#tou mv

[stelloulas]

— re draw: two of us (2 years of difference!!) 🌙

[2tiedships2]

I thought I clicked on the wrong link. And then realized the full music video of Adore You is the Ad before Louis’.

[twelves]

“It’s been lovely. Honestly, actually spending real time with you and feeling like we’re getting to know each other, it’s been really nice.”

Two Of Us

[strangenewfriends]

You get faced with that almost survival human emotion of you know, am I going to sit down and feel sorry for myself every day, or am I going to be positive about it? You think about the person you’ve lost and what they would prefer, and the answer is then obvious.

Louis in the Two of Us Directors Cut

[louiseasyflowers]

28 Days of LOUIS - Day 7 Louis + Musical Instruments (Two of US MV) DONATE Stream Louis Watch Louis

[ssfoc]

Hey Sea, thoughts and words about the video? Is it the best so far?

Louis has said that the performance video is the best one he’s done. He has deliberately honed his image throughout his solo career, so that people watching his videos come to associate certain feelings with him.

I’ll start with the BTY teaser, released in 2017. The teaser showed a mocked-up Los Angeles Times with lyrics, and Louis packing up (with a 1D award by his bedside) to go home to Doncaster.

The teaser showcased Louis’ international ambitions.

But his roots are important to him. Louis brings his American collaborator to his hometown. The locations selected and the people featured are intimate and meaningful to him.

Several times in the video, Louis is filmed in front of a street address with the number 28.

As we saw in the Just Like You lyric video, through a song that continued to present how Louis saw himself in straightforward and declarative terms, he nevertheless undermines the official narrative about him (headlines that I can’t stand) and puts forth a person who is thoughtful about the world, curious to learn about the histories of social injustice and inequality, interested in issues of sexism, racism, sexual and gender discrimination, of the abuse of artists in the entertainment industry. It was all presented in monochromatic, humble and almost a self-effacing style (his figure presented in silhouette, for instance). 

Miss You, again, shows a humble and relatable Louis, with childhood friends doing regular-guy things, and frames him as a figure not really in control, occasionally blurred by flares and neon lighting, silhouetted against industrial advertisements and a wide sky. 

But nevertheless in control of the symbols that he can close with, the pink triangle for LGBT rights adjacent to the blue circle, a color long associated with Louis.

Louis made this statement after the performance video was filmed (and after Fizzy’s death), but the sentiment concurs with his solo image so far.

A regional Northern English artist making indie-pop music may not ever achieve global superstar status. But it is important to Louis to be honest with himself, stay close to his roots, to champion the music he likes, to stay humble and realize his self-worth, eschew the superficial trappings of fame such as Hollywood friends, red carpet interviews, rumors and gossip, social media fuckery, etc. Left unsaid is the fact that his image has been tightly controlled by others, and any of Louis’ self-expression has come with the price of blowback and negative press. 

The Two of Us performance video is an elegant, graceful demonstration of Louis’ values: simple but not simplistic, focused on Louis but not egotistical, understated but powerful, natural and restrained. The black and white shoot is a classic way to eliminate distractions and focus attention on the important elements, and the framing of the cinematography is elegant and beautiful (adhering closely to the “rule of thirds” in each shot). Watch how gracefully the photographer films the performers’ hands in the video: the guitar player’s hands and especially the drummer’s wrists, which are caught in arcs at the top of the screen. The play of light against dark is utterly beautiful. 

Louis’ head and shoulders are in the top third of the video, contrasted against the beams of light and the darkness of the piano, the geometric texture of windows against the piano’s curves, and their reflection in the piano’s varnish… a gorgeously framed shot. The opening also establishes Louis-the-solo-musician, and Louis’ outfit is simple, in solid contrasting colors without distraction.

The musicians divide the frame into thirds, and the three figures form a triangle in the middle of the shot. Again, Louis’ plain shirt brings focus to his face, as contrasted with the patterns in the background. The lights from the window on the right and from above soften his features, cast soft highlights in his hair and shadows on his body. Artful and restrained– really gorgeous. 

Don’t need to say anything about this one: raw emotions in the face reflected back in the delicate and expressive motions of his hands, the lighting from the side and behind creating a halo effect. This chiaroscuro is always dramatic, but here it is so fleeting that it’s almost an afterthought. 

The direct gaze, both as an indication of self-knowledge and as a fearless declaration of who he is: unadorned, honest, tattoos out, owning up to everything in his past and present, and the only mv segment where he does not sing to the lyrics, because the words are, more or less, a personal motto:

I promised you I’d do thisSo all of this is all for youOh, I swear to God you’re livingThrough everything I’ll ever do

This shot from Helen Seamons is dramatic and shows the temptation of the sublime in this kind of open space.

This photograph, as beautiful as it is, emphasizes the space, not the performer. One notices the textures in the flooring and walls, the beams of light, the sublime scale of windows, the grand coffered ceilings, but the central figure is diminished in scale and in meaning. 

Instead, the director Huse Monfaradi has focused the music video on a human scale, to create a sense of sympathy and intimacy. It is a restrained video and will not appeal the same way that a video with special effects and extravagance will, but it is consistent with Louis’ persona and the message of his song. I think it was brilliant. It will stand up to time. 

[alltheselights]

#TwoOfUsMusicVideo is #1 trending Worldwide

it’s what he deserves

[curlyhairedcuntandboobear]

Jordan is in Leeds!