Analysis of Pop videos 1

This video is set in an imaginary world of candy and bright colours. The video matches the genre of the song as they're both exciting and optimistic, therefore the colours which are included in the mise en scene of the shots really reflect the mood of the song. Although we don't get any clear views of 'california' or what we would have expected from the lyrics the setting is almost surreal.   Perry is a game piece in Candyfornia, a game based in poker and board games. They have used editing techniques to make the figure of Katy smaller than the other characters who are not on the board game to make it look realistic. The settings are inspired in part by Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and the board game Candy Land, with much of the set decorated with cupcakes, ice creams, cotton candy, and lollipops which are all of bright colours.  Snoop Dogg appears in the video as a king named "Sugar Daddy" that is holding several young women (Queens of Candyfornia) captive throughout the game, using candy related devices to hold them for example jelly, wrapping plastic and a bubble. Perry moves around, experimenting with objects. She moves through the land, making discoveries and freeing the women. In the chorus, she appears lying down on a candy-floss cloud, naked. Snoop Dogg tries to block her advances in many ways. When all the women are free, Perry leads them in a dance on the beach. Seeing the women freed, "Sugar Daddy" becomes enraged, marching on the women's position with an army of gummy bears. Perry, dressed in a red Wonder Woman like costume, quickly defeats the army with whip cream guns attached to her breasts, after which the stunned king throws down his staff and surrenders. The video ends with Snoop Dogg buried up to his neck in the sand by the women, nonetheless admiring their beauty and (in a nod to the Beach Boys song) wishing that women everywhere could be California girls.


 Various California landmarks appear in the video, such as the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Hollywood Sign and some West Coast beaches which were all made out of confectionery. Therefore in order to make the video link to the lyrics it does not have to be direct correlation, but imagination and a bit of variation can be used so something different is bought across to the audience.


Katy Perry's performance skills are very good as she is reflecting a happy and deluded character within this imaginative land full of delicious candy. Also the contrast is good between the two, not only their gender but the characters portrayed as snoop dog is almost like the enemy as he traps the young women which Katy sets free. Because of this she is then seen as almost a hero figure to the audience and is then lying in the clouds like a God.