Postmodernism is a critical perspective or ideology that emerged in the 1960s as a reaction to the modernist worldview that had existed previously. Although there is much deliberation over how to define the theory, there are a few characteristics that are agreed to make a media text postmodern. These include: intertextuality, a sense of style over substance, incredulity towards metanarratives, pastiche, self-awareness, black humour, irony, relativism. By the 1980s, postmodernism was more than a theory, it had become a condition; even now we live in a postmodern world. The case studies I am defining as postmodern are: Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982), Scream (Wes Craven, 1996) and its sequels, Flight of the Conchords (series one episode six, 'Bowie', 2007), Telephone (Jonas Ackerlund, 2010), and Portal (Valve Corporation, 2007).
Blade Runner is a futuristic film noir set in dystopian LA, following Deckard (Harrison Ford) as he kills out of control 'replicants' - beings which look exactly like humans but are in fact manufactured. It has been recognised as a landmark in postmodern cinema due to, amongst other things, its unique bricolage of styles and extensive use of pastiche. For example, Deckard's apartment is constructed of an array of architectural designs and styles that are simultaneously futuristic and historical, and the city of LA has been heavily influenced by Japanese iconography. The film itself is a hybrid of science-fiction and film noir, making it postmodern in its essence. Another feature of postmodernism that is displayed by Blade Runner is the product placement of companies such as Coca-Cola, Atari, Pan Am, and The Bell System that is so overtly seen in the city. The confusion over time and space is also characteristic of postmodernism, as the replicants only live for four years it could be said that they live "a disconnected temporality" (Bruno, 1990) and the film presents the idea of accelerated change and consumption of time. Additionally, the pastiche used and the way in which the dystopian LA is both futuristic and retro creates an ambiguous setting in terms of time. This ambiguity is also present in the character of Deckard as he is never confirmed as either human or replicant. It has been said by Scott that he considered him to be a replicant, but Philip K. Dick, author of the book the film was based on, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, and Ford have stated that they both thought of Deckard as a human. Hence it is merely a matter of perspective or interpretation, and this relativist way of thinking is inherent in the postmodern ideology.
The trend of postmodern film was still present in the 1990s, though it had a different twist. '90s postmodernism is perhaps best depicted in Scream, which is a pastiche of the slasher movie genre. The film became a franchise with the release of three sequels, the most recent of which being released in 2011. All four Scream films can be considered postmodern due to the theme of self-referentiality. For example, the very concept of the films acknowledges the fact that the audience have seen - and thus know the conventions of - horror movies such as Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960) and Halloween (John Carpenter, 1978). By doing this the films are inviting the audience to comment on the predictability of the genre; in Scream 4 a character even comments on how the postmodern pastiche of the slasher movie has been done before, and there are films released within the films that are based on the storyline of the 'real life' Woodsboro murders. Perhaps one of the most self-reflective parts of the film is the character of Randy (Jamie Kennedy), a horror film enthusiast who is obsessed with the 'rules' of surviving a horror movie. His explanation of these - do not answer the phone, do not have sex, do not leave the room stating "I'll be right back" - whilst watching Halloween also links to another postmodern element: intertextuality. This is enforced by the trivia questions that Casey Becker (Drew Barrymore) must answer whilst being tortured by the killer 'Ghostface', during which she says of the Nightmare on Elm Street films, "the first one was good and the rest sucked," an opinion which is ironically held by many regarding the Scream films. Some other examples of pastiche of horror conventions in the saga include: iconography od knives and masks, the concept of the 'final girl' (the stereotypical, usually virginal - though not in Scream - who survives at the end of a horror film), the isolated houses and settings, the equilibrium-disruption-new equilibrium narrative structure of Todorov, and the use of teenage characters.
