Mariah Carey: Vision of Love (Video Analysis)

·         Mise en Scene

~empty house with staircase and large window: suggests visuals aren’t entirely significant within the scene and could possibly suggest a certain elegance and emptiness to the song

~wearing all black (black shirt, leggings): suggests a simplicity to the visuals of the video and allows less focus to be on Carey sexually and more focus on her vocals and the song

~she let her hair out, curly and barely any make-up: appears more relaxed and at-one-with-herself and portrays the idea that finding love helped her with that – “I had a vision of love, and it was all that you’ve given to me”

~placement of tree and swing: typically, this can be linked to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden (idolised as a utopia) so as she sings about her ‘vision of love’, the audience gain the idea that she envisions this idea she has as a utopia

·         Editing

~special effects: these portray the evolution of music videos as well as suggesting the previous idea of creating a magical setting for the video (use of dark sunsets, bright blue skies) but it could also suggest the days passing by her as she awaits the love she envisions of having

~singing points: she is shown singing the majority of softer vocals placed in the window whilst belting out the stronger sounds in front of the microphone

·         Camera Shots

~close ups of her face: to portray her emotions as she sings the lyrics (creates a more intimate tone) and to show off the singer’s beautiful features in more detail

~panning across the stairway (done at beginning and end): alongside the beginning melody of the song, it creates a magical tone for the video to start and end on (linking in with the idea that she is talking about love as something perfect and magical: utopia)

~tilt shot of her singing into microphone: done slowly, it can suggest something gentle and dream-like – again linking into the ‘vision of love’

~wide shot of location: establishes the setting and allows the audience to gain some sort of idea as to what the visuals of the video will involve (dream-like, mystical: matches the voice of the singer, in a way)

·         Sound

~song is played over the narrative: keeps the song heard loud and clear whilst allowing the director to play more with visuals and narrative for the video: however, not too many visuals used within the video (keeping singer and song in spotlight) so that the video truly portrays the significance the song has for her and her passion for it

·         Goodwin’s theory

~compliments link between the visuals and music: Carey's clothing and the settings surrounding her portray a more mystical and dream-like state she appears to be in, and the music's melody has the effects of sprinkling magic at the start of the track with a slow tune that flows alongside the visuals
~certain genre characteristics: music with a personality (can vary in sound), strong emotions that leads to strong vocals full of passion, typically sung by singers with magnificent vocals
~have intertextual references: the tree could represent Adam and Eve and the utopia the couple live in (the kind of place Carey possibly envisions as her idea of love)
~notions of looking: she is stood in front of a mirror at one point, cradling her arms around her body and rocks side-to-side which portrays Carey holding herself up as she awaits the man who will fulfill her 'vision of love': "carried the weight on my own"
~demands of the record label: a lot of close-ups of her face and the use of a tilt shot as she sings creates an idea of her being sexualised but is covered up enough to have it fall in tune with the music instead
~narrative/performance based: it is mostly performance based with Carey singing with a microphone, sat by the window, etc however, there are some hints of a narrative within the video with Carey sat on a swing cradling a cat into her chest and then sprawled upon the stairway - allows the song to be in the spotlight and has Carey's vocals become the significant factor of the video