Video Analysis of Lana Del Rey

This frame is strong in composition because it is symmetrical and set in a very extravagant location. This gives us an idea of the image of the artist and her music style. The deep red chairs in the foreground are evenly positioned. The location looks like a church because of the carved stonewalls surrounding the artist. We see two tigers sitting either side of the artist, which adds to the symmetry but also shocks the audience because tigers are seen as quite dangerous animals and they are positioned as if they are guarding the artist. This tells us she is quite fearless, but has protection. There is a large painting in the background on the wall which again creates quite a religious setting. 

This frame is again symmetrical as the camera has just moved towards the artist, almost like a zoom. Gold candle holders are seen in the background which again suggests the location is a church along with the paintings and carvings on the steps behind the artist. She is sitting on a dark blue – grey coloured chair which is quite tall and large which suggests her power and authority. She is wearing a long white dress which connotes purity and innocence. Also, her bright red lipstick stands out amongst the other colours in the frame because it contrasts well with the white dress as both are bright colours against a dull background. She is wearing a flowery hat on her head which tells us she is a girly girl and has connotations of love and romance.

This frame isn't lit very well and the only source of light is the lighter being used to light the cigarette. A shallow depth of field is used to put the focus on the person lighting the cigarette in the foreground whilst the background has a very soft focus. The fact that the man in the foreground (who is the artist's boyfriend in the video) is smoking as well as having tatoos covering his body creates a very specific image - stereotypically a rebellious character who is seen as 'indie'. The lack of lighting creates a mysterious and secretive effect. Also, fire which is essentially lighting up the frame, has strong connotations of death and anger - this links to the lyrics 'Born to die' and gives the audience the idea that something bad is going to happen in the video. We only see part of the man's face in this frame purposely so part of the artists clothing is seen in the background.

The artist is using indirect address which tells us the song isn't directed to us specifically. It could also signify that she is looking around for answers about her relationship. She is sitting on a very dull coloured chair but has patterns engraved into it which tells us it could be either centimental or represent the scars her partner has engraved on her. Her bright red lipstick has conntations of romance, but could also represent blood to fit the song title to do with death. The red contrasts well with the white dress which becomes a common theme thorughout the video.

The camera is shooting the artist laying in bed with a sad, depressed expression on her face. There are flowers surrounding her on the bed. These have connotations of her being quite feminine, but could also tell us that she has been given the flowers by her partner and put them next to her so she can look at them whilst laying on her bed as a reminder of him. She is wearing a white night dress which has strong connotations of purity and innocence which could give us the idea that she hasn't done anything wrong in the relationship. Only half of this particular frame is lit up, clearly showing us the artist. However, through this scene in the video there are strobe lights shining on the bed which is why part of this frame is black. Whilst the lights are strobing, the artist's partner appears and disappears along with the lights. This creates the effect of us being inside her head whilst she's thinking about whether she wants him or not.

From these screen shots we can see that most of the scenes are filmed at night time (apart from the scene where she is sitting in the church). This sets a mysterious atmosphere because of the dull lighting. In most of the videos I have analysed there have been shots where the camera is looking through a window to see the artist and this screen shot demonstrates that too. It makes us feel  as an audience like we have an exclusive look into the artist's life. In this frame there is condensation on the window which tells us it's a cold environment. She is seen touching the windowwhich gives us the impression she wants to escape and get away from her partner, and even get away from the whole relationship. This is reinforced by the expression on her face as she looks into the distance through the window.