Eminem featuring Rhianna - Love the Way You Lie

Background

This song is taken from Eminem's latest album 'Recovery' and features the voice of Rihanna for the chorus.

These two artists aren't exactly similar, so the news that they were coming together for a song was big in the music industry world. This is a personal favourite from the album and is currently very high in the charts.


Rhianna is an artist who has had a array of different songs, stretching across many genres, from acoustic to R 'n' B to pop. This has led to her being accompanied by many other famous artists on her songs, for example Justin Timberlake on her song 'Rehab' and Jay-Z on debatably her most famous song 'Umbrella'. She has many images and frequently switches between them, particularly with hair-style, in order to suit and support the song. In this particular video she has red hair as the video and song involve the theme of fire. Rihanna's target audience is females between the ages of roughly 12 - 25 years of ages, but she also appeals to the male audience.


Eminem is an artist that could be described as somewhat postmodern as he uses songs and elements used previously by other artists. he has also done quite a few songs with videos that are parody's, for example the video 'Just Lose It'. His genre is rap, but has been accompanied on songs by various other artists including Ozzy Osborne, Elton John and Dido. His target audience is teenagers and males in particular. However, many of his songs need parental guidance and all of his albums are rated 18+.

The Video

Above is the video for 'Love the Way You Lie'. It shows both artists, Eminem and Rihanna, and the two characters in the video. These characters are played by Megan Foxx (from the movie blockbusters Transformers and Jennifers Body) and Dominic Monaghan (Lord of the Rings films, X-Men Origins, Lost). Both of these actors are very well known in Hollywood and across the globe for their famous film appearances. Both are very highly paid, showing the huge budget that is available for music videos such as this one. Megan Foxx is currently rated the 11th sexiest woman in the world according to website askmen.com (http://uk.askmen.com/specials/2010_top_99/megan-fox-11.html) so her presence in the video drastically boost its popularity. This increases the already huge target audience, which includes all of Rihanna's and Eminem's fans. The choice to use these two professionals means that the video is more widely received and is more successful, therefore boosting the songs success.

Analysis

As the video starts, we first see Rihanna. She has red hair and is standing infront of an unclear, flaming background. This, from the very start, has connotations with passion, lust, love, through her hair colour and simultaneously connotates danger and harm with the fire. By doing this, it is suggesting that love and passion and closely linked with danger, which matches the lyrics and main themes of the song. It is at this point that we first see the characters, intimately tangled on the bed, showing they are personally involved. The common sight of fire is then properly seen and is directly addressed for the first time as the female character (Megan Foxx) holds fire in her hand, perhaps displaying that she is in control of this regular indicator of danger.

Eminem is then seen for the first time, dressed in simple clothing in a large corn field. Both the location and his clothing suggest naivity and simplicity through basic style and rural values. This simplicity creates a greater purity, clarity and focus on the song's lyrics, giving them greater depth and meaning. The location could also contribute an alone, disperse feel to the video and song, debatably mirroring the bad effects of love. The storyline then continues as the female character sees a girls number on the male character's hand, and this triggers her negative reaction. The irregular shot-angles used for the next few shots of the couple display the uncomfortable and obscure nature of the relationship, which is reinforced by the fact that they are fighting.

The quick cuts between Eminem and the characters almost blends their images, suggesting that they are somehow linked. This in turn proposes that maybe this whole story is an anecdote of Eminem, it is a story he has lived through himself. This creates a greater connection between Eminem and the viewers, predominantly his fans. This then creates a greater popularity and success for Eminem and his songs, meaning the video has met its purpose. The long, wide shots of Eminem display his loneliness and vulnerability, which again links to a possible end product of being in a relationship like the one shown in the video. This is matched by the quick, dynamic camera movements, which provide an aggressive outlook which adds to the physical conflict on-screen.

Both Eminem and Rihanna then come together for the final verse at the same location. This is different to other parts of the video where they have been seperated at different locations, which takes its own spin on relationships and love, showing that they can be off and on again with an unpredictable and unsure nature. Theyre infront of a burning house, which has connotations with family and safety, and disregards these things, giving the video a destructive ending. As this occurs, the storyline shows a made-up, provocative Megan Foxx in a bar and then in a supermarket as the male character, Dominic Monaghan, steals a bottle of vodka. This gives an insight into the personlaities of the characters.

Back in the home, a tracking shot is used to show the male character chasing the female through the house, going from room to room. This allows us to see the whole body of both characters, giving us a better view of their emotions and actions as we can see their body language aswell as their facial expressions. The characters, aswell as the singers, then catch alight, but are not harmed by the fire. This links the story to the singers and suggest they have been damaged or harmed by the fire, being burned, which is representative of love.

At the very end of the video we return to the two characters on the bed, despite the preceeding story, suggesting that this whole story is cylical and wil be repeated, not just for these characters, but for many of the audience watching. This means that the video and song can be related to by the audience, or could even be seen as a warning.