As we live in a postmodern condition, elements of the theory are still saturated in the media today, and not just in films. Flight of the Conchords is a sitcom television series created by HBO that follows the lives of real-life band 'Flight of the Conchords', Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement, who play fictionalised versions of themselves called Bret McClegnie and Jemaine Clemaine. This is in itself postmodern as it is an example of self-referencing and the blurring of boundaries between what is real and what is fake - what Jean Baudrillard called 'hyperreality'. The characters also use direct address when they break into song or perform music videos, breaking 'the fourth wall'. Specifically the episode 'Bowie' (series one, episode six) is a perfect example of postmodernism existing today. In it Bret is visited by visions of 'David Bowie' (who is actually Jemaine dressed as David Bowie) offering him advice on his image issues. This also exhibits self-referentiality as Bret refers to 'David Bowie' as 'Jemaine'. In addition this obviously presents the postmodern theme of surrealism, which can also be seen through the 'cut-and-paste' style animation of the opening sequence where everyday objects such as mugs dance to the theme tune; the music video sequences interspersed with standard sitcom humour; the hybrid of genres that the show consists of (comedy, structured reality, musical series). This bizarre surrealist style of comedy links to the concept of 'style over substance', another postmodern ideal, as there is a heavy focus on the visual style of the programme rather than the plot lines, which remain simple. For example in 'Bowie', the narrative is simply that Bret loses confidence but regains it when David Bowie visits him in a dream and the band win a deal with a musical card company. However, what the episode may lack in plot lines it makes up for in the eccentric dream sequences and music video 'Bowie's in Space'. Flight displays pastiche as some episodes are based on specific musical styles or celebrities, in this case David Bowie.
Bret McKenzie's postmodern style of humour can also be seen in the 2011 film The Muppets, starring Jason Segel and Amy Adams, for which he was music supervisor and writer of some of the songs, including the Academy Award-winning 'Man or Muppet'. Elements of postmodernism in The Muppets include pastiche of musical genres (as seen in 'Man or Muppet'), style over substance, recycling of old ideas, extensive self referencing and ironic sense of humour (such as the Muppets tribute band called 'The Moopets', which features legendary musician Dave Grohl as Animal, the drummer).
Another example of recent postmodern media could be the work of Lady Gaga, especially her music videos for 'Marry the Night' (2012) and 'Telephone'. For example, there is extensive use of pastiche and intertextuality, particularly to the films of Quentin Tarantino, e.g. the 'Pussy Wagon' is taken directly from Tarantino's Kill Bill franchise (2003, 2004), the red and yellow font used at the beginning of the video is remiscent of that of Jackie Brown (1997), the use of the nickname 'Honey Bee' links to the character of 'Honey Bunny' in Pulp Fiction (1994). Gaga also pastiches Michael Jackson through her shuffle dance when she escapes from prison, Wonder Woman through Beyonce's outfit, and Madonna because of her hair/make-up style at the beginning of the video. 'Telephone' also displays the postmodern condition due to the concept of consumerism and regular product placement of, amongst others, Virgin Mobile, Wonderbread, HeartBeats headphones, Chevrolet and Diet Coke. This product placement also serves as an example of self-referencing as HeartBeats are one of Gaga's merchandise items and the product placement in general gives the video a sense of self-awareness. This is enforced by the way in which she addresses the hermaphrodite rumours that were in the press at the time, the continuing narrative from 'Paparazzi', and the similar costume choices to 'Paparazzi', e.g. the Mickey Mouse sunglasses that Beyonce wears in the diner scene. Another postmodern element to this video is the appropriation of an identity-based struggle, in this case feminism. It could be argued that Gaga, Beyonce, and the female dancers are objectified as they all wear revealing outfits, there are at times close-up shots of just Beyonce's cleavage, and overall it is implied that women need to be beautiful and image-conscious due to the many costume and make-up changes. However, it could also be argued that by placing herself in an entirely female world she is empowering women and subverting the male gaze. Overall 'Telephone' suggests an incredulity towards metanarratives because, although it does consist of a sequence of events, it is difficult to find a modernist moral or message amongst the pop culture references, product placement and 'style over substance'.
