In
the article, “Monster Metaphors,” Mercer uses Michael Jackson’s Thriller music video to explore Michael
Jackson’s stardom, spectacle, metamorphosis, and mystery as a performer: “neither
child nor man, not clearly either black or white and with an androgynous image that
is neither masculine nor feminine” (302).
In
this post, I will focus on Thriller’s
opening sequence narrative prefacing the first notes of the song, and its
significance in painting Michael Jackson’s complexity and indeterminacy as a
star. As Mercer writes, Thriller separates
itself from most pop videos because of its opening sequence. In fact, seen on
the VEVO Official Video, the music doesn’t begin until 4:13. Instead of opening
with musical notes, Thriller opens
with a “long panning shot on a car driving through the woods at night and the ‘cinematic’
sound of recorded silence” (307). Quickly, Michael Jackson and his romantic
interest are revealed: they talk, and Michael Jackson reveals that he’s “not
like other guys” before his body and face violently rip into a monster form. At
the peak of all horror, we cut to a movie theater with Michael and his date.
Here,
the self-reflexivity of Thriller is
so in-your-face, it begs the question of why
Thriller is doing it. First, as we
cut back and forth between the screen and the audience, it is obvious that the
actors are exactly the same. Michael’s date wears slick blue instead of cotton
pink, but Michael actually maintains his red jacket – only, it’s leather now,
instead of a jersey. Why change the date’s outfit, but so subtly alter Michael’s?
Clearly, Michael Jackson is very firmly established as the video’s absolute and
ever-present star – he is Michael Jackson, whether he’s in a movie, whether he’s
a monster in a movie, whether he’s watching the movie, or whether he leaves the
movie to sing about the movie. With that, viewers of Thriller are jolted out of any suspension of disbelief that comes
with traditional film characterization. Despite this, we feel compelled,
intrigued to know this Michael character further. The video pushes the audience’s
awareness of Michael Jackson’s multiple personas with his dialogue. Watching in
the movie theater, the girl says, “Can we get out of here?” Michael Jackson
responds in all possible cheekiness – “No, I’m enjoying this,” as he pops
popcorn in his mouth, watching his own monster superego play on screen.
Mercer
argues that the opening metamorphosis from human Michael to monster Michael is
a “metaphor for the aesthetic reconstruction of Michael Jackson’s face” (313). I
would like to go further to suggest that Michael is aware of this metaphor,
more so than anyone surrounding or analyzing him post-mortem. In the theater,
Michael reacts to himself on screen in a way that’s different than anyone else
in the theater. Michael grins a toothy, self-assured grin while everyone else screams
at the monster with shock and uncertainty. This idea may be applied to Michael in
real life: Michael’s perception of himself, and his evolution of himself, is
more introspective and secure than anyone in his personal or professional life.
As fans and viewers, Michael is elusive and ambiguous, but to Michael, at least
in Thriller, Michael is cognizant of the
worlds he creates, and the levels of disbelief he pulls audience members
through – perhaps best seen at 4:17, when he spins out of the theater and into
song and dance, and takes us with him…
No comments:
Post a Comment