Singleton 1

Andrew Singleton

Professor Calhoun

English 1201-521

26 April 2020

Two Videos of “Viva La Vida”

Anton Corbijn’s music video of “Viva La Vida” by Coldplay and the original music

video by Coldplay are two very different representations of the same song that appeal to different

audiences. The remixed video mainly appeals to people that have knowledge about the French

Revolution while the original video is trying to appeal to an audience that believes that people

can quickly gain fame and power but can lose it just as fast. The interpretation of the lyrics in

both videos plays a big role in why the visuals are so different. The original video interprets the

lyrics using several double entendres while the remixed video interprets the lyrics in the song

very literally and historically.

The original video of “Viva La Vida” is representing a deeper sentiment than the lyrics

originally imply. The lead singer of Coldplay, Chris Martin, is the main character in the video

and is explaining what happens to many people in the music industry. “One minute I held the

key. Next the walls were closed on me” is referring to the swift nature of many musical careers.

Throughout the video, Martin and his band are pictured dancing and performing the song but at

the end of the video they are all pictured dissolving into the darkness. This happens after Martin

says, “But that was when I ruled the world”, showing that he was looking back to a time when he

was successful. This shows that the song is being interpreted using double entendres to claim
 Singleton 2

how fame can be quickly gained and lost. The overall audience for this video is someone that has

an understanding of the French Revolution and also the Bible, as there are biblical references.

The remixed video of “Viva La Vida” by Anton Corbijn came out about 3 years after the

original video and was made to interpret the lyrics of the song literally. Although the video is

telling a totally different story, the audience remains relatively the same as the original video.

The main character in this video is a king during the French Revolution. The video uses the

historical and biblical references in the song literally to tell the story of what happened to the

king. “I used to roll the dice, feel the fear in my enemy's eyes” is referring to the extreme power

that the king had and the risks he would take with that power. “People couldn't believe what I'd

become” is the people finally figuring out that his power turned him into a tyrant. The king then

describes the uproar that happened by saying, “Revolutionaries wait, for my head on a silver

plate”. The entire setting of the video symbolizes the the French Revolution, where

revolutionaries were finally able to overthrow the monarchy.

Both of these videos appeal mainly to pathos and they do so in very similar ways. The

original video appeals to pathos by using many different dance moves and facial expressions to

create the feeling of both sadness and despair. Also, the original video has abstract images and

images from the French Revolution in the background that may spark an emotional response in

the viewer. These would mainly appeal to an audience that knows about the French Revolution

and also has life experiences that relate to despair or sadness. The remixed version appeals to

pathos because it shows a king walking the streets in total despair and the expressions on the

king's face throughout the video is very desperate. The remix also shows the king isolating

himself and being very alone. This would appeal to a very similar audience as the main video,
 Singleton 3

but would lean towards an audience that knows about the French Revolution because of the

setting.

With all of this said, the remixed video of “Viva La Vida” by Anton Corbijn and the

original video of “Viva La Vida” share similar audiences but do so in two very different ways.

The remixed video interprets the lyrics of the song very literally while the original video uses

multiple double entendres to create a story that claims that people can quickly gain fame and

power but can lose it just as fast. Overall, both appeal heavily to pathos by showing facial

expressions and movements that show emotions of sadness and despair. Both videos do a very

good job of telling a story and have great visuals that catch the viewers attention. Furthermore,

both videos appeal to an audience that is familiar with the French Revolution and has had a sad

or depressing experience in their life.

 Singleton 4

Works Cited

Coldplay. “Viva La Vida.” Youtube, 4 Aug. 2008,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvgZkm1xWPE Accessed 9 Feb. 2020

Coldplay. “Viva La Vida (Anton Corbijn Version)” Youtube, 30 Nov. 2011,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kVxpsi1XQ4 Accessed 9 Feb. 2020