





One of the many things Michael Jackson is known for is his brilliant music videos. The King Of Pop’s Smooth Criminal was one of his many hit songs, and will likely remain iconic for years to come. In the music video for this song, Jackson portrays a bystander in an old-school gangster setting, who is making sure that Annie, a woman at the night club, is okay, as she has been attacked by a “smooth criminal”. Jackson enters an underground club and immediately engages in dance, festivities, and fights. The first picture selected is a shot of Jackson making his way through the club, and the second image is of Jackson dancing with some of the other club goers. Michael Jackson uses color scheme, as well as different types of camera shots to show the audience the danger he is in in the music video for Smooth Criminal. 

Michael Jackson at the club @ 5:24Michael Jackson at the club @ 5:24This image depicts Michael Jackson as his character begins to promenade through the club, which is full of mobsters. This particular shot is a medium shot, as it shows Jackson, and only Jackson, from the knees up. Also, Jackson uses an intra-diegetic gaze in this shot, meaning that he is focused on something outside of the frame. The use of these two components combine to create suspense in this moment, as we know Jackson is surrounded by armed mobsters, so he could be looking into the barrel of a gun, or an assailant could strike at any second. In addition, this image is achromatic aside from the blue that is featured in the shot, meaning that the image is solely grayscale aside from his shirt. The blue featured in Jackson’s outfit could represent his sadness with regards to Annie, who is clearly not okay due to her assailant, or the fear he is experiencing whilst in the club, as he is surrounded by armed mobsters. The white and black colors provide a sharp contrast, and represent the old-school gangster time period and the overall setting. This also represents the danger in this scene because it makes Jackson stand out in a room of very bad people. All of these aspects combined put Jackson in a very dangerous situation, as he is standing out in a room full of dangerous people, in a dangerous time period, in a place where anything can happen.



Jackson dancing with the club members @ 8:03Jackson dancing with the club members @ 8:03The second image is of Jackson as he begins to dance with some of the other people in the club. This image is an establishing shot, as it encompasses all of Jackson, as well as the other dancers and that particular room in the club. Jackson is wearing the same outfit as he is in the first photo. The other dancers, however, are wearing dark colored suits, and Jackson is wearing a white suit, so there is a very sharp contrast in this image. Since Michael is wearing the white, and because he is highlighted by the spotlight, our eyes are drawn to him. Not all of the colors here are represented on the color wheel, so the color scheme cannot be classified; however, the elements in this room certainly contribute to the sense of danger in the music video. The spotlight is on Jackson, who stands out enough as it is without the spotlight. Also, the lighting shows that there is a somewhat smoky atmosphere in the air. This represents the uncertainty of the situation, as limited vision means that things can come out of nowhere. The combination of these things accent Michael in a room that is dark and smoky. This image also utilizes a divergent attention gaze, which means that the characters are not connecting with each other whatsoever. This means that Jackson is accented in a smoky room, in which he cannot see all of the mobsters that surround him. This is quite obviously a dangerous situation. The fact that Michael Jackson stands out so much in a room full of people that are trying to kill him represents an incredibly hazardous situation; the colors and filmic language utilized make that fact easy to interpret.



In addition to the visuals in these images, the lyrics contribute to the description of the danger of the situation in the music video. The piece opens up with the words, “As he came into the window…He came into her apartment, He left bloodstains on the carpet…She was struck down, it was her doom.” This tells us that Annie is in serious danger. Jackson also constantly asks if Annie is okay, and he describes who she is when he mentions mouth to mouth resuscitation. In CPR training, the doll’s name is Annie, and people are trained by asking Annie if she is okay, so the name Annie holds no special significance for Jackson. Michael asks Annie if she is okay countless times, which expresses a serious concern. This concern is represented by the seriousness of his facial expression in the first image. Jackson then proceeds to tell everyone to clear the area because he needs to find Annie, which is why he is moving in the first image. The second image works in tandem with his falsettos. In the final chorus, Jackson uses this falsetto to represent Annie’s voice, as Annie would be responding to Jackson asking if she is okay. Although Annie is not featured in the second image, we do see Jackson in the most dangerous situation he has been in thus far in the video, so he is showing that he is not okay as well. Jackson uses his visuals in accordance with the lyrics to give the viewer a picture of how much danger he is in, as well as how much danger Annie could be in. 

The use of color and filmic properties in this music video only emphasize its excellence, as well as to emphasize the danger in the video. Color is used not only as a symbol, but also as a point of emphasis. The camera shots and angles perfectly depict Jackson’s attitude, and activity, while also showing the mobsters, and the dangers that surround him. Everything in this music video had a purpose, so everything in the two pictures in this paper has a purpose. It seems as if Michael wants to draw as much attention to himself in the majority of his projects. Michael Jackson is clearly not an ordinary person, so maybe he is trying to tell that to the world. Overall, the music video utilizes color scheme, camera shots, and words to set Jackson apart from the crowd, which puts him at the center of a club full of armed mobsters. The video shows the danger he is in well, and anything unclear is explained in the lyrics. 





