ANAYLSIS OF Boulevard of Broken Dreams”

The music video starts with a shot of an old car rolling to halt because it has broken down. It is set in a deserted ghost town which is unkempt, has rubbish everywhere and tumble weeds rolling around. Their is a use of camera filters and post edit effects which are used to give the film an aged look. At first the sound is diagetic only. The three band members who are in the car get out and start to walk as they do this the song starts to play. More effects are used to make the footage look even more aged and some of the cuts do no match up and so makes the film a bit more jumpy which also adds to the aged effect. Billy Joel Armstrong who is the singer of green day starts to sing looking straight at the camera, this anchors what he is saying in the song to himself. The grading has also been changed to make it look less real. Their is a use of green screen which also makes video look less realistic and makes it feel more like a dream. the song contradicts itself as it says “I walk alone” but they are accompanied by the two other band members, although it is more metaphorical rather than literal. There is a shot of a couple of vultures. This part of the miss en scene helps to reinforce the loneliness of the deserted town. There is binary opposition in the video as it goes from the empty deserted ghost town to a city full of life. This is done to represent that even with hundreds of people all around you you can still feel alone. All the people are looking emotionless and as if they are not really there which shows that they are feeling the same, alone surrounded by people.