I agree with your take (as its well supported and thought through as always!) but take another look at how they interact with the black masked figures in the party scene. IU and V steal the food out of their hands, push them over and the hooded figures seem to be trying to get in their way but are easily overcome. I think this is a direct opposite to the problem of the cube, implacable unstoppable deadly. In the camcorder, our problems are easily overcome, pushed aside. See if you agree!
I think so, too! Instead of arguing or grappling with the chaotic shrouded ones, IU and V simply brushed them aside and stayed focused on each other and their fun. And I love that 1 second glimpse of V teasing the shrouded ones with a donut. He has that bright-eyed look of mischief and glee. I can imagine, "Oh, you say this donut is yours? Well, not anymore!" I slowed the playback to 0.25 and saw the one on his right side covering her mouth as if shocked at the audacity of what he was saying to them, teasing them.
I appreciate all your research to bring us quotes from the director and the references to War of the Worlds. These make a big difference in my understanding. I have many thoughts on the pile of clothes! It references multiple art installations by French artist Christian Boltanski, whose art often had the purpose of making people think about the universality of loss and death and how those facts of life enrich our lives. Knowing the anonymity of death is coming, the two lovers focus on enjoying each other, giving appreciation and joy to each other instead of being overwhelmed by all the hurtful and difficult struggles of their lives.
@Bookish Theories, there’s so many ways to interpreted this music video and the characters in the scenario. I look at them as individual real people in our society in our life who we see them as fans. What I mean to say here is IU and V are Celebrities in South Korea known as K-pop idols, and they’re always under the watchful eye of the public of social media! V being from BTS , internationally known as a mega music group and IU known as the little sister of Korea she is a mega celebrity who has both singer/actress in her title! The cube to me can represent society or social media where the netizens or even fans constantly put celebrities under the microscope and there is a chance that their reputation no matter what they do ,say or if they look a certain way can be judged! The cube or Netizens Will find the smallest imperfection in a celebrity and will ruin the happiness of a celebrity for any type of opinions they make, imperfections physically or any type of relationship that they might have with either another celebrity etc. all this can be destroyed in their reputation and their career within a blink of an eye! Social media and so-called fans / Netizens of any celebrity especially South Korean celebrities always will be closely judged. Even in the recent news where the Parasite actor was going through a lot of problems and was closely being viewed as a criminal even though evidence point that he was not under the influence of illegal substances through the testing by the police! The case was not fully closed before he made drastic choices! This is just my small interpretation of how things could really represent in this instance if we look at both characters in a reality and not in a music video setting and how true it is as they are as real celebrities in the real world!💜🙏🏼
I agree with most of them.... except disable ppl thoery... Nd I also believe it's NOT abt Tae and IU representing them both just as couple in a love story.... the MV has more deeper meaning like Celebrites / artists like them in the entertainment industry judged by ppl/fans / haters abt their personal choices in love life IU ( her charecter is deaf or mute in the MV) representing ppl in love the ones who don't want to HEAR or TALK what the society /fans tell them wrong and right abt their Love life Taehyung (his character is partialy blind) representing True/pure LOVE = Love doesn't need to be perfect it just need to be TRUE or LOVE IS BLIND ( Tae showing almost every emotions of LOVE : Fear , cuteness , pure , tender , Joyful /playful , romance, togetherness . helplessness , bravery , rage , calmness...in 5 min MV Dammnn!! Brilliant actor🤯😘👏👏 ) CUbe / Box : Judgemental society/fans / haters chasing after artist's personal life Their injured status : Reality of their personal life Camcorder / Joyful visuals : The freedom / happiness they rly want to feel in their life Last part of the MV : Attacked by ' Cube ' Taehyung character ' true love ' leaning on her left side/ HEART...... IU cHaracter covering his ' Good ' eye = She covers her own wounded heart / love try to calm her pain ( look at Tae's calming facial expression ) = She will only take her true love with her even if she die....... ' LOVE WINS ALL '.....discribing that celebrIties are real ppl .. they also DESERVE all the freedom/ happiness to live their personal life how they want....like rest of the ppl in the world.......
