tigerlily
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Love and Light
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Post by tigerlily on May 29, 2012 10:39:13 GMT -5
What does " rickroll" mean in this context? I don't get it. It is just 9:30 AM where I live, and I've had the chance to watch the video twice. Once early this morning after cleaning up the results of my dog deciding to crap and pee all over the house during the night, and once now. I see that consensus has emerged on the list already. I hope I haven't already forfeited my right to comment because the video has been out for a grand total of six hours. I guess I'm about to find out. I was REALLY excited about this video and I confess to being a little disappointed. I am a writer and like kryptoman68, that may be most of my problem. This is just my opinion and it doesn't mean I don't like the video or hate Adam or whatever the hell it's supposed to mean. As kryptoman68 pointed out, it's just that I can't watch movies anymore without thinking "get me rewrite." The storyline here is so half-baked, and as much fun as the video is, it could have so much more with a fully drawn story concept. And I can't stop thinking about that. So I hope you will indulge me. The nature of the institution in which Adam is imprisoned is unclear. Is it a prison? Mental hospital? Work camp? Gulag? How did Adam end up there and how long has he been there? A brief glimpse of a dossier or computer screen or wanted poster could have conveyed so much interesting context here. Why is a little imaginative context important? Because after the first few seconds, the video becomes unexpectedly unmenacing. Because while we see the constant observation, we're dropped into a situation that appears static and is thus uninteresting. Adam himself is interesting to look at, of course, but since we don't know anything about him, we have no sense of any real stakes. Is he a rebel leader desperate to run to his band of merry men? Is he here to liberate these people? Is he an iconoclastic loner who is worried that he is going to be shocked or drugged to make him like these people? He doesn't seem particularly worried so why should we be on the edge of our seats? Adam becomes part of the group ... he takes a look around but finds not so much as a hint of any kindred spirits ready to rebel. It seems that everyone but Adam is a mindless beaten-down drone. No one so much as side-eyes Adam as he marches around singing at the top of his voice or crushes his pills to release the beautiful blue crystals. No guards rush in to beat him; no one is punished at any time. Why does it matter? Because imagine how much more powerful it would have been if, say, someone with a little spark, someone Adam had tried to befriend with the touch of a hand or a look, had been taken away and Adam could hear them being tortured? And then he or she had come back a mindless drone like all the others ... and then he found a message scrawled in his cell that said "YOU'RE NEXT." Yes, how much more powerful would that have been, knowing that the consequence of conformity and the numbing drugs was the crushing of the individual spirit? And knowing that that was Adam's inevitable fate unless he found a way? In writing this is called a setup and it becomes more of a problem when the rebellion actually starts. Without any setup, we don't know what Adam has in mind or why does anyone would choose to follow him. As they rush for freedom, what do they think is going to happen? What are they risking? Their freedom, their sanity, their lives? This lack of a setup also steps on the message of the song ... because it makes the video all about Adam. Without the setup, the people are not the agents of their own liberation. Adam is. And as a result, when the transformation comes, it seems too easy. All you have to do is follow Adam, and you will be transformed into a fabulous person. The guards with their white gas just fall back and disappear, and somehow the fence is gone and everyone dances madly without any work whatsoever on their part. All that said ... I loved the colorful transformation and the mad dancing, and Adam's great smirk at the end. Just wish getting there had worked better. Here goes nothing. I'm going to press Post Reply. Please don't hate me. It's a four minute video, not a two hour movie.  All the unanswered questions are there for viewers to fill-in-the-blank with their own stories or interpretations. It would have been cheesy if every detail had been spelled out in a four minute video. IMO, that would have robbed the viewers of their imaginations and sold them short. The point of Art is to make individuals think. If the artist has to explain every detail, it closes down individual interpretations and original thoughts. I like movies, music, books, videos, etc. that aren't literal and that make me think. I have an imagination. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 29, 2012 10:40:12 GMT -5
but I don't know if they will air it here in the arab worl because it hints to REVOLUTION ) :  : ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D  When we share a board that revolves around Adam it is easy to focus on the similarities between all our members regardless of where we all come from. In fact I love how this place proves that people are people, with the same interests and hearts. I marvel how I often don't realize where people are from because in so many ways we are all alike. But it is the unfortunately rare posts like the above that remind me of the diversity that coexists here. The above statement is so far from my reality. I want to acknowledge the different lives each and everyone of us has, as we type on our respective computers. Here I sit in America, proud that I am one who can see Adam's beauty when many around me seem blind. But I must give the credit to those who have to search farther for the like-minded, and actively seek out Adam--those who can't easily get his dvds or watch his videos, or openly approve of his sexuality or the politics of his videos. In our stanning of Adam, we are all fighting his battle of equality, love, fairness, voice in the world, rights of individuality, and for the simple beauty of music. But some of us are in a different place in this battle. I am truly humbled by those that live this struggle in a real way in their everyday lives. You are the best fans. And I am so thankful that technology allows me to "know" you. |
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annala
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Post by annala on May 29, 2012 10:42:22 GMT -5
Lots of interesting comments on the NCOE video. I like seeing all the varied reactions and opinions.
