2 for Tuesday

Music Videos!

Doesn't Remind Me by Audioslave

I'm not a big fan of boxing.  The idea of 2 humans beating on each other just completely turns me off.

However.

I really, really love this video.  It was released in 2005, and I remember very well the first time I saw it.

This video tells a story.  And I like videos that tell a story.

The child in the video is played by a young boy named Vinny Intrieri, a boxer in real life.

It starts out showing glimpses of a little boy being just a normal child...flying his airplanes, running around aimlessly, skipping rocks, swinging on his tire swing ... innocence.

There is a quick scene of a stressed out and yelling single mother and her 2 children - the above mentioned little guy, and his toddler sister.

And we're not yet sure why mom is alone ... but somehow the director was able to capture that moment and it was a prominent shot in the video, at 0:45 that gets your attention.

At 0:52 the camera pans over to a framed photo of a gentleman in a military uniform.

And we start to get an idea of what's going on.

The music pics up in the chorus, the song gets louder and heavier.

And we start to see the angry side of this little guy... 1:10 - WOW.

The second verse goes back to the sing songy melody and it also goes back to showing the innocence of the little guy.

We start to notice he is very fond of his airplane, and we remember the picture of the man in uniform, and it all starts to add up....

We also start to see more of the little sister, and how well he does with her... running, playing, looking out for her.

The final scene from that verse, at 1:57, is the little guy, kneeling beside his bed, deep in prayer.

As the chorus fires back up, and we are now in a gym.

With a boxing ring.

And children are in the ring, fighting ... training.

2:13 and 2:29 we see how proud mom is.  

She loves her little guy and will do anything for him.

During the bridge, we realize he has been training for a fight and he is now ready.

He looks pretty tough in his satin robe.

But 3:04 again shows the innocence.  You notice how small this child is.  And the touch of fear in his face.

During the guitar solo, the song really goes to town, and the fight is on.

The video switches back and forth between the boxing match, and what seems to be a dog fight - in the air.

And our suspicions are confirmed.

His father was killed in the war... in a plane.

And all at once there are several shots of the boxing match, an airplane, the mom answering that dreaded phone call, the little guy ripping down the poster of Uncle Sam Wants You, the family of now 3 (mom, son, daughter) standing at a graveside service, and BAM the K.O.

The crowd goes wild.  Our little guy has won the fight.  He is a hero.  You see, we as an audience, have now developed a relationship with this young man and literally feel joy and excitement when he wins that fight, and we are fighting tears, now understanding what is going on.

The director, CHRIS MILK , did an AWESOME job telling this entire story and managing to cram it all into a 4 minute video.

And hands-down, one of my favorites.

I will drop everything and watch it whenever it is on.

See it for yourself:

I had a hard time coming up with a second video that comes even close to that one.

So I said to the big guy, "Quick, what's one of my favorite videos?"

He thought about it for a moment, and said, "Well, I know that one Elton John video always makes you cry..."

(Thanks babe!)

I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues by Elton John

It tells the story of young love, and the guy has to go away to boot camp, leaving his girl behind - sad, lonely, and confused.

It shows him frustrated and just wishing to be home with his darling.

You start to think she isn't going to wait for him.

But then in the end it all works out and she runs into his arms.

The end.

.