I agree with what you described. In my opinion, the box is likened to a group of netizens/people who have similar thoughts on something, which can be said to be a group of fans and haters (maniacs). IU and V are two ordinary people and an idol. Like ordinary people they will later meet someone they love each other, have their own lives. When IU and V direct the handycam, it can be seen that their lives are full of joy and nothing is flawed just like humans when on social media they look so perfect when in fact they are broken and flawed. Behind that in a world that has been destroyed they try to survive by doing silly things that they cannot do in front of the camera so that they can still feel what it is like to live. The pile of clothes reminds me of BTS's MV - Spring Day which was created to commemorate the Sewol ship tragedy, the pile of clothes shows hopes, dreams that cannot be achieved because they are gone. The piles of clothes can symbolize the number of victims due to the evil actions of a group (elite/netizens) who do not like it. As we know the box attacks not by crushing IU and V's bodies with its weight but with light (invisible hands), that's how the ferocity of netizens can kill without touching. In the last scene when the box approached the box turned red indicating that the box was a group of haters. Seeing IU and V wearing wedding clothes, it can be seen that there is a group of netizens who don't like the romance/happiness that IU and V have. IU tried to hit the box but V came forward as if to symbolize that if only one person fights back, it will not be strong enough to withstand the attack. If we talk about IU as an idol, IU is a soloist who also lost her friends to bullying (Jonghyun, Sulli etc). If IU tries to strike back then IU will be easily attacked by netizens because she is a soloist. V is a BTS member who has several members who can protect V so that he has more strength to speak up about the accusations and slander he has received so far but even though he has such strong strength it still cannot save him from the box (netizens, social media). This is the same as what happens to us especially those of us who have experienced bullying and we are alone against these powerful monsters. People with great power like netizens and social media can destroy someone's life easily without even touching them. If we do things that make us happy but according to others it is unhappy then be prepared for us to put all what we have on the table if we lose then we will lose everything without exception to life. How scary that life..
I strongly disagree that the cube represents aliens. Aliens are loving creatures. I'm not sure what the cube represents but more something like "closed mindedness" which is also called square thinking. Years ago the cube was a TV and as here it shows a bright light that tricks us and sucks us in I think it's more likely to be the representation here. The original book about big brother was the government watching watching us in the future, but is more likely to be all systems including social media and Internet.
Thank you so much for this! But also, the portrayal of the fruits of their love as a married couple is not cliche, not sure why the director said that, it's the most beautiful and precious and true portrayal of love, a commitment to be together till death, a bond that makes you into one, the way God intended. Nowadays barely anyone uses marriage as a portrayal of true love, it's being underused, so it's refreshing and beautiful to see it in here once again. God is love and He established marriage as the way a man and woman would be joined, so if two people live together without it then they can't say they truly love each other the way God wanted for them. In a time of apocalypse a marriage can still take place without a dress or a ring or a ceremony or a priest to bless it and make it sacramental, it would just be an exchange of vows to love and stay together till death. But we wear the clothes and the ring as an outward symbol of its importance and meaning and beauty.
I have so many thoughts on this wonderfully done MV for Love Wins All. The acting is Oscar worthy and that plus the lyrics make it so very emotional and personal. At the end it was pointed out by someone that he can hear what is coming but she can't while she can see what is coming but she covers his good eye so he can't. Both cry at the same moment though and from the same left eye. Also the right side of his face seems to have burn scars so I agree that maybe he had encountered a cube before but got away at the last minute. I also noticed the cube waits for them to stop fighting and accept their fate. If you notice there are no other people so obviously no person is able to meet the criteria this cube holds that would allow someone to survive. I also noticed this cube was relentless in its pursuit even seemed to change size so it could come into the building. Earlier when it was flying overhead you could tell no way it could fit inside those hallways. I also agree the camcorder that kept showing a better reality was giving us the viewer a happier version of the events. They both rise in the air together, their bodies still solid, while the reality is that they have been turned to ash. At the top of the camcorder right before it turns off you see ash particles in the air. I also loved how the clothes landed together on the pile. Again all of this symbolizing that even though they seemingly lost to the cube, it couldn't destroy their love for each other. They stayed together in life and death, so indeed their love did win.