Another medium which usually utilises the postmodern theory is the video game. Because of the change in relationship between the text and the audience, all video games are generically postmodern. A perfect example of a postmodern video game is Portal - and its sequel Portal 2 - which both display many of the aforementioned postmodern characteristics. It is self-referential because it draws attention to the fact that essentially all video games with a narrative boil down to taking orders from somebody else to achieve a goal. Moreover, at the end of the Portal, it overtly acknowledges that the audience only cares about "beating" the game and not the fate of the protagonist, as the player can complete the game but Chell, the protagonist, does not win, and GLaDOS, the antagonist, sings about how she is definitely still alive. Portal 2 is especially postmodern because of the use of bricolage and pastiche which are reminiscent of Blade Runner; it too is both futuristic and retro because although it is set in a futuristic science centre, it has become decayed and is overcom by nature. Hence they share the dystopian future setting. Both games can be described as postmodern due to their dark, tongue-in-cheek humour which implies a sense of self-awareness; it is a video game that knows it is only a video game. The first game even spawned the internet meme "the cake is a lie", as Chell is constantly promised cake when she finishes the tasks, and the addition of the character of Wheatley (Stephen Merchant) supplies the second game with even more sarcastic jokes.
Although it has been argued that the postmodern movement has come to an end, I believe that the above examples reflect that even today, we live in a postmodern world. The postmodern condition is inherent to contemporary media and because of the digital revolution, the future looks to be even more postmodern, with audiences gaining more control over what media is being produced. Furthermore, with the introduction of augmented reality and structured reality' TV programmes such as The Hills, The Only Way Is Essex, and Made In Chelsea, the boundaries between reality and hyperreality are blended even further.
Wednesday 2 May 2012
Wednesday 25 April 2012
Monday 12 March 2012
Wednesday 29 February 2012
Monday 27 February 2012
Analyse one of your coursework productions in relation to the concept of audience
In terms of constructing a media text – in the case of my A2 coursework, a music video – considering audience is essential. When creating my music video for the song ‘Short Skirt Long Jacket’ by Cake, I thought extensively about the kind of people I was appealing to and how I would do this. The target audience for my video is mainly heterosexual males ages 16-25, due to the fact that all my models are girls that fall into this same age category, and the lyrics of the song describe an ideal woman. Throughout the process of making my music video, I asked members of my target audience to look at my ideas and work and give me feedback so that I could ensure that it was specifically tailored to the wants and needs of my audience. I did this through polls on my blog and regular feedback forms.
We can apply Bulmer and Katz’ Uses and Gratifications theory to my music video, which has four reasons as to why audiences consume media texts: entertainment, which is for the purposes of escapism and diversion; surveillance, which is for the purpose of obtaining information; personal identity, which suggests that the audience relate to the characters and situations; personal relationships, which suggests that the audience look to the media text as a way of connecting with those around them. We can deduce that the audience would use my music video for primarily entertainment, as part of the purpose of music videos is pleasure, and also possibly personal relationships, as music videos are often talked about as much as television programmes or films, particularly those that are especially controversial, provocative, or innovative. However, the other two points of the theory – personal identity and information – do not really apply to music videos necessarily, although it could be argued that some female viewers may see the models in my video in an aspirational sense.
Laura Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze can be applied to my music video as I used close-ups of the models’ eyes, lips, legs, and hair which act to eroticise and sexualise them. Mulvey identified two types of the male gaze: ‘voyeuristic’ and ‘fetishistic’. Voyeurism refers to seeing women as ‘whores’, whilst fetishism refers to seeing women as ‘madonnas’. My music video conforms more to the fetishistic interpretation of the male gaze as the lyrics of the song mean that the models are seen as fantasies and admired, rather than objectified.
