Bad Girls M.I.A Analysis

For this task i have decided to analyze the music video by M.I.A called Bad Girls. I am going to talk about the conventions i notice on this video. This video is very unique as its based in an arabian country and the visuals presented are not things you would see in everyday life living in the UK. I feel M.I.A's performance as an artist in this video was top quality, she didn't go against typical conventions where the female aims to look sexy. I feel she comes across as the 'cool girl' as she seems very lenient and relaxed while performing.

In this low angle medium shot it shows M.I.A performing her song while looking directly at the camera. I feel this was done to grab the viewers attention as it makes us feel as if she's directly speaking to us. This is a good way to make the audience feel involved with what is going on. M.I.A is dressed in summer clothing, such as a hat made of straw and baggy trousers. This can give the audience an internal message of how 'hot' this video is. There is clear relationship between the visuals presented and the audio also. 'Chain hits my chest when I'm banging on the dash' as this is said M.I.A holds her chain and lets it swing. This visual just backs up her lyrics and helps the audience understand what she means with her lyrics. I also feel Goodwin's theory is represented in this shot by the way she moves. I believe there is voyeuristic treatment towards M.I.A as she can be looked at as eye candy even though she is not trying to be.

Within this screen grab a horse is galloping at full speed with a rider on top. A horse in a desert is not something somebody from the UK will see everyday. A long tracking shot is used to follow the horses movement building speed within the visuals. A male is shown riding this horse, this can represent power and dominance within the frame as two cars follow behind. He is dressed in white arabian clothing, this again just shows the audience cultural factors within the arabian society. This shot brings up the wild factors of the track and makes M.I.A differentiate from other female artists as she brings this crazy but 'cool' image into her music.

This last shot is another example of bringing in the crazy yet 'cool' image into her music. M.I.A is sitting on the side of a car while it drives on two wheels. She does this with ease as if she has done this a lot more then once. Shots like this one bring the audience a step closer to the music video's wild factor leaving many questions unanswered e.g. how on earth did they do this? I feel M.I.A was very successful with the music video as it stands out from many. This is the first music video i have seen that goes as deep as it does into the wild factor. I have not seen any other video do anything similar and to be honest i do not want to see any others try to replicate the idea, I do not think it should be done again by another artist in case they destroy the idea. The framing of the shot is done to perfection, a long shot is used with M.I.A clearly shown in the center and the two wheeled driving car is also shown clearly. In conclusion M.I.A has definitely created a unique image of wild; crazy and fun. I feel she will keep growing a large following if she keeps her ideas in her music video unique and crazy.