I really luv the detail where iu squeezes his chest 3 times, which also means "i luv you" in sign language 😭💜 I do think they were really just in a moment wearing the wedding dress & tux, in a way they don't have to prove anything or signify it as their luv but more so in *living their "what ifs"* , I would assume they already knew what the pile of clothes signify by how they look at it, there are *clothes everywhere* even outside the mall. it's like when films try to signify "fleeting moment/short life" they use flies in the background, here they used the clothes that literally hangs in the background to foreshadow their demise. that adds more to the reveal that there are alooot of nemos which indicates that it's *inevitable* and most likely no chance of survival. so in a way they *lived and loved until the end* 💜✨~
Such a wonderful interpretation. Thank you also for the sensitive and thoughtful way that you conveyed your interpretation of the seeming disappearance of their disabilities through the camcorder. I am drawn to this. Borahae 💜
I was looking forward to your video! In enjoyed the MV so much, it is so beautiful and tragic, one of the best MV I have seen in my life! My original interpretation was very close to yours. Also the pile of clothes remembered me of Spring Day of course, but also of a work of art by Boltanski I studied at school a long time ago, which commemorated the victims of genocide. So when I saw it, I also thought the flying cube might refer to concrete persecutions happening in the world
Excellent take! I loved it and I agree. Thanks for sharing! Lots of people have taken such a negative view on the music video. I’m so happy you are presenting a positive view to share💜
Wonderful interpretation! I agree 100%! I too disgree that the cam shows them without disability. I'm very much a person 1st thinker. I'm in the helping profession. The requirement is to say the person first. We say person with a disability vs a disabled person. But I don't like the term disabled or even differently abled. We are all individually unique & perfectly imperfect. I just wish "society" wasn't so grounded in conformity, defining "normal", & shaming and ostracizing anyone deemed "different" 💜
Haha, I saw what you did there with the Suchwita sugar cube! Just a quick arresting picture without comment. Far down in the mv comment section, somebody cracked a joke about it. It was a bit of comic relief from all the "I cry every time..." comments. ARMYs can be smart-alecks sometimes!
actually I got the ipression that Taehyung in the video is blind in one eye and also deaf and not IU. 1. At the beginning of the video IU is the first to notice the cube because she heard it. 2. She touched Taehyung to get his attention when she wants to speak 3. He does not talk in the video, only she does. 4. In their dream, when she sings, Taehyung joins her at the end and sings too. He smiles, because in their dream he can sing. 5. he looked more scared at the end, like he was reliving the trauma that caused his injuries. maybe I'm just guessing but thats what I think btw, any connection to Spring Day with the pile of clothes?
I agree with your #5...I think because V's face looked burned around his right eye, he maybe had encountered a cube already and was able to get away. I can't tell if he blindness was caused by a cube or if he'd always been blind. I have also been waiting for someone to comment on the pile of clothes and the connection to Spring Day, but if you know about that song and the meaning of Boltanski's art installation then you can draw your own conclusions. Interestingly, the crane in the art installation symbolizes the hand of God and fate of dying, so the cubes in this mv could be likened to the inevitability of their deaths by the end of the song.
Finally someone who also got the impression that it is halfblind V who is also deaf and not IU. From the first time watching the MV I thought that IU is signing so that he can understand her. It was only in the comments that I learned that it is generally assumed that it is IU who is deaf. Of course I don't really know but throughout the video she is very protective of him, like he is much more traumatized than her and she always leads the way until the one moment when he takes over the rod to fight against the cube. But when they give up she takes over again, holds him thight and covers his seeing eye to spare him the sight of the deathly threat.
I had the same impression. She seemed to be very protective of him as she was leading him around and taking care of him. I also wonder if he became half blind and mute from sustaining injuries when encountering the cube previously.