I think you have to watch it more than once to start picking up some of the details and nuances that pass by so quickly, like the blacked-out eyes - that was trippy.
Here are a couple of other images that came to my mind when watching the video -
The part where they were in separate box-like enclosures getting their eyes scanned reminded me of airport TSA scanning
Also the part where they were getting sprayed brought back to me the recent image of the security guard at UC Davis walking down a line of seated peaceful protesters and casually spraying them
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Post by durberville on May 29, 2012 10:45:32 GMT -5
WELCOME allegory!![/b][/size] Interesting post. I agree that Adam is on trend. Glamour Magazine had an entire article on neon. The fashion they showed looked exactly like what he and his crew were wearing on Idol. Also, I just want to add that I didn't find Adam's dark suit and colourful shirt "too conservative".....thought he looked very hip. I'm one of those people who don't anyalize ANYTHING haha! It's all about the immediate presentation for me. Lyrics? I don't give a shit - do they sound good when he sings them? Yep! Clothing? Does he look good? Yep! Music video? Do I enjoy watching it? Yep! .....you get the idea. ;D I AIN'T DEEP.
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joky
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Post by joky on May 29, 2012 10:45:36 GMT -5
However, my take is that there is no threat. This is not a prison. It is just life. It is us going about our everyday lives. Going to work, living the nine to five. There are people about us living life fabulously and we don't notice because we are too busy being the working drones that we are. The possibilities are right in front of us, but we just don't grab them. The video focuses on Adam as the individual. As in life, it is up to the individual. If we want to, we can make our life different. It is that simple and that complex. I found your questions interesting, because the questions indicate that you are looking for the enemy. The enemy is conformity and the fact that we don't even realize how much we have bought into it. Just had to say, YES, Readon, this is exactly how I interpreted it too. You really summed it up perfectly here. The sci-fi themes, etc., are just a current/fun way of sending this message. Loved it! |
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Post by itskarma on May 29, 2012 10:46:58 GMT -5
to me this makes more sense, the video serves to promote the single, why wouldn’t you want to release it to get more first week sales of a single and a number one?
It doesn't work that way here in the States. Singles don't debut as #1's. CD's do and usually with a hit single but not all the time. Singles climb to the number one spot not debut at #1. It takes lots of radio play, videos, appearances on TV etc. It's a long process. A lot of people think songs fly up the charts or debut at #1. I bought that Flo Rida/Sia song about 6 months ago at least when it was released to radio. Now it's getting all the airplay. Very, very few artists get tons of spins out of the gate. You can probably name them on one hand. Putting a video out the week before it debuts would have zero to little effect on sales here. Time and radio play drives the sales. On the video: I think it's great. I also believe Music Videos that are shot in a day are not meant to be over analyzed to death. It takes all the fun and creativity out of it. Sometimes you just need to relax and enjoy the music instead of getting caught up in the irrelevant |
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cherry
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I`ll try to keep it real. AL
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Post by cherry on May 29, 2012 10:47:14 GMT -5
