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Post by Treecat on May 7, 2008 9:27:02 GMT -5
IITR is one of my top songs from Amarantine, but the video doesn't work for me. It's the most emotionally cold video I've ever seen Enya make. With her arms wrapped around her, walking about in a sterile landscape that suddenly sprouts flowers and butterflies, it's like watching Enya as Her Own Best Friend time.
Until Amarantine (and I'm not crazy about that video either), there was always warmth and humanity in Enya's videos, even humor with the Anywhere Is video. Enya might have been wandering around a Savadore Dali-flavored landscape in Only Time, but there was emotion in that video.
IITR is cold. The prime directive of the video seems to have been: get Enya's part of this video over with as fast as possible.
With IITR (and Amarantine) they took the warmth out of Enya's videos and replaced it with special effects. I hope the next video she makes includes a fuzzy little puppy. She needs a double dollop of smaltz to make up for this one.
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Post by ardens on May 7, 2008 11:46:38 GMT -5
I agree that it is a "cold" video but in my opinion it fits the song quite well. The whole album has a pragmatic style and compared to former albums, the aspects of dreams, hopes and illusions seem to be much weaker. To me, the video looks beautiful but in a very different way than other videos like "Carribbean Blue". If CB was an antique cupboard made of solid wood, IITR would be a glass table with legs of steel. For me it seems as if there were different attitudes and maybe different intentions behind these videos. Considering her "new" Christmas songs, I am optimistic that Enya will return to a "warmer" style again. Special effects would not fit songs like "The Magic Of The Night" very well, at least I cannot imagine this combination.
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Angoid
Member
Bogus Book
Posts: 105
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Post by Angoid on May 7, 2008 11:57:59 GMT -5
I find the song a bit melancholy myself ..... I like it, but it's not one to listen to when you're feeling down. It seems to me as though a lot of Amarantine is about love .... then lost love ... and the feeling surrounding that.
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Post by oregonwinebaby on May 7, 2008 12:37:36 GMT -5
I like the video a lot. I like how creative the video is, and it still has that feminine touch. On the other hand, I can't disagree that the video seems "cold" compared to her other videos. Even so, I like seeing different styles put out. Like Treecat said, a fuzzy little puppy (or kitten) would be nice to see in the next video
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Post by Moe on May 7, 2008 12:41:03 GMT -5
I just have one request for the next video, whatever it may be:
that Enya stop hugging herself.
I agree that having another living being (cat, dog, human being - the child in the Caribbean Blue video was excellent) would make the scene less "sterile" for lack of a better word.
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Post by oregonwinebaby on May 7, 2008 13:27:16 GMT -5
I just have one request for the next video, whatever it may be: that Enya stop hugging herself. LOL! I wonder what the percentage of videos would be where Eithne is hugging herself?
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Post by Treecat on May 7, 2008 15:11:01 GMT -5
Oh grief, OWB, a whole big percentage of them! <laugh!> It's the Enya as Her Own Best Friend Syndrome!
Ardens, I like your critique of the video though I don't necessarily agree with it. ADWR is like the first blush of love, all the hope and enthusiasm. In comparison, Amarantine is the realization of the hurdles of being in love--the mistakes as well as the joy.
Given the very spartan cover of the album, maybe it was inevitable that the IITR video would be done in that style. But I'm not a fan of over-blown CGI, and to me the video suffers from that.
If she wants to balance the coldness andm in my opinion, the self-centeredness of Amarantine and IITR, she might have to film the next video in at the Humane Society as she pours kibbles into bowls and pats the fuzzies on their heads. ;D
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Post by riene on May 7, 2008 18:49:59 GMT -5
This is one of my least favorite videos.
The colors are washed-out, faded. Enya looks tousled, forcibly pale and ethereal. The swirly CGI is artistic but gets old quickly, as do the oily "water" drops. The video has a strong Japanese influence, which leads me to wonder if it was meant to tie in with the Viera ads and flatter/cater to that selected audience. This is ok, but I wish the video had a story or theme as the earlier ones did.
I don't even like the style of dress she has on--looks like jersey or knit, with emphasis on the chest area--plunging neckline, contrasting color.
I miss the older style of videos--rich with imagery, props, scenery. Of course, this was probably easy on the budget, didn't take up much studio time, but still...yuck.