I don't agree with that LWA is abt disabled or minority ppl or alien theory interpretations ... I also believe that it's NOT Tae and IU representing them both just as couple in a love story.... the MV has more deeper meaning like Celebrites / artists like them in the entertainment industry judged by ppl/fans / haters abt their personal choices in love life IU ( her charecter is deaf or mute in the MV) representing ppl in love the ones who don't want to HEAR or TALK what the society /fans tell them wrong and right abt their Love life Taehyung (his character is partialy blind) representing True/pure LOVE = Love doesn't need to be perfect it just need to be TRUE or LOVE IS BLIND ( Tae showing almost every emotions of LOVE : Fear , cuteness , pure , tender , Joyful /playful , romance , togetherness . helplessness , bravery , rage , calmness...in 5 min MV Dammnn!! Brilliant actor🤯😘👏👏 ) CUbe / Box : Judgemental society/fans / haters chasing after artist's personal life Their injured status : Reality of their personal life Camcorder / Joyful visuals : The freedom / happiness they rly want to feel in their life Last part of the MV : Attacked by ' Cube ' Taehyung character ' true love ' leaning on her left side/ HEART...... IU cHaracter covering his ' Good ' eye = She covers her own wounded heart / love try to calm her pain ( look at Tae's calming facial expression ) = She will only take her true love with her even if she die....... ' LOVE WINS ALL '....😢.discribing that celebrIties are real ppl .. they also DESERVE all the freedom/ happiness to live their personal life how they want....like rest of the ppl in the world.......
My first impression was Tae’s blind eye was the consequence of some facial wound suggesting the couple had struggled a lot before. Frankly, I didn’t pay attension to it as a disabilitty and I rather see it as a symbolic battle scar. I also regard faceless crowd at a party as unexpectedly aggressive. The loving lenses of the camera allow the couple to ignore them nevertheless. The crowd cannot take those beautiful moments away no matter how loud and interferring it seems. As always, thank you for the beautiful analysis.
True. Love is not defined by certain symbols like a wedding dress but by the deeper meaning of a bond that defies anything. You can be married but that doesnt mean anything if not followed by the deeper bond between two people. Maybe the MV is also a commentary on societies need fir various symbols to define happiness, love , success and so on.
Love the theory, but in the Behind the Scenes, the black-clad figures in the dining hall and in the audience when they're "singing" into the microphone are seen as "jeering" - i.e. mocking, shaking their fists, making grabby movements and other negative/threatening actions. I'm not sure, but to me it's meaningful that in both scenes they seem to not care about the negativity surrounding them - they grab food and drinks and enjoy themselves, they only have eyes for each other as they play around with the mic and so on. In a world of shining strength and happiness, they don't care about the faceless haters.
I’m sure someone’s already made the joke, but as soon as the alien cube showed up I chuckled and said, “Oh no, is Cube Entertainment the villain 💀?” Bad jokes aside, this MV was soul-crushing and beautiful. I LOVE the theory you posited about what the wedding tuxedo & gown’s could symbolize. Even as the clothes fall to the ground discarded, the memory of their love still remains 😭💔…
Honestly, many of us, I include myself, wish we could have at least one person in this planet, at least one who love us really. I am not saying we don't (at least for myself I am not implying I don't have at least one, for I do.. At least I have myself and I love myself), but what I mean is, someone outside of myself. And it doesn't necessarily need to be a man.. o a partner... It can be a good friend, who loves me very much. I wish I could say for sure I have one. But I am not sure. Anyway, at least I have myself. And my little dog. He loves me very very very very much😅😊😅😊😅
I would like to know if anyone noticed that in the MV at 2:22 to 2:27, right after the couple clink their drumsticks, the no face person who puts his hand in front of V has a half glove on the left hand.......is it JK???? I think so!
@BookishTheories - The "director said" is wrong. Those are FAN GUIDE INTERPRETATIONS or whoever the article writer was - their interpretations. There has NOT been an official interview with the director. The ONLY INPUT BY THE DIRECTOR WAS THIS: Director Uhm Tae-hwa said, “The reunion with IU is the most decisive thing. It was our collaboration after five years since 2018, so I was very impressed. Even two years ago, IU contacted me and we worked on a concert VCR and it motivated me to work harder. Similarly, this time, it was a project that reminded me of the joy of being on set. The universe itself is alien and abstract, unlike reality, so I welcome various interpretations based on different perspectives of the music video.”
