Please interpret this video

[TheManBeyond]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HATlYAC0Gms

i have reached some basic conclusions, i just wanted to see if yours match mines. please develop as much as you want.

 

[StevenM]

Well, it's clear the artist is trying to convey the message that the soda industry is brainwashing. An anarchy against birthday cakes.

 

[Yellow]

Watching it from beginning to end without the music, I got the impression that it's about a man who has some kind of severe mental illness, and he is panicking. As if he's just coming off his medication/treatment in the beginning and views those who would treat him as hunters looking to capture him. Or perhaps the opposite. That he is coming off his medication in the beginning and that it is his mental illness chasing him down and recapturing him. (I am fully aware of the clear bias).

Watching it with the music made me think it was just someone trying to escape the throes of heartbreak.

 

[onesteptwostep]

I first saw the video fresh, then I saw the video with the lyrics. Then I saw the video again, and then read up wiki to get an insight on the vocalists (and saw the video again). So total of 4 views.

First I thought the video could have been something about a bisexual person coming to terms with his really emotionally clingy guy friend. When I mean coming to terms, that he's more scared the crap out of himself because.. well you don't except that to happen.

Second, after reading the lyrics, I think the video is maybe an after-shot of the events that happened in the lyrics. He was with a girl but things ended up bad, and now he's trying to fend off this guy who's, I dunno, maybe trying to get his ex? So the video is more representational of his psyche. Now the hunted is trying to fend off his own mentality (sub-conscious jealously perhaps).

Now as for the third time, I'm thinking there's three parts to the video. The first is segment is from the perspective of the hunter, from 0:00 to 1:10. From 1:10 1:35 it's transitioning from the narrative of the hunter to the narrative of the hunted. From 1:35 to 1:50 it's from the perspective of the hunted. He goes, "Sisters of Mercy, take me please." because of the predicament he's in. He's trying to get the heck away from the man who's "been so lonely".
From 2:00 and to the end, the lyrics just becomes the combined chorus of the two. "I've never been so lonely, can't you see." It works from both perspectives. 'I've been lonely so that's why I acted the way I acted', and, 'I've been so lonely, so that's why I'm going after you, can't you see'. What they say are the same, but what they mean and what their intents are, are different. So the order is, the narrative of the hunter, the narrative of the hunted, and then the chorus (where the ending is up to the viewer).

And now I've seen the wiki and considering that the vocals are both females, I think the video is more representational of how a certain couple fell into an emotional bond. The males in the video aren't representational of a certain sex, they're more representative of two parts or elements that match/complement each other. They're representational of emotions rather than sexuality. "All of this tension waiting for release." Of whether they ended up well is up to the viewer.

The whole thing could just be a juxtaposition as well, which is somewhat similar with my 2nd conclusion but with a "juxta-twist".

 

[Pyropyro]

Interpreting the vid with the song in mind, I think both the hunter and the hunted is one and the same. The hunter is the person's reason while the hunted is the person's emotions after the breakup/ loss of a loved one. Reason wants to reign in, but not kill, the emotions in but it was instead drowned out in the end.

 

[onesteptwostep]

^ Oo I like that one.

 

[Sir Eus Lee]

Unless the artist clarified what it is they specified, it could be anything, so we would just be giving conjecture as to what it could mean. So if that's what it is, then I'll state some guesses.

The hunter may be the mentally ill one, not the man escaping. So the "been so lonely" may be referring to the handcuffed man, because he was stolen by the hunter and locked up as the hunter's "friend." In reality the HCd man was Hunters prisoner. The handcuffed man was trying to escape from the Hunter and when he got to the cliff decided throwing himself over was better than living as the hunter's prisoner. This would be supported by the way the handcuffed man does a jump and roll in the beginning, and then landed in the sand with a continued run, but the hunter's landing in the sand was much less graceful, and he did release a crazy yell halfway through.

When they both sing I've been so lonely together, it's because handcuffed man wants to see other people and civilization and the hunter wants his victim back.

As to the metaphor, it may be two halves of the same person, one wanting to see their other half again, and their other half wanting something else. But I'm pretty sure about the first part but not so sure about this part.

 

[TheManBeyond]

Interpreting the vid with the song in mind, I think both the hunter and the hunted is one and the same. The hunter is the person's reason while the hunted is the person's emotions after the breakup/ loss of a loved one. Reason wants to reign in, but not kill, the emotions in but it was instead drowned out in the end.

exactly my thoughts, nailed it. <3
cool explanations everyone.

 

[QuickTwist]

I like the mental illness angle some people had. My interpretation is that the guy who was handcuffed was the victim of mental illness (likely a bout of mania). Since it never shows him being captive by anything/anyone else we can only assume that the handcuffs are from a different period of the guys life. To me, the rain poncho represents the scrubs you have to wear when you are in the hospital. So it would mean he is just coming out of the hospital and trying to "get back on his feet" so to speak. Now that he has been release from the hospital he has to "decide" if he wants to accept that he has a mental illness or not. Now the the guy with the tranquilizer gun is what his "treatment" is. The treatment has a debilitating effect on him that he can no longer fight off as seen at the very end where he has a choice of either committing suicide, or decide to accept treatment. He succumbs to his treatment even though it means he has to come to grips with the fact that he has a mental illness. Obviously the guy feels alone that he has to go through it all himself and its only a matter of time until he realizes that it just going to be something he has to live with. He eventually comes to grips with the fact that he has a mental illness and even with treatment he decides life is not worth it so while he accept an rebels against treatment, he decides to end his life, knowing that he will never be free of treatment and therefore will never be happy.

That is my interpretation at least. *shrug*

[Edit] After watching it 2 1/2 times, I caught something I missed previously. The guy (with the mental illness) rips something off his wrist. That very well could symbolize the wristband that you get when you are entered into the hospital. It could represent that he is vowing to never go back to the hospital or something like that.