the way you make me feel

1. MICHAEL JACKSON
MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSIS
“The way you make me feel”
Directed by Joe Pytka

2. VIDEO STYLE
 Mix of narrative and performance.
 The short version is 7 minutes long and the long version is 10 minutes.
 Includes his iconic dance moves:
 Like a mini film, almost a soundie. This was a common aspect of
Jacksons’ videos as they were known for being long showing the
context in a film-like manner.

3. TEXTUAL ANALYSIS
 The video contains voyeurism, particularly of the woman, who is
dressed provocatively:
 Silhouettes are also commonly used in the video:
 This is a convention of love scenes in films which could be an
explanation to why it was used.

4. TEXTUAL ANALYSIS
 The camerawork also places emphasis upon Michaels dance moves:
When dancing, he is often the only one in the frame, or the one closest to
the camera. This shows off his dance moves: what he is well known for.

5. TEXTUAL ANALYSIS
 Michael Jackson was mainly known for his dancing skills which were
edited to match the beat at one point.
 His star image was also upheld in the video. He wore casual clothes as
he did in other popular videos – ‘Earth song’ ‘Black or White’ etc.

6. PERSONALLY LIKED? REASONS?
 We like the video because its like a short film giving us a good visual to
go along with the lyrics:
 “With the high heels on”
 The videos storyline was of him chasing the girl and in the end finally
getting her. This is similar to a ‘happy ever after’ found in films.
 This made the video more enjoyable to watch, having the same effect
on me that a film would.

7. THE IMPACT IT MADE IN THE TIME PERIOD
IT WAS RELEASED IN
 The video did receive a lot of positive reviews, but the dancing was
criticised for being too provocative. Because of this, the video received
mixed reviews from critics with some saying it was ‘iconic’ to others
saying it was ‘inappropriate’.
 Despite the critique about his bizarre dancing, his moves are now one
of the main recognisable things about him- even today.
 In 1987 when this video was released it stood out as not many artists
had long narratives for a video. Also artists didn’t spend a lot of money
on their video’s like he did.
 In the 1988 MTV Video Music Awards ceremony, it received a
nomination but lost to his sister’s (Janet) video for “The Pleasure
Principle”.