Original analysis of Gotye’s music video and lyrics
This incredibly powerful and masterfully developed ode describes a relationship coming to an end. The nudity of the man and woman is important to convey the encompassing/vulnerable nature of relationships. The painting represents “the full picture” of their relationship. Their body paint represents their individual connection to the relationship.
First Stanza
0:18 He is reminiscing on the relationship. The direction of his eyes is important throughout the song. Here, his eyes are averted. It demonstrates his sadness as he realizes how the happy memories have come to an end.
0:28 He first focuses his gaze with the words “you could die.” Although the phrase “so happy you could die” would normally be positive, the timing of his gaze suggests a certain venom in his words.
0:33 “I told myself you were right for me, but felt so lonely in your company” His continued gaze suggests this is truthful. However the absence of conviction in his tone suggests a level of confusion, sadness, or regret.
Second Stanza
1:03 “You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness” His continued gaze suggests this was something he said or felt. Notice the paint is applied to the background and not to either of their bodies in this segment. This together with his gaze suggests he is trying to figure things out and not necessarily describing himself. He is slowly piecing together the broader reality of the situation.
1:18 “when we found that we could not make sense” Suddenly, his eyes are averted. His tone, averted eyes, and pathetic colloquialism make it fairly clear it was her decision to end the relationship; not a mutual discovery. He seems lost here and it suggests he is manipulating his own memory. Perhaps this shows his self-repression to avoid feeling pain.
1:25 “but I’ll admit that I was glad that it was over” is betrayed by his tone and the reality of the situation. He is not glad at all .The painting is a developing force and he is just figuring it out. His gaze is focused; he may have said these hurtful words to her.
First Chorus
1:32 “but you didn’t have to cut me off…” His emotion finally bursts as he cries out. He seethes with pain, anguish, rejection, regret. This first strong emotion also is the first moment the paint begins to cover him.
1:41 “I don’t even need your love…” He is trying to shrug her off in a destructive way and it isn’t working for him. Clearly he is very hurt. He now becomes consumed as the painting (the relationship) covers him.
Third Stanza
This is when first see her. Unlike him, she is first looking directly at the painting and is already fully painted. In other words, she is actually observing and experiencing the relationship, whereas he has missed it.
Now that we see more of the picture, we can see that they are both very close to the painting (the relationship). They are both enmeshed in it. The choice of colors is also important. There is a small touch of yellow (yellow suggests hope/happiness) which mostly does not touch their bodies.
She is significantly green (green suggests balance, self respect, or envy). Interestingly, her green is mostly around her head, while much of her body remains red. Her heart is fairly evenly split between red and green. This could indicate a conflict between mind/body/heart. Most of her face is unpainted, which may indicate that her mind wasn’t in the relationship.
He is almost entirely red (red suggests passion, love, or embarrassment). His face appears mostly white (white suggests purity and innocence), so he may believe himself to be pure and innocent. He has some gray (gray suggests clouds, confusion, or sadness) surrounding his head and his left eye.
2:30 “… you screwed me over” She turns her head to address him directly, while remaining a part of the painting/relationship. He breathes a large sigh, likely in agreement with her.
2:39 “had me believing it was always something that I’d done” he painfully shuts his eyes. He hears her, but he does not face her or respond to her. He may be in silent disagreement, or perhaps he is wincing in acknowledgement of his gaslighting.
2:45 She breaks herself out of the painting/relationship. This is a physical and emotional split. She is still present, with the marks of the relationship on her body, but this is the moment she truly separated from the relationship.
2:47 “I don’t want to live that way…” She confronts him angrily. He shuts his eyes, seemingly to block out her complaints.
2:57 “I wouldn’t catch you hung up on somebody that you used to know” She announces her plans to leave him with her own vicious words. She’s not innocent here either.
Second Chorus
3:02 This time, his voice leans more towards conviction rather than hurt. She continues to complain directly to him and her tone fluctuates between anger/frustration and her own hurt. He doesn’t acknowledge her complaints or presence. The more she complains, the more rigid he becomes. On the other hand, her complaints are not specific. Her voice becomes a hollow nagging/moaning in his ear.
3:28 “now you’re just somebody that I used to know” This is the moment she begins her exit. This is also the first moment he actually looks at her. His gaze is now conflicted as she washes clean of the relationship. Sometimes he is clearly focused on her and other times he seems overwhelmed by his own pain.
3:45 “I used to know” He faces her strongly with the word “know,” but his tone and gaze toward her could be interpreted as “no.” It could be his way of pleading with her not to go.
3:57 “somebody” The only time they make eye contact or sing in unison is the last word. The relationship/painting is still there and he is still part of it. She has completely washed herself of the relationship. She seems to be moving on, while he seems to be holding on.
Conclusion
The song covers somewhat common complaints between the genders in regard to relationships. Both sides believe they are fully justified, however both have contributed to the breakdown of the relationship in different ways. All in all, this is truly brilliant work, and each person may interpret pieces somewhat differently based on their own experiences.
