for instance) are in time to the music. There are gaps in our understanding of what exactly has happened, time has clearly passed between a lot of the shots and the narrative is fuzzy. Some frames, such as him recording himself with the other girl, are more significant than others, for example the shot of him dancing through her house. There are also frequent repetitions of shots, lyrics, themes, colours, and camera positions.