Billy Joel’s music video to “Piano Man” speaks to the human emotions of loneliness and isolation. These feelings are shown throughout his video through medium shots. In order to best understand Billy Joel’s “Piano Man”, we must understand the use of medium shots to develop themes and feelings of isolation and loneliness.

Medium shots can be used to portray the scene in a variety of different ways. They also serve to develop the theme of the music video. They are first used to show individuals amongst a large crowd of people. The first time a medium shot is used at the 0:49 mark of the video. Here, we see through what can be imagined as a barrel.  The man is sitting all alone at the bar, beginning the feeling of isolation that comes out in this video. By placing people all around him, Joel and his producers use this shot to develop their theme of inner isolation despite being surrounded by people. From the expression on this man’s face, we can tell that there is clearly something bothering him.  The character is also used as a way for us to examine our mental condition and how we truly feel. This is also a message from Joel on his personal mental condition. We are able to get a sneak peek into his personal struggles with loneliness and isolation. It can be inferred that he not only wrote the lyrics based on his personal feelings, but also used these shots and characters in his song to develop the viewer’s awareness and thoughts on the gravity of their mental struggle.  This is a great way to confront the viewer with the reality of mental health. By using this first medium shot, Joel and the producers create the initial reference to the isolation and loneliness that is felt in this bar. These medium shots become very important as a way to show how other people may be interacting with each other while a certain portion of people are struggling with their loneliness.

A Medium Shot is next used to establish, but also contradict, the feeling of loneliness by showing the people in different social classes coping with their struggles in a similar way. This shot appears at the 3:10 mark and shows the differences in the waitresses and businessmen. This scene shows the people apparently enjoying each other, even though it can be inferred that they feel lonely on the inside. We begin to realize that loneliness can come in any form, shape, size, or socio-economic status. No one is exempt from having hard feelings and struggling with their inner selves.  Although we cannot always assume that people use alcohol as an escape from reality, it can be inferred through this shot that the business men use it to get away from their problems. It can be assumed that the waitresses are masking their loneliness by putting on a facade of someone who is happy and content. They seem to be acting in a way that is uninterested in the men, and are only focused on their duties to be friendly. However, this medium shot also contradicts the theme of isolation by surrounding the characters with lots of people. They are placed in a way that, even though they are together, they don’t seem to want to interact with one another. Although we can still infer that they are internally lonely, the subjects are obviously in a place where their physical loneliness is non-existent.  This also could be seen as a way to escape what they are going through and a way to reconnect with others over the common bond of inner loneliness. By having other people who share their feelings, they can begin to work through their issues and potentially put their lives back together. Joel and his producers use the medium shot to develop and show the loneliness and struggles of both the businessmen and waitresses, and as a way to show us that mental struggles can affect anyone and everyone.

Lastly, Joel uses a panning medium shot to show how there seems to be a lack of connection in the bar. At the 4:05 mark the camera pans through the crowd before settling into a medium shot of the owner with two waitresses around him. The camera moves through the energetic crowd before finally focusing the owner. In this scene, the feeling of loneliness and isolation is developed as it appears that the people in the bar do not seem to want to interact as a whole. People are very non-expressive as well. They seem somewhat bored and uninterested with the situation that they have chosen to be in. Also, as the camera pans onto the owner we can how lonely and uninterested he is. The waitresses are clearly not interested in him and he is only using them for his gain, rather than truly caring about them as people. It can be inferred from here that the owner could potentially be using his bar as a method of coping with his own personal struggle with loneliness. Having an outlet like his own personal bar would be a quick and easy escape for him. Unfortunately, he might be using that escape in the wrong way. If he treats it only as that and not a business then he is destined for failure in the long run, which could make his personal struggle even greater. Viewers can also use these scenes as a way to explain and understand their own struggles with loneliness and isolation. They can serve as a reminder to think of our mental health as well as the struggles of other people. The shots are very important for how we see and develop our personal understanding of the scene and the pain of loneliness that some people are experiencing.

Throughout the music video for Billy Joel’s Piano Man, medium shots are used to develop the theme of loneliness and isolation. By using these shots, Joel and the producers show many different ways that the people are lonely and are trying to cope and work through their loneliness. By analyzing how and why these medium shots are used, we can understand Joel’s message of loneliness and isolation in modern society. The video reinforces the knowledge the irony that being around lots of people does not cure loneliness; only meaningful dialogue can heal that condition.