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Post by astro on May 9, 2008 10:48:12 GMT -5
"I like the video a lot."
As do I, OWB! When I first saw it all I could think was "WOW!!!" and I still do. Different? For sure it is that and something I welcome. Trying this, doing that, mixing it up a bit and experimenting.
What I wonder about that is this: How much is the conceptual design of the Producer and, in regards to that, how much input did Enya herself interject into it?
I've a theory about the 'hugging', but I'll withold my take on it until later...
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Post by riene on May 9, 2008 16:09:14 GMT -5
When I see Enya doing the hugging thing, I think she looks either psychologically very uncomfortable, or cold. Either way, it's awkward.
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Post by Moe on May 9, 2008 16:47:08 GMT -5
One of the hardest things for a performer to learn is what to do with their hands (unless said hands are occupied playing an instrument). I've seen many singers get up in front of an audience and leave their hands awkwardly hanging at their sides, or clutch at the microphone as if in fear of doom. But a good producer/director of a video should be able to help an artist with that problem. The use of the arms/hands during a performance can be quite artistic. Hugging oneself "may" be seen as defensive - as in, don't come close, I want to be alone; or, it may signify that a person is sad and lonely; or it may signal that the person is just plain cold - I have hugged myself at many a bus stop in winter. Not that it does much good............ So hugging oneself can be a useful dramatic device, or it can be that " I don't know what to do with these arms of mine".
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Post by oregonwinebaby on May 9, 2008 20:09:06 GMT -5
I have to agree with Moe here. If you watch any of the Enya performances where she isn't playing the piano, she looks like she is uncomfortable on stage...to a point. You almost always see her making the same arm movements as well as head movements. She also always does the same glances up and away lol. I am not criticizing her...I wouldn't know what I would do with myself standing there without a guitar or some other instrument. I guess that is why any performance where she is playing the piano seems to be her most comfortable moments. But as for her hugging herself in the videos, that is another story. I watched a few videos online where they showed behind the scenes making of some of her videos. Everything in her videos seem very deliberate - so I wonder what Eithne would say if someone asked her the meanings of her hugs? I wonder which emotion she really is trying to convey? We should have a poll ;D
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Post by astro on May 9, 2008 21:11:52 GMT -5
Interesting... Reading your post just now, Moe, reminded me of Bowie when he was practicing a form of Japanese mime. I think it is called sarguku, but I'm not sure... content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/0/0c/DavidBowieHeroesCover.jpgThe "hugging" gig never bothered me. I guess I'm not sensitive to it. If anything, I thought her poise enhanced her beauty. The unique thing about Enya is that she presents brains, talent, and looks all in one package. Perhaps clasping the arms helps frame and accent the upper torso which folks are focusing on. Is it planned or natural? Afterall, it is showbiz, but I like to think it is a combinaton of both. Would anyone care to look deeper into the video? Starting with the opening where a black heart lays askew on the plane Enya walks upon and the black tendrils that sprout from it. Perhaps signifying heartbreak? Would like to hear other thoughts on this...
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Post by riene on May 9, 2008 21:27:29 GMT -5
I'd never noticed that vaguely heart-shaped section on the ground until you mentioned it, Astro.
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Post by ardens on May 10, 2008 8:32:54 GMT -5
Would anyone care to look deeper into the video? Starting with the opening where a black heart lays askew on the plane Enya walks upon and the black tendrils that sprout from it. Perhaps signifying heartbreak? Would like to hear other thoughts on this... To me it looks as if Enya was a symbol of rain. Where she appears, plants can grow out of a plain soil, like desert plants after the rain or springflowers after the end of winter. It is water that makes all the wonderful different kinds of life possible. Where it appears, life may appear as well. It is a bit like ink falling on a white sheet of paper, as it is shown in this video. So to me it seems that the aspect of creation and recreation, which also appears in the lyrics, is strongly emphasized in this video, whereas the relationship aspect is not so strong. In a way, both lyrics and video are optimistic and positive, but there is a bit loneliness in them nevertheless. It is great to be happy about life and the beauty of nature but it's still not the same as being with a loved person. One could also look at song and video from a religious point of view and say that the name of God is in the rain and that he appears in his creation, but I somehow doubt that this was what Roma and Enya had in mind.
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