
In T.I.’s music video “Warzone”, the ongoing “war” that is happening because of prejudice in society is being depicted through a reversal of race. T.I. uses this racial reverse to highlight the certain violent situations that occur by depicting them from a different point of view. In this music video, specifically, he outlines how situations would have been viewed different if what has happening to african american men and women, would happen to white men and women. In the music video, filmic elements are used to help reveal and emphasize how racial stigmas are fueled in society through the innocence illustrated and the unawareness of living in a warzone.

In the first scenario various filmic techniques are used to help portray the innocence of a young boy with a toy gun and the injustice violence done towards him. Within this first scene is an establishing shot, used to show that it was just a normal day for the young boy in his typical surroundings, this can be seen from his mother cooking and chopping vegetables as he goes outside to play. As the boy is leaving the house it shows him walking down the street through a medium shot, displaying a young innocent boy pulling out a toy gun and smiling. This is very significant because it allows one to see that he is just a normal boy off playing as young children do, absent mindedly. As he approaches the playground and the police officer pulls up, the tragic ending to the young boy is then revealed. Through the various shots and techniques used in this scenario the injustice can be seen, along with the innocence seen through the cooking of his annoyed mom as he asks her for permission to play, the young boy’s casual stroll to the playground, and the close up of terror that was on his face right before he was shot and killed. In this scene, the consequence for this innocent action highlights the reality of these violent circumstances that have been committed against African Americans and further shows the warzone that they are living in.

Within the second scenario of the music video, many different types of shots and close ups are used again to show the injustice that is happening to yet another innocent man. At the beginning of this scene a long shot is used to show the man on the corner of a street, talking to police officers in a non-threatening manner. Afterwards more policemen are called in and then the innocent man is tackled with a close up allowing one to see him mouth the words, “I cannot breathe!” These shots allow for an insight on the misunderstanding of the outcome, showing that that the man should not have been tackled in the first place. As seen in another scenario, through the uses of medium and close up shots, an innocent man is shot in his car in front of his children and wife, soon after his wife videotapes it along with their child crying in the backseat. The medium shot of the police officer and the innocent man allows for an establishment of injustice, mainly because in the shot there was no attack or threats against the police officer. These filmic elements used to convey the tragedy happening to these innocent victims allow for one to gain perspective from not only the victim’s view, but also from every angle. Within these two scenarios similar forces were present, meaning they both involved the police infringing on an innocent man resulting in their death. It is also important to acknowledge the primary element that these indecencies highlight, the treatment towards the targeted people in these situations. These filmic elements are focusing on the idea of these acts occurring to anyone despite race, gender, or sexuality and how they are affecting the world we live in. It reveals the inappropriate nature of the attacks that essentially makes it a war zone, because since it is only happening to certain people of certain standards there is no area for this awareness to be truly expressed. 

In the last scene of “Warzone”, medium shot is used to show that violence is not the only outcome that needs attention, but it is also the social stigma. In this scene, a woman is shown walking onto a bus of black people who essentially shun her until the only open seat is available, the very back. With this scene being shot in a medium shot it allows for one to see the expressions on the others as well as the expression of woman who is trying to find a seat and the inability to understand what she could have possibly done wrong to lead these people to dislike her so much. This scene, unlike the others, is different because it is the one scenario pointed out by T.I. that does not involve violence in any way.  When comparing this scene to the scenario of the boy who was shot and killed for his toy gun, that scenario served as an establishing point for this woman. Meaning that the assumptions geared towards the young boy by the law enforcement is also what was used to automatically criticize the woman for appearing to look like the boy. Within the other two scenarios of the man in the street and the car, can it be seen that assumptions were used in a negative aspect, which caused it to again affect the way she was seen in public. These differences are very important to acknowledge because it reveals how the actions of only small portion of one group of people can reflect on the rest. For scenario of this woman there was no law enforcement, no unnecessary violence taken out on an innocent person, or anyone killed, it was purely people being biased on who she represented. This is very important to consider when analyzing the writer’s intent because of the events that are taking place. The acts of disrespect from those people is what fuels the violence that is similar to those of the scenarios that happened earlier in the music video. This scene also shows how oppression has been so implemented within society that even their own citizens can no longer truly trust in the law or its own people. This racial reverse reveals how the situations or assumptions that occur to some people can affect society, in a negative context, also how this issue need to be brought to light and ended. 

The title “Warzone” has been effectively depicted through the different filmic elements of every scene in order to show how basically a war is being fought without it being known. When considering this, one should look at color and how that impacted every scene or situation that took place. Within all of the scenes that involved violence the victims were wearing white, whereas in the last scene the white woman was wearing blue. The white shirts being worn in the violent circumstances is a way to furthermore show the innocence for the punishable crimes almost as if a surrender before the battle has even begun. The blue worn by the woman in end can also represent a sense of peace or tranquility in a situation that was not to require violence at all, however did receive backlash negatively. While these noticeable color schemes were going on, the background is also important to recognize which was mainly neutral with vibrant colors in only the police lights and badges. This is important because, in addition, it shows that these are just everyday places and this scenario could happen anywhere. Everybody is just living their lives in normalcy, the mom is preparing dinner, the man was standing on the corner, the wife and child were in the car when he was killed, and the woman was only trying to take the bus to a destination, all things that people everywhere do everyday. When looking at the title and how that could relate to what is being shown through T.I.’s music video, it is clear that the “warzone” is the everyday life and the “war” is the crimes that are committed between the people. Meaning that the “war” is the fact that society is racially prejudice towards it’s own people and that essentially everyone is fighting themselves and this realization could be the solution.  

“Warzone” portrays different scenarios in a racial reverse in order to highlight the treatment of black people through various filmic techniques. Within each scene is an element used for one to understanding the reasoning behind a genuine misunderstanding for these violent or rude outcomes. The establishing shot at the very beginning also helped to set the tone of innocence because it showed that it was just a casual day and nothing bad was intended to happen. The long and medium shots also helped to show an understanding of the victim and how the outcome of each circumstance should not have happened. It is through these filmic elements that the racial oppression can be seen, how it is implemented in a society, and how everyone is living in a warzone. 
