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Danny Knife

English 1201

Dr. Cassel

3 October 2019

Smooth Criminal Rhetorical Analysis

Thirteen years after the 1988 release of Michael Jackson’s chart topping song “Smooth

Criminal”, a 2000’s era rock bank named Alien Ant Farm released a cover version of the song.

The new age rendition of the original hit, showcased popularly known antics, dance moves and

parts of Jacksons closely followed lifestyle that appeal to the emotions of a new generation of

viewers. In the late 1980’s when the original was released music videos were in their infancy,

and Jackson’s video for “Smooth Criminal” was a nine minute and twenty six second long

masterpiece, that was more like a short film than the normal 80’s music video. Both videos were

able to appeal to a new generation of viewers while also attracting an older audience in

completely different ways, one by creating a new category of music videos, and the other by

paying tribute to an icon.

The way that the original 1988 video told a complete story was new and innovative,

appealing to the emotions of a new age of young people and adults alike. Jackson himself was

the main character in the nine-minute-long film. We can see that pathos was used to appeal the

claim that Jackson was a smooth criminal. He was shown navigating his way through a dark and

dungy bar full of 1920’s gangster, as he narrowly but smoothly avoids being shot and stabbed in

the process. Jackson wore a white suit in bar full of men and women all dressed in mostly black,
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which made you keep your eyes on him the entire time. By the end of the video it was apparent

that Jackson was the “Smooth Criminal” in a bar full of thugs and gangsters. The mob and

gangster setting of the video along with the violence and groundbreaking dance moves made this

video emotionally appeal to the minds of the young and old. Kids liked it because it