Lady Gaga's "Telephone"
Lady Gaga's new music video for "Telephone" premiered late last night on E! and Vevo to millions of curious viewers. The vid, shot as a 9 1/2 minute short film, is a visually stunning schmorgasbord of sex, violence, and freaky fashion the likes of which could only be served up by Gaga.
"Telephone," (Or should I call it Telephone?) is a Tarantino/Thelma & Louise/lesbian prison gang homage co-starring Beyonce, Tyrese Gibson, the dudes from Semi Precious Weapons, and the Kill Bill Pussy Wagon. It's also a sequel to the video for "Paparazzi," and was directed by Jonas Akerlund, the same dude who put that particular piece of sparkly-shiny together with Gaga.
To call this video EPIC is an understatement. I mean, serioiusly. She uses the vid to address (and mock) those persistent rumors about her having a schlong. She wears a PIRATE HAT and serves deadly diner fare in Alexander McQueen heels. She does a particularly quirky impression of Axl Rose mid-trademark-effed-up-move-busting. For eff's sake, she plays a lesbian Greaser and makes out with a BUTCH LESBIAN PRISON DADDY in the first two minutes! This video puts the BALLS in AMAZEBALLS! But don't take my word for it. Feast your very own little monster eyeballs on this crazy wonderful business:
And just in case you never saw "Paparazzi," here's the new vid's prequel:
- Login or register to post comments
- Comments [74]
Tweet
Comments [74]
For anybody interested in a
For anybody interested in a deeper reading of the thematic goldmine that is this video, my favorite Gaga fansite has two really great radio interview clips up in which Gaga discusses the making of the video and what it's about.
In the first one on NYC's Z100, she also talks at length about the queer/lesbian content.
I listened to the radio clips
I listened to the radio clips and my initial response was:
1) I am delighted she wants to celebrate lesbian culture!
2) Is lebian culture prison gangs and poisoning mass murderers? Seems a shade negative, though admittedly very sexy.
In the end I decided since she does weird representational things about every other subject she tackles, I suppose I am happy she is doing something equally strange about us. I must confess I usually don't understand Gaga unless somebody explains it to me - so thank you for the radio interview links!
Geek Sugar
And how about some tech spotting the Gaga video from Geek Sugar? I linked to my favorite but the entire gallery is worth a look.
http://www.geeksugar.com/Tech-Spotting-Lady-Gagas-Telephone-Video-Gives-...
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
Ha! Yeah, her Geekiness
Ha! Yeah, her Geekiness recently admitted that her idea of an ideal date would be to order in NY pizza and watch creature feature sci-fi/horror movies in bed. Were it not for love of CaramelTeddy, I would be actively seeking Gaga's hand in unholy bedlock.
THIS IS AWESOME.
thanx, julia, I'm psyched to go check out these clips. for what it's worth, I completely agree w/ you-- I don't know why so many people here are being so redonkulolusly hypercritical. seriously, what does it take to please you people?!? I'll admit the music isn't so amazing, and I've honestly never even listened to lady gaga before, so I lack context; but this music video/lesbian pulp short is AMAZING. that's BEYONCE going gay for lady gaga, people. and the cigarette sunglasses alone should be worth 100,000 lesbo street credits. I could absolutely write a paper about this video that would get published in any number of cultural theory journals. the editing is inspired-- tarantino meets yoko meets edward said, if they were all lesbians.
and yeah, of course I didn't like having that verison endorsement thrown in my face; but guess what? that endorsement paid for the fucking video. we are cheap, fellow queer chicks; that's a bit part of why we get such crap media representation. rose troche told us point blank at q-me-con in '08 that if we wanted to keep the l-word, we were gonna have to start shelling out for premium cable. well, I can't even afford basic cable, so that ain't happening-- but I understand that that money's gotta come from somewhere. and it certainly doesn't seem like verison ever made any kind of play for creative control. so, really, where's the bad? I haven't seen anything this subversive presented to the mainstream american public in a LONG time.
for real, you haters are smoking some bad weed. put it away.
We're all born naked. The rest is drag.
--RuPaul (appropriating Judith Butler for the masses...)
Also,
Also, !!!
http://onlywordstoplaywith.blogspot.com/2010/03/lady-gagas-telephone-obs...
