LADY GAGA – TELEPHONE POSTMODERNISM

The opening scene of Telephone imitates the stylistic ‘Lady Gaga & Beyoncé’ features of Quentin Tarantino, and features intertextual references from both Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill. Telephone makes homage to both films. Telephone uses a similar bold popping text to the Tarantino Font used in Pulp Fiction, with popping yellow and red colours, adopting a retro(ish) style. Moreover this allows the video to pay homage to the pre used font from Pulp Fiction

Pastiche within the video can be seen when lady gaga is shown when she is getting picked up in a yellow truck (Pussy Wagon) . The pussy wagon is also a reference to the sexuality in the music video but also a reference to the truck driven by the actor in Kill Bill Vol1 film.

Within the music video media synergy has been used effectively to promote virgin mobile in the music video. Furthermore, a close shot up of the artists product can be seen in the video. Lady gaga’s ‘Heartbeat’ earphones can been seen which shows that product placement has been imbedded in the video effectively.

Bricolage has been used effectively in the video. The generic conventions of 1950s with cans used as hair rollers which imitates the 1950s period with big hair rollers in women’s hair. As coca cola was popular in the 1950s, the video manipulates that fact and uses coca cola cans instead of ordinary tin cans.

In the video other references to the character of Ele Driver in Kill Bill has been implemented in the video as Lady Gaga takes on her role, in the scene where Ele Driver dresses in a nurse outfit in order to poison the Bride. Lady gaga is show wearing a similar outfit and using her hair for an eye patch as she planes to poison the all the customers in the café.

In the music video Lady Gaga refers to Beyoncé as "Honey Bee" similar to the character in Pulp Fiction "Honey Bunny", although this may seem coincidental, a scene in a café shows Beyoncé sitting opposite another male character, the framing and scene is very similar to the opening scene in Pulp Fiction where "Honey Bunny" and "Pumpkin" discuss robbing the cafe.

Furthermore the narration of the music video is similar to ‘Thelma and Louise’ the fact that in telephone both females commit a crime which they can relate to ‘Thelma and Louise’ as they are being chased by the police for murder. Moreover, homage is used effectively to represent this by placing Lady gaga in the same seat position as the blonde female actor and Beyoncé in the driver seat.

Telephone also makes intertextual references to Lady Gagas own music videos, the audience can see that telephone is a continued video from Paparazzi. There were also pop culture references to Disney's Mickey Mouse when Lady Gaga wears a pair of glasses, these same glasses are seen worn by Beyoncé in Telephone. In addition, Lady gaga was in a police station in Paparazzi where she posed for a picture, the same picture of lady gaga is show in telephone. The artist has managed to successfully promote her self and other products in her own videos.