Another way of looking at how audiences consume media is reception theory, which is based on Stuart Hall’s encoding model. It argues that producers encode meaning into a media text and audience then in turn decode it. When creating my music video, I encoded meaning in many ways. For example, I shot the entire video in extreme close-up and used many different models so that the ideal woman that the song is about is never shown in full. This ensured that the audience saw her as a fantasy, and that she was represented as an unachievable perfect woman that is more an amalgamation of many different women rather than one real-life person. I used iconic signifiers of femininity to connect with the audience, for example: red lipstick, long eyelashes, jewellery, high heels, short skirts, lace, etc. This made sure the audience saw the models as beautiful and links to attracting a male audience and Mulvey’s concept of seeing women as ‘madonnas’. Although it could be argued that my music video conforms to the stereotype of women due to the way that the models are dressed and made-up and additionally some of the props that are used – for example a blender, typical domestic kitchenware that links directly to the traditional feminine role – it could also be said that there are aspects of both the lyrics and the accompanying video that contrast with this image. For example, I have one shot of a girl playing with model cars as the lyrics are, “she’s changing her MG for white Chrysler Le Baron”, which contradicts the stereotype of women.
To conclude, I created my music video with a specific audience in mind, and ensured that they would be attracted to, understand and enjoy my music video through the process of research and feedback.
Sunday 19 February 2012
Tuesday 3 January 2012
'Bowie's in Space' - Flight of the Conchords
This is the song 'Bowie's in Space' taken from the episode 'Bowie' (series one episode six) of Flight of the Conchords, as referenced in the below essay
Postmodernism in 'Flight of the Conchords' Essay
Flight of the Conchords is an American television comedy series that premiered in 2007, though it began as a radio show two years earlier. It follows the attempts of the band Flight of the Conchords – “New Zealand's fourth most popular guitar-based digi-bongo acapella-rap-funk-comedy-folk-duo" – to make it New York City. The band exist in real-life and the show features much of their award-winning music, with the characters Bret McClegnie and Jemaine Clemaine played by Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement. The rest of the main cast is made up of the band’s hopeless but enthusiastic manager Murray (Rhys Darby), their sole fan and stalker Mel (Kristen Schaal) and their best friend Dave (Arj Barker). The show was critically acclaimed and ran for two series but in 2009 the writers, directors and performers McKenzie and Clement announced that it would not be returning for a third series.
One of the main ways in which Flight of the Conchords can be seen as postmodern is its sense of surrealism. Whilst the characters’ lives are relatively mundane and ordinary, the show contrasts this with bizarre surrealist comedy. From the opening sequence the sense of bizarre is established by the cut-and-paste animation and the use of animation of ordinary inanimate objects, such as dancing salt and pepper pots, trees, park benches, and mugs. This is enforced further by the mix of standard sitcom style and music video sequences used when the characters spontaneously break into song. For example, at the end of ‘Bowie’ (series one, episode six), Bret and Jemaine perform a song in the style of David Bowie accompanied by a music video set in space. Additionally throughout the episode Bret is plagued by vivid dreams where David Bowie (played by Jemaine Clement) visits him with bizarre advice: “oh the media monkeys and their junkie-junkies will invite you to the plastic pantomime, throw their invites away!” and “get an eyepatch, man.” The show can further be seen as a mix of styles through the hybrid of genres it falls into: it is at once comedy, structured reality, musical series, etc. The overt surrealism and contrast in styles are characteristic of postmodern media.
Another way the text features postmodern themes is through self-referentiality. This is most obvious in the fact that the band in the TV show exist in real life, and Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement play these fictionalised versions of themselves. Moreover within the music video scenes of the show, the characters use direct address when talking to the camera, something which can also be seen in the ‘Bowie’s in Space’ song from the episode ‘Bowie’. In fact when David Bowie – who is actually just Jemaine in a Bowie costume – first appears to Bret in a dream, there is more self-referencing evident in his reaction: “Bret: Jemaine? What are you doing? / ‘David Bowie’: It’s not Jemaine. It’s 1972 David Bowie from the Ziggy Stardust tour. / Bret: Wow. You look a lot like Jemaine.” This comment, along with the tongue-in-cheek comedy and music video scenes, create a sense of self-awareness that runs through both series of the show.