What does " rickroll" mean in this context? I don't get it. It is just 9:30 AM where I live, and I've had the chance to watch the video twice. Once early this morning after cleaning up the results of my dog deciding to crap and pee all over the house during the night, and once now. I see that consensus has emerged on the list already. I hope I haven't already forfeited my right to comment because the video has been out for a grand total of six hours. I guess I'm about to find out. I was REALLY excited about this video and I confess to being a little disappointed. I am a writer and like kryptoman68, that may be most of my problem. This is just my opinion and it doesn't mean I don't like the video or hate Adam or whatever the hell it's supposed to mean. As kryptoman68 pointed out, it's just that I can't watch movies anymore without thinking "get me rewrite." The storyline here is so half-baked, and as much fun as the video is, it could have so much more with a fully drawn story concept. And I can't stop thinking about that. So I hope you will indulge me. The nature of the institution in which Adam is imprisoned is unclear. Is it a prison? Mental hospital? Work camp? Gulag? How did Adam end up there and how long has he been there? A brief glimpse of a dossier or computer screen or wanted poster could have conveyed so much interesting context here. Why is a little imaginative context important? Because after the first few seconds, the video becomes unexpectedly unmenacing. Because while we see the constant observation, we're dropped into a situation that appears static and is thus uninteresting. Adam himself is interesting to look at, of course, but since we don't know anything about him, we have no sense of any real stakes. Is he a rebel leader desperate to run to his band of merry men? Is he here to liberate these people? Is he an iconoclastic loner who is worried that he is going to be shocked or drugged to make him like these people? He doesn't seem particularly worried so why should we be on the edge of our seats? Adam becomes part of the group ... he takes a look around but finds not so much as a hint of any kindred spirits ready to rebel. It seems that everyone but Adam is a mindless beaten-down drone. No one so much as side-eyes Adam as he marches around singing at the top of his voice or crushes his pills to release the beautiful blue crystals. No guards rush in to beat him; no one is punished at any time. Why does it matter? Because imagine how much more powerful it would have been if, say, someone with a little spark, someone Adam had tried to befriend with the touch of a hand or a look, had been taken away and Adam could hear them being tortured? And then he or she had come back a mindless drone like all the others ... and then he found a message scrawled in his cell that said "YOU'RE NEXT." Yes, how much more powerful would that have been, knowing that the consequence of conformity and the numbing drugs was the crushing of the individual spirit? And knowing that that was Adam's inevitable fate unless he found a way? In writing this is called a setup and it becomes more of a problem when the rebellion actually starts. Without any setup, we don't know what Adam has in mind or why does anyone would choose to follow him. As they rush for freedom, what do they think is going to happen? What are they risking? Their freedom, their sanity, their lives? This lack of a setup also steps on the message of the song ... because it makes the video all about Adam. Without the setup, the people are not the agents of their own liberation. Adam is. And as a result, when the transformation comes, it seems too easy. All you have to do is follow Adam, and you will be transformed into a fabulous person. The guards with their white gas just fall back and disappear, and somehow the fence is gone and everyone dances madly without any work whatsoever on their part. All that said ... I loved the colorful transformation and the mad dancing, and Adam's great smirk at the end. Just wish getting there had worked better. Here goes nothing. I'm going to press Post Reply. Please don't hate me. Nothing to hate. Your take is interesting. What is the threat? What happens if you don't conform? Why is he there? Is it a prison? Those are all valid questions. However, my take is that there is no threat. This is not a prison. It is just life. It is us going about our everyday lives. Going to work, living the nine to five. There are people about us living life fabulously and we don't notice because we are too busy being the working drones that we are. The possibilities are right in front of us, but we just don't grab them.
