Narrative Theories

Foo Fighers - Long Road To Ruin

Todorov’s Theory

¨Equilibrium – The normality in this video is when the doctor doesn’t have the girl (the prize) that he’s after. At the beginning when he’s trying to save the boy he’s trying to get the girl but fails when he tries to kiss her.

¨Disequilibrium – Half way through the video the doctor gets the girl and it shows you clips of what they’ve done together stating that they are now a couple.

¨New Equilibrium – The new equilibrium is when the doctor loses the girl and she runs off away from him when he’s preforming at a gig. The doctor tries to chase after her in a car but end up driving himself off a cliff as he knows he won’t get her back.

¨

The normality in this video is the doctor and woman being apart where as the disequilibrium is when they are together. This isn’t a common theme in most music videos but the foo fighters chose to do it despite that.

¨

Propp

Doctor/Singer – (Hero,)tries to save the child and wants the girl. This puts him in the ‘hero’ role.

¨Woman – (princess or prize) This is who all the men are fighting over, but what our hero (the doctor) wants most of all

¨Blonde doctor assistant - (The false hero) I thought he was the false hero as that's the description the character best fit. At the beginning of the video you see him as a womaniser which gives off the impression he’s after most girls and could be after this girl, but in the end it turns out she wants the main doctor.

¨Injured child – (villain) This was the only role I could put for him as during this music video he doesn't like the idea of the doctor and his mum getting together so he then throws darts at the doctors/singers record.

¨Man in red – (villain) Threw out this music video he harasses the woman at the beginning and then proceeds to throw darts at the doctors/singers record. This because he wants the girl but can’t get her.

Levi Strauss & binary oppositions

¨The only binary opposition I see throughout this video is Good vs. Bad. When the doctor is saving the little boys life on a couple of occasions he was wearing white, this is when the woman is interested in him and pays most attention to him. This is his good side, saving lives and getting the woman. However when the doctor/singer is wearing dark colours he is singing at his gig in the mall and driving. This is the bad/evil part of him because he dances and sings with another girl up on stage, his ‘prize’ girl that he likes see’s him and runs away from him not wanting anything to do with him. Also when he drives off the cliff and dies on his pursuit to find the woman he is wearing black. When he dies he is wearing black, relating death with the colour, and when he saves the little boy’s life, he is wearing life. Its all about Good (life) vs. Evil (death)