Lil Dicky is an American rapper and comedian who released the music video to his song "Pillow Talking" in 2015 as part of the album: Professional Rapper. It is within the top 60 most expensive music videos of all time down to its easy usage of CGI that illustrates the awkward conversations between Dicky and his hookup. The narrative remains heavily tethered to the song, which is a conversion between two people (both voiced by Dicky) after they have hooked up and is a comical guide on what issues you shouldn't raise after intimate moments. They find themselves in a culture clash when they begin to dispute: aliens, religion, evolution, American foreign policy, vegetarianism highlighting that their opposing ideologies make them far from as compatible as they initially thought.
The video opens in a dark and ominous room and as the camera pans up we are introduced to a short title sequence that doesn't ruin the ominous tone (which oddly contrasts the video in itself) where we see the rapper and his hookup with the visuals including intertextual references to the 1986 Tom Cruise movie Top Gun. As the video progresses the camera focuses on the two from an awkward tilted high angle shot looking down on them, adding to the awkward atmosphere as it feels as though the audience has intruded . Things begin to take an uncomfortable atmosphere as Dicky attempts to make conversation with her, this is where the clash of personalities begins.
the camera pans back, meeting them at a medium shot where, upon the discussion of war, they both, passionately, begin to sit up on the bed in a more confrontational manner, and the lack of intimacy between the two as they have distanced themselves shows their apposing opinions. interestingly, the hookup is sat to the right whereas Dicky is sat to the left, possibly representing their differential political allegiances, with Dicky aligning more with the progressive left wing and The Hookup aligning with the traditionally conservative right. Suddenly, as the camera zooms round towards lil dicky, focusing behind him we see the first use of CGI as a miniature UFO floats by his head, shining a light down onto his bedside table onto some miniature soldiers where they begin to battle. This is quickly shut down by his date, however, as she states she believes in god and that humans are the only life in the universe. this furthers the rift between them as the rapper further shifts away from her.
Their conversation is suddenly interrupted by the entrance of Dicky's "Brain" (a featured character in the video as the title suggests) who was apparently been hiding out in the wardrobe for a year or so when dicky forgot to get him out. he walks up (incredibly slowly) to the bed and hops up with the two sitting between the two and proceeds to (slowly) hep dicky dispute the existence of god. He creates a hologram of 'God" featuring a celebrity cameo from John C. Reilly as the omnipotent creator to reenact how he made the universe, and hat a supposedly all powerful being that is never wrong created dinosaurs just to eradicate them and create humans.
Upon this realisation and shift in the pace of the song there is an explosion of special effects with the walls of the bedroom disappearing taking them to a Prehistoric setting filled with talking dinosaurs and vibrant exotic plants, this abruptly ends though when the date starts talking, almost implying that her religious views are not deserving of clear editing since her views are reflective of a duller, boring distance and absence of the wonders of science. The camera cuts between the tow as they continue to bicker out, they are no longer in a shot together, showing their intimate relationship has ended as their view don't align anymore and they struggle to see past that. This could be seen as dicky making a mockery out of how people react to different political views. We see at the start that the two have a lot in common, they love the same lifestyle of smoking, hookups in the extravagant L.A. world. However, once they find out their opposing views they can no longer be together, as since they don't agree on one aspect of human existence then they can;'t be together anymore. Even when they agree to put it behind them and order food they sit far away, the camera represents the attempt at reigniting the spark from the start of the evening by zooming forward slowly on them sat at the bed, but the distance between the two in how they sit is cold and disturbing to watch, showcasing the awkwardness of the situation.
This 'truce' is short lived, however, as when they attempt to order food and dicky finds out she's vegetarian the bedroom falls apart taking them to a a wild grassland filled with wildebeasts as hunters roam around with bows and arrows before the camera spins to showcase a slaughterhouse with the meat being processed (this is the first piece of cgi used to backup the hookup's point). A talking wolf appears before the sequence ends as the woman decides to leave. This is the first time they actually leave the bed, standing in opposing ends of the room, finally demonstrating this shattering rift between them.when they decide to sleep the Brain asks for assistance but is ignored by them both, Dicky is sleeping on the floor and the general message that can be taken here is simply that politics ruins lives.
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