The video focuses on Adam as the individual. As in life, it is up to the individual. If we want to, we can make our life different. It is that simple and that complex. Hello  I see it exactly the same way as you do readon! |
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Post by allegory on May 29, 2012 10:47:17 GMT -5
What does " rickroll" mean in this context? I don't get it. It is just 9:30 AM where I live, and I've had the chance to watch the video twice. Once early this morning after cleaning up the results of my dog deciding to crap and pee all over the house during the night, and once now. I see that consensus has emerged on the list already. I hope I haven't already forfeited my right to comment because the video has been out for a grand total of six hours. I guess I'm about to find out. I was REALLY excited about this video and I confess to being a little disappointed. I am a writer and like kryptoman68, that may be most of my problem. This is just my opinion and it doesn't mean I don't like the video or hate Adam or whatever the hell it's supposed to mean. As kryptoman68 pointed out, it's just that I can't watch movies anymore without thinking "get me rewrite." The storyline here is so half-baked, and as much fun as the video is, it could have so much more with a fully drawn story concept. And I can't stop thinking about that. So I hope you will indulge me. The nature of the institution in which Adam is imprisoned is unclear. Is it a prison? Mental hospital? Work camp? Gulag? How did Adam end up there and how long has he been there? A brief glimpse of a dossier or computer screen or wanted poster could have conveyed so much interesting context here. Why is a little imaginative context important? Because after the first few seconds, the video becomes unexpectedly unmenacing. Because while we see the constant observation, we're dropped into a situation that appears static and is thus uninteresting. Adam himself is interesting to look at, of course, but since we don't know anything about him, we have no sense of any real stakes. Is he a rebel leader desperate to run to his band of merry men? Is he here to liberate these people? Is he an iconoclastic loner who is worried that he is going to be shocked or drugged to make him like these people? He doesn't seem particularly worried so why should we be on the edge of our seats? Adam becomes part of the group ... he takes a look around but finds not so much as a hint of any kindred spirits ready to rebel. It seems that everyone but Adam is a mindless beaten-down drone. No one so much as side-eyes Adam as he marches around singing at the top of his voice or crushes his pills to release the beautiful blue crystals. No guards rush in to beat him; no one is punished at any time. Why does it matter? Because imagine how much more powerful it would have been if, say, someone with a little spark, someone Adam had tried to befriend with the touch of a hand or a look, had been taken away and Adam could hear them being tortured? And then he or she had come back a mindless drone like all the others ... and then he found a message scrawled in his cell that said "YOU'RE NEXT." Yes, how much more powerful would that have been, knowing that the consequence of conformity and the numbing drugs was the crushing of the individual spirit? And knowing that that was Adam's inevitable fate unless he found a way? In writing this is called a setup and it becomes more of a problem when the rebellion actually starts. Without any setup, we don't know what Adam has in mind or why does anyone would choose to follow him. As they rush for freedom, what do they think is going to happen? What are they risking? Their freedom, their sanity, their lives? This lack of a setup also steps on the message of the song ... because it makes the video all about Adam. Without the setup, the people are not the agents of their own liberation. Adam is. And as a result, when the transformation comes, it seems too easy. All you have to do is follow Adam, and you will be transformed into a fabulous person. The guards with their white gas just fall back and disappear, and somehow the fence is gone and everyone dances madly without any work whatsoever on their part. All that said ... I loved the colorful transformation and the mad dancing, and Adam's great smirk at the end. Just wish getting there had worked better. Here goes nothing. I'm going to press Post Reply. Please don't hate me. If I'm not mistaken, Adam has mentioned that while he doesn't go into a project thinking about having to spoon feed his fans with complex explanations of his art, he will to an extent. But he prefers leaving something to the imagination and some art open to interpretation. Even in his music. Just like BTIKM video. Imagination. Questioning. Not that it matters because the outcome is the same...if you're viewing it literally... but is it a mental hosp or a prison or a research center? Why should he tell you and limit your creativity? Take it literally or take it as a metaphor about living it's up to US! Expanding people's thought processes. While he's not the first to do this, (Gaga Bad Romance), he's taking a risk right there, in that people want the exact opposite of what he's offering. Or want more than he's offering in 4 minutes on a newbie budget. Or feel that they could deliver HIS concept better than he can. the list is endless, IMO. I love the video and props to Adam for his courage in taking arrows and not compromising in delivering a bland concert in a desert, or Kesha running from the po po or some other more mundane version of a song video. Ultimately, I think he knows that no matter what he does, in 4 minutes, plenty of people are going to go in every possible opposite direction with criticism, critiques and analysis. |
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murly
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Life's my light and liberty and I shine when I want to shine.
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Post by murly on May 29, 2012 10:49:13 GMT -5
THIS. I'm a bit perplexed by those who seem to think there should be more plot, more exposition, and more character development. Frankly, I'm impressed with how much Adam does manage to tell us about this world in just four minutes! There's a beginning, a middle, and an end, and the people in the video progress from being mindless drones to being free. In four minutes! I think they did a great job telling a complete story and making it a lot of fun to watch! I love this video!
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ljsmack
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Post by ljsmack on May 29, 2012 10:52:28 GMT -5
Right on, Readon!!! Of course that's because I agree with your interpretation. If they ever make Never Close Our Eyes--the Movie, I want Juniemoon to write it and SusieFierce and lucynovember to edit it. Kanadie can work on sound, and I will sit happily in the audience with Adamrocks enjoying popcorn and drooling!
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