Ha! Aside from talking about
Ha! Aside from talking about how she wanted to represent and include the lesbian and trans communities in this vid, and flirting with one of the DJs' straight chick friends by proxy, the best part of those two interview clips is when Gaga talks about how she chose those particular brands for product placements because 1) "My videos are expensive" and she has to pay for them somehow and 2) she wanted to use those iconic American food brands in a Warholian way, to show how our culture is inundated with technology, information and food, until the patrons of the diner get overloaded (literally poisoned from it) and vomit it all up until they die.
It has been so long since anyone bothered to put this much thought or heart or subversiveness into their pop art. Way too long! Gaga is like a breath of fresh, glitter-scented air.
totally!!!
OMG, I was gonna include Warhol in my litany of artistic influences, but then I didn't because his filmmaking style is so un-stylized and anti-diegetic; but in terms of iconography and the purely visual choices Gaga made (I guess this could be called cinematography?) I definitely see that corellation. Fucking Boss, man.
The one positive thing I can also say about the very wide range of opinions being expressed here is that, well, it's nice that we've gotten to a point where there's enough range of queer media representation that everyone doesn't have to all jump on the bandwagon and love something just because it's queer. I always really resented being given lots of poorly written lesbian novels as a teenager and informed that I "had to" like them or else I was being disloyal to my tribe. It's true that this video is not for everyone-- just like Tarantino is not for everyone, Warhol is not for everyone, glittery-subversive pop-art is not for everyone. It's cool. But just the fact that this exists is pretty fucking awesome ;)
We're all born naked. The rest is drag.
--RuPaul (appropriating Judith Butler for the masses...)
You're completely right about
You're completely right about the plurality of opinions and queer media options. I just get up in arms about Gaga because I'm completely mad for her, like, openly crazy devoted fan mad. So many people can't get beyond her look to see how much actual substance is just under the surface. But every time a new major performance is aired or a new video is released, it's like (as one wit put it recently in EW) "Gay Christmas" all over again for those of us who love her. Ha!
Totally. That's how I feel
Totally. That's how I feel about Glee! But from now on I'm gonna be paying more attention to lady gaga, too
We're all born naked. The rest is drag.
--RuPaul (appropriating Judith Butler for the masses...)
I just saw a bunch of
I just saw a bunch of humorist in quebec, they where referring to gaga claim of not having sex and they said its because she can't find someone smart enough to find a way to take out her sophisticate clothes.
-Do not follow me, I'M LOST-
No, you couldn't find someone
No, you couldn't find someone daring enough to risk almost certain death that would surely follow when you got impaled on some of her outfits.
The prospect of getting to
The prospect of getting to make sweet Sarah McLachlan love to Gaga would totes be worth risking death by impalement via The Living Dress!
From the point of view of a
From the point of view of a short film, if I was reviewing this I'd say overall not bad but the editing needs to be tightened. This could have been about 7 minutes long instead of 9 1/2 and been much better. Give me some high def footage to put on my G5 and I will cut it down to be so much tighter LG will gladly offer me a job.
agreed
the editing was horrendous. actually, only the past where the sandlot butch smells, kisses, and gropes her and the part where beyonce greets her in the car should stay. the rest could be cut
Dear Haterz, Okay. Thelma and
Dear Haterz,
Okay. Thelma and Louise references. Simultaneous appropriation/critique of nationalism and corporate/consumer culture. ICONIC LESBIAN PRISON SEX, for crying out loud! (!!!)
Honestly. Gaga could bang Shane on top of a motorcycle with Tegan and Sara playing and various woodland creatures frolicking in the background, and she still wouldn't be lesbian enough for some of you lesbians.
xo
throw in Feron
and Im in.
My roomate just told me that he and his boyfriend's bff did the makeup, btw.
re: your roomie
!!!
Hah
Hahaha, Diana. Do you mean Ferron, the Canadian folksinger?
Still searching for the right brainy quote.
oh
I thought her name looked weird with one R but I was too lazy to look it up
too lazy
Diana- I often am the same way about not wanting to look things up out of laziness. It is just so hard to type a few words into a google search. I wish I could say I was being sarcastic.
Looking for the LIKE button.
Looking for the LIKE button.
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
simmer down...
'she still wouldn't be lesbian enough for some of you lesbians.'
