The video, directed by Jonas Akerlund, the genius behind Gaga and Beyonce's "Telephone" masterpiece (hey my blog, my opinions), is a full on assault of bright colors, flashing lights and hot dancing boys, which on first watching obscured the narrative of the piece for me, but on second viewing I saw it quite clearly: the struggle of the pop princess's rise and fall and subsequent rise again.
Surrounded by camera's and video screens, Britney slinks hops and grinds looking fierce in sexy hot pants, and later appears sans backup dancers in a white gown, rising higher and higher off the ground (remember Elphaba's "Defying Gravity" scene in Wicked?). It's the virgin bride being offered up to the masses via video. Out of her own hands she begins spraying ribbons of colored paint, splashing the pristine dress and surrounding video screens, some of which (most tellingly) are running footage of her debut "... Baby One More Time" video. Intermingled with this imagery is a fight scene set against a glossy black background in which a gorgeous Britney takes on her most dangerous opponent: Britney. At the climax, both fighters fall, along with the no longer pure paint-splattered bride. It's an excellent visual of a well known story: a child star who was once worshiped for perfection she never really possessed, and was torn down by her natural need to break out of those bronzed baby shoes. The fact that she was spoiled by brightly colored paint (as opposed to black or red, for instance) expresses an acknowledgement that this type of change isn't bad, it's natural. Her true colors have got to find a way to shine.
In the end, all Britneys make their way back up, and she and her backup dancers dance something fierce amongst celebratory confetti- but here's the part that's missing something for me. After surviving the loss of innocence and fighting her inner demons, I was hoping to see some joy in her eyes, some triumph and jubilation of having told her story; of being a survivor of the treacherous roads of young stardom, but it's not there. The blank stare that she has been rocking ever since a judge ordered her into her father's care for her own protection is still solidly in place, and whether it is a decisive refusal to give that much of herself or a sign of an unhappy young woman, I am not sure, but it's there. Perhaps it wouldn't be so obvious if MTV Hits hadn't been running Britney marathons leading up to the big premier of HIAM and I hadn't caught her now classic 2000 MVA performance of "Oops I Did It Again" in which her pure joy of performing comes blazing through her like a California forest fire. HIAM is a brilliant video actually, and a terrific mix of flash and commentary, but I will never really feel like Britney is back until I see her having fun again. Thoughts?