As well as referencing themselves, the characters often make references to other media, with episodes sometimes focusing on one particular celebrity or style of music, for example the references to Yoko Ono through the character of Coco in ‘Yoko’ (series one episode four), Daft Punk in ‘Sally’ (series one episode one), the rap/hip-hop style of music in ‘Mugged’ (series one episode three). This use of pastiche also connotes the idea of celebrity culture, which is further evoked in the character of Mel, who although married follows Bret and Jemaine regularly and sometimes describes sexual fantasies involving the two of them. The adoption of different musical styles from episode to episode allows the band to play with the conventions of different musical genres, which is another feature of postmodern texts. For example, in the episode ‘Sally’, Jemaine sings the song ‘The Most Beautiful Girl (In The Room)’, which parodies love songs by taking a more realistic approach to the lyrics: “you’re so beautiful, you could be a part-time model... but you’d probably still have to keep your normal job,” describing Sally as “the most beautiful girl I have ever seen with a kebab.” Throughout the episode ‘Bowie’, both Bret and Jemaine make references to different points in David Bowie’s career, including: Jemaine appearing as “1972 David Bowie from the Ziggy Stardust tour”, “1982 David Bowie from the music video Ashes to Ashes”, and “1986 David Bowie from the movie Labyrinth”; the Space Oddity style video and lyrics to ‘Bowie’s in Space’; the mention of Changes in ‘Bowie’s in Space’ when Bret says, “hey Bowie, do you have one really funky sequined spacesuit or do you have several ch-changes?”
The pastiche used also suggests more of a concern for style than substance, which is reflected in the simple plot lines of the show. For example in ‘Bowie’, Bret becomes image conscious after a band photoshoot, but gains his confidence in time to mess up an interview for a musical greetings card. Although the narrative may not be complex, the visual style of the episode, particularly the dream sequences and music video scene, are where most of the focus is. Furthermore the fact that Bret becomes so concerned with the way he looks also conforms with the ‘style over substance’ aspect of postmodernism, and this is a theme which reoccurs throughout the programme: in ‘Bret Gives Up the Dream’ (series one episode two) the band are upstaged by a flashier Australian stall at a gig at a travel expo; the band try to get a rockstar image in both ‘What Goes on Tour’ (series one episode nine) and ‘New Fans’ (series one episode ten); they become addicted to hair gel when trying to look cool in ‘New Zealand Town’ (series two episode eight).
The comedy in Flight of the Conchords overall is very dry and tongue-in-cheek, with parts that could be interpreted as ironic, such as the mocking of the band’s homeland New Zealand through the posters in Murray’s office, and Australian stereotypes in the episode ‘Unnatural Love’ (series two episode five). This ironic, playful sense of humour conforms to the style of comedy usually associated with postmodern media. Additionally it has some elements of dark humour, which is characteristic of postmodernism. For example, in ‘Bowie’, when Bret becomes body conscious, Jemaine and Murray both repeatedly insist that he is bulimic much to Bret’s annoyance, and at the end of the episode when Bret has apparently resolved his issues, he gives his biscuit to Jemaine, stating “yeah, help yourself – I’m not eating anymore, I’m a bit too fat”. As well as this, in the episode ‘Drive By’, the band watch a cartoon featuring ‘Albi the Racist Dragon’. This lighthearted approach to serious issues such as eating disorders and racism could be interpreted as offensive, but like postmodernism the intention is to be playful and provocative.
To conclude, although it may not display every aspect of the theory, there are many conventions of postmodernism to be found throughout both series of Flight of the Conchords, with most exhibited in the episode ‘Bowie’. These features include surrealism, pastiche, parody, self-referentiality, intertextuality, ironic/black humour, and playfulness.
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