RM - Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc. Deconstruction

Band: Gorillaz
Song: Feel Good Inc.
Genre: Hip Hop
Director: Jamie Hewlett and Pete Candeland
Audience: 15 - 24
Year Released: 2005

Lead vocalist of Gorillaz is animated form

Gorillaz’s music video for their single “Feel Good Inc.” is a performance based music video with a twist. The twist being that the band members don’t feature in the music video instead it is their Gorillas aliases that are called: Stuart Pot (lead vocals), Murdoc Niccals (bass guitar, Noodle (lead guitar) and Russel Hobbs (drums). This is a common convention among Gorrilaz’s videos until recently when the band decided to announce the band members to the public. As well as this the music video also contains De La Soul who collaborated with the band to produce this single.

Lead vocalist of Gorillaz (animated) member of De La Soul lip-syncing

The entire music video is animated due to the band’s original idea to hide their identity apart from De La Soul who appears on several cinema screens lip-syncing. Thus being a common convention among music videos. Another common convention used is that the majority of the focus is on the vocalist. As well as this during the introduction to the song three of the band members are focused on whilst playing or singing their retrospective parts. The shots featured in this sequence are mainly close-ups and medium shots showing the audience which band members are trapped.

 The music video seems to feature two parts one being the present were the band seem to be trapped in an isolated building and the other being were the lead vocalist is viewing what it’s like to be free. The two are linked together due to the three isolated gorillas and the free gorilla playing the song as a band. As well as this the focus changes between the two groups when the vocalist places his hands upon a window and stares out of it, therefore signifying the shots were the audience watch the free gorilla could be a point of view. However this image appears to be in danger due to helicopters chasing the island throughout the music video.

Last shot in the music video

The ending to the music video is very much like the opening to it with the vocalist in the centre of the screen singing “Feel Good” whilst there is laughing from an un-known source, with the exception of the shot. The opening shot zoomed in whereas the ending the shot is zooming out. There is then a fade in transaction to the last shot which shows the remaining gorilla being caught and helicopters. This is likely to have a connection to the un-known laughing which could be signifying gorillas being hunted for sport and caged like wild animals and in the isolated tower.