Music Video Analysis

Structure

"My Hero" by Foo Fighters has the classic structure of a rock music video because the band performs alongside a narrative story.  It starts with the main character running along suburban roads with a tracking shot of the back of him. The middle is where the hero enters a burning block of flats to save people. The end is when he has saved everyone, he exits the flats and is surrounded by people who are congratulating and thanking him.  Where this music video differs to others is that we follow the main character and his story, we do see clips of the band but they are not the main focus.  An advantage of following the main character is that he runs, he moves fast, in and out of a burning building which fits the pace and energy of the song. The conventions of most music videos are fast cuts and a lot of them. This one differs because it has few visible cuts.  It appears as one take. This is to make one coherrent music video that flows and retains the pace and energy of the song where we follow the danger of the main character throughout his story.  

Thought beats

This music video has multiple examples of thought beats where the lyrics match the visuals.  Throughout the video, we see a man saving people, dogs, photos and a baby from burning flats and each time he does an act of heroism, we hear the key verse of "there goes my hero". 

The lyric "He's ordinary" which repeats throughout the music video differs in that there is not a repeating pattern of the main characters action. We see him falling down stairs or walking in a strange way, something different each time.  It adds emphasis to him being an ordinary man, who could be clumsy, who might not be athletic, who might be average but he is a hero.  

 I think My Hero is heavily driven by thought beats, each scene connects to the lyrics and this is something that I would like to integrate into my music video.  

Genre-related style and iconography

This music video does follow some of the codes and conventions of a rock music video.  This is mainly by the use of the colour palate and the performance elements. The colour palete makes use of darker colours like blacks and greys. The building is drab and despite the fire, it is not bright.  Our main character wears a read tshirt but it is a toned down red, muted. The colour creates a nostalgic style. 

Where the music video subverts the conventions of a traditional rock music video is that the band are not performing at a concert or in the style of a live performance. However, it does follow convention in the fact that the band do perform singing and playing their instruments rather than playing characters in a narrative.   

There is less focus on the band performing in this music video and more on the narrative and the hero.  

Star image

The band are present in the video but they feel like the side characters, not the stars of the music video. They are promoting themselves but it is the main character who rushes through the door to save a baby or rescue a precious photo or a dog who is the main focus and the band are just there. This is unconventional for a rock music video as the band would normally be the focus. 

Voyeurism

Throughout the video, we follow the main character running in and out of burning flats.  The use of continuous tracking shots and the close-up angles of the hero when he is in tight spaces makes the audience feel like they are part of the journey, rooting for him to be able to get everything safely out of the house in time. The shots of the band are also up close and personal as if we are squashed into the room with them. The whip pan between shots of the band and the hero heighten the personal effect and immersive feeling of voyeursim throughout the video.