Girl, I like her. I don't care what her sexual preference is. It makes no difference to me-:) I was just talking about the video blending into the song. A video doesn't have to be lesbian or gay to get my attention. Please, do not think I'm trying to piss on your admiration for Gaga or her personally. I just don't like the song or video.
I did get the creative points.
You're very passionate about your Gaga!
http://fallingfromtrains.com
fashion credits
Here's a breakdown of the fashion credits scene by scene. http://nicolaformichetti.blogspot.com/2010/03/fashion-credits-telephone-...
I knew that outfit she was wearing when Beyonce bailed her out had to be Thierry Mugler. So brilliant.
seriously
every outfit in this is mind-blowingly perfect.
and i'm dead-on with Thierry Mugler's inspiration being the poet Marianne Moore: http://www.uta.edu/english/tim/poetry/mm/moore.gif
FLAWLESS
yeah sorry I have to break in here
to applaud the wooden specs.
where's my happy pinching crab icon, insert it here *
tweet tweet @gracemoon
moon these aren't the wooden
moon these aren't the wooden ones! they are godard-grade plastic. I emailed you a pic of my wooden ones. they are so light, like the founding fathers' wooden teeth!
nice glasses
also darlings, here's my favorite Thierry Mugler outfit ever:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMaZCe-8P1Y
HOLY SHIT! If I ever do my YA
HOLY SHIT! If I ever do my YA novel storyline as the post-apocalyptic sci-fi musical it was originally conceived as, Thierry Mugler would be my dream costumer.
I didn't think anything could
I didn't think anything could top the razor blade sunglasses from the Bad Romance vid, but the lit cigarette ones kind of take the stripper cake.
Bawdy, trashy fun. Musically
Bawdy, trashy fun. Musically it's nothing special though.
Brandi Carlile is a much better musician, and more down to earth.
"Fight Prime Time. Read a Book"
Agreed, the song isn't up to
Agreed, the song isn't up to her usual....
Huh. She sold out....
That was the longest commercial I've ever seen. She pimped herself out to the highest corporate bidder... sorry, imo - there's nothing creative about doing that.
Embedded marketing
I guess she is just following in the time-honored but shamless tradition in Hollywood movies, ala Reeses Pieces in E.T. It doesn't always work though. Whenever I re-watch E.T., I get a hankering for M&Ms instead. Hah.
Still searching for the right brainy quote.
I still love E.T.
What a terrific movie.
Hey Minnie, I recently had some of the 'new' premium dark chocolate M&M's. Yuk. Why did they try to improve on perfection? lol
Yepper
Yeah, the only choices I want are regular M&Ms or peanut M&Ms. Love the peanuts.
Still searching for the right brainy quote.
Okay peanut are my favorite
Okay peanut are my favorite but I LOVE dark chocolate M&Ms
Dar chocolate M&Ms = Revolutionary
"Fight Prime Time. Read a Book"
I prefer peanut to plain as
I prefer peanut to plain as well but I think the gourmet M&M's are awesome. I particularly like the purple ones. Though, since I don't eat sugar anymore and it's been months since I had them I don't remember what flavor that is.
Robin
Was it difficult to cut sugar out of your diet? How did you do it?
Sorry, I didn't answer the
Sorry, I didn't answer the second part of your question. I just stopped. Cold turkey. And by sugar I mean cane sugar, corn syrup, honey and molasses. I'm thinking that at some point it would be okay to add honey and molasses back into my diet but figure it's best to sort of detox first and work out the details. I'm making this up as I go along.
I do have sweetened tea every morning but I've been making that with saccharin since I was a teen so that wasn't an adjustment at all. I've talked to someone else who said she can't do artificial sweeteners because they still make her want sweets. It doesn't bother me but I only use them in beverages (the tea & diet soda which I should give up for other reasons).
Bread is actually very easy and satisfying to make but most recipes call for sugar because that makes it rise really light and fluffy. I actually prefer heavier, denser breads so I'm okay with no sugar but finding recipes is hard. The pizza dough recipe I use is from epicurious.com. It's called 'basic pizza dough' and I just do half and half white and wheat flour. I tried 100% wheat and it didn't rise at all.
Robin
It's pretty awesome that you could stop eating sugar cold turkey...
I'm not a sugar addict, but do I get cravings [especially just before my period]. So, because of that, I'll find myself baking cookies, cupcakes, etc. I can definately reduce the amount of sweets that I bake, but I'm thinkin' that you're a lot stronger then I am! You know what's weird, I'm so aware of other food issues - fats, salt, artificial ingredients, chemicals, etc., but I hadn't really looked at the question of sugar.
There isn't any diabetes in my family, so I guess it's been somewhat easy for me to ignore the health issues connected with sugar. But, omg, I'm astonished at what serious health problems experts have connected to the over consumption of sugar.
Robin, I'm not familiar with the site I'm posting for you, but this is just one of several that I was checking out. I'm sure that you're already aware of all of this info - but geez, I was thinking that if it's only 50% correct, it's frightening.
http://www.healingdaily.com/detoxification-diet/sugar.htm
I can't thank you enough for making me look into this subject. As a girl who takes [what I thought was] pretty good care of herself - I feel like this is an area that I definately need to examine.
Thank's for opening my eyes...
No worries. I think I first
No worries. I think I first noticed it when I watched Super Size Me. At one point Morgan points out there's only 2 items on the McD's menu that don't have sugar in them and one of those was bottled water. Then when you see what a number that diet did on his body in just 30 days. Well...
Oh, and diabetes does run in my family so I've been aware of some things for a long time. But more aware of the effects of insulin since my brother injected it daily starting at 16.
The most difficult part is
The most difficult part is reading labels because it's added to EVERYTHING. I should be specific that I do mean 'added' sugar, not naturally occurring sugars. I mean, I ate a banana today, those are high in sugar and I'm having wine right now. It's amazing how easy it is after just a few days. You don't crave sweets at all. I sleep better. My appetite was decreased. I still love food, of course. I just made a pizza for dinner. I make my own whole wheat dough without sugar. It doesn't rise up all fluffy but it's hearty and filling. I've made pizza for my friends with that same crust, garlic, spinach & tomato and they loved it and have asked me for the recipe. It does also mean that I have to cook more for myself, rather than buying pre-made or eating out, but that's a good thing too. All in all I feel like it's been a very good thing and not as difficult as you may think.
When i was in usa,
When i was in usa, everything taste sugar. sauces, pizza dough. back from the USA, i had a sugar rush and its not a joke. In quebec, its more mountains of salt, and france, they like fat in there food.
-Do not follow me, I'M LOST-
Reading Labels
Yeah, I see sugar in labels all the time. I love cooking, and try to use the freshest ingredients possible, but sometimes it's just too inconvenient to cook everything from scratch. I do find myself using packaged products with too much of everything in it....
I add sugar to most of the bread that I bake. That would probably be a good place to start reducing my intake... As a vegetarian I'm used to reading labels [ugh], but I guess I've taken my sugar intake for granted.
You've got me thinking about it now....and that's a good thing.
Thanks for responding, I appreciate it.
You're welcome. I just think
You're welcome. I just think back to how are bodies have been designed to eat and how our ancestors ate even as recently as the first half of the last century and it's ridiculous what we put in our mouths these days.
To Yonks above- Don't I know it. I decided to treat myself to a chai tea latte one afternoon a few months ago. Between the sugar and the caffeine I was up half the night. I probably couldn't stomach M&Ms if I tried them right now. And yes, we put sugar in tomato sauce. I used to manage a pizzeria, so I know.
I haven't completely cut out
I haven't completely cut out sugar, but I have stopped eating candy and all but a few approved sweets (I'm addicted. Bad.) as part of my diet this past month or so. One of my friends brought me a giant, decorated Valentine's Day sugar cookie to class about two weeks into the diet, and I caved and ate the thing. When I got home, CT asked me if I was high. Hahahahaha. That was a BIIIG lesson in the effect of sugar on my body and my state of mind.
I'm not ready to give it up entirely, but I can for real see why folks might make that decision.
File under random
File under random coincidences- I was just browsing this website and found this recipe for sugar free banana bread. I love banana bread so I think I may have to make this.
http://green.yahoo.com/blog/ecomii_healthy_living/84/naturally-sweetened...
Yum
That recipe sounds delicious....
It's easier to give it up
It's easier to give it up completely than to give up some things. Once you stop eating it you don't want it anymore. As long as you're still eating some you will continue to crave it.