OC HIGH / STUDENT NEWS &...

Deep in the forest, there is a beautiful woman roaming around aimlessly while a beastly creature named Meat Loaf spies on her through the trees. Then the woman is drawn to his mysterious castle while he is trying desperately to hide from her because of his deformed face. Suddenly, a bunch of cops are after him, and the beast-man starts breaking mirrors.

All the while Meat Loaf is singing, “I would do anything for love, but I won’t do that !”

But just what is that ??? And what does it have to do with the rest of this confusing video?

Originally, this assignment seemed to be a breeze; what student wouldn’t give an arm or a leg to sit in front of the television and watch videos all day in order to pick the best videos being broadcast? However, we soon discovered that there are too many videos and too little time in which to view them. So what makes a video worthy of our time and interest?

A good video must not only be eye-catching but interesting. To us, that means no cheesy eye gags like cardboard fish thrown in. For example, many of U2’s videos are not just eye-pleasing but also amusing. We thought “Lemon” was really original, and we liked the captions describing each scene. We also enjoyed U2’s “Numb,” which equally teased us.

Although not a current video, R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts” is a video anyone can relate to. It left us with the feeling that we aren’t the only ones with problems, although at certain points we did feel a sense of depression. This video was clear in showing each person’s face, and the captions at the bottom were easy to read and process mentally.

Deep Forest’s “Sweet Lullaby” is both culturally stimulating and pleasing to the ear. The lyrical melody soothed our inner souls, like a lullaby (hence the title, we suppose). A little girl on a tricycle pedals her way through various countries, and the cinematography is just as pretty as the tune. Throughout the video, there is an underlying theme that although people are culturally different and separated by their own customs, they are still alike.

Sometimes, the disturbing videos are the ones that stick in our heads, such as “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and the Guns N’ Roses video “Don’t Cry.” Lingering feelings of eeriness attack our senses after watching them.

Good videos should also have a message or tell a story in order to capture our interest. For example, Pearl Jam’s “Jeremy” tells the story of the suppressed and misunderstood youth of modern America. The images on screen make the video hard-hitting.

Aerosmith, like U2, is a veteran at making interesting videos. “Amazing” shows us the future of virtual reality while playing with our imaginations. “Crying,” also by Aerosmith, shows a strong-willed teen-age girl. (While she is being tattooed and getting a belly-ring, you have to wonder what it would be like if you were she.) The video doesn’t get repetitious after seeing it many times because the story line keeps you hooked.

In response to Tupac Shakur’s “I Get Around,” female rap stars Salt-N-Pepa came up with “Shoop,” and it’s about time someone came up with a video that portrays women as the aggressor in a relationship. Seeing women instead of men gawking at the opposite sex was very refreshing.

Currently, too many videos simply copy successful ones.

Ever since Boyz II Men’s video “End of the Road” became popular, there has been an influx on R&B; groups that show scenes of the group “just hanging out” or walking down a road, such as Xcape, Shai and Hi-Five. Other copycat videos are the “let’s jump off the stage and bruise ourselves” videos like “Mother 93” by Danzig or “Evenflow” by Pearl Jam.

There are many reasons a video doesn’t hold a person’s interest. Sometimes a video is overplayed until you grow tired of seeing it. Also, some videos annoy because of how they are filmed, such as the Gin Blossoms “Found Out About You,” which had a bright flashing light that our eyes could only take for so long.

As the years go by, of course, the quality of videos will differ and hopefully improve. But until then, our judgment is that the nearest-near-perfect video currently playing is . . . nothing.

That’s right. Sorry, folks, but those of you out there producing videos better get cracking; the perfect video is awaiting your creative making!