
Videophone is a clear
message regarding the power of social networking, technology and the instant dominate
gaze of men. Beyoncé transforms mens head's into the symbol of the gaze
itself of a video-camera, as if hyperbolically saying, you want to stare at me
with your male gaze, well then go head and stare with your video-camera, ‘If you want me you can watch me on your video phone.’ Cleverly both the song and video are obviously about Beyoncé
performing and existing in front of a videophone and also the male gaze, the
video matches the lyrics charmingly well, and the video visually heightens the
perversity. Throughout the video Beyoncé embodies many different versions of
the femme fatale and pin-up girl, that obviously pleases the male gaze, with
her power of her seduction she is able to reduce the men into victims, slaves
and prisoners to their visions produced by their video camera. This creates the
ideal image of a woman, therefore being the image the men desire for, therefore
the woman becomes the master, and her image becomes the catalyst of ones
identity.
Zizek writes (on the first page
of The Plague of Fantasies): "This
plague of fantasies of which Petrarch speaks in My Secret, images which blur
one's clear reasoning, is brought to its extreme in today's audiovisual
media.", which is a clear example of “Video Phone”.
The props
in the video play a key role of linking the visual to the lyrical. The guns and motorcycles aren’t new metaphors
for phalluses, Gaga and Beyoncé erotically straddle, stroke, and sexually ogle
their rubber guns, seductively drawing the male viewer, controlling them and
dehumanizing the gaze into their own source of hypnotic power. Using there powers of seduction and sexy
attire, as well as sex noises moaning, o-faces, sinuous choruses of "fiiiiiiilm me" to dominate and
control men is such an uncommon way, as they use this old tactic constantly in
movies, music and TV shows. The video promotes stereotypical portrayals of
women using their ability of using their sexuality to only achieve ultimate
victory over men, who are just drooling and willpower-less, which is just a
cheap version of sexism.
Eddie
McCaffray and Meghan Vicks. September 12 2010. ‘Beyonce's "Video Phone" (featuring Lady Gaga) -
Observations and Discussion’. (Available at : http://gagajournal.blogspot.co.uk/2010/09/beyonces-video-phone-featuring-lady.html
Slvoj, Zizek (2009) Verso Books; New
edition edition (1 january 2009)
‘The
plague of Fantasies’.
Available at : http://www.metrolyrics.com/video-phone-lyrics-beyonce-knowles.html
( Accessed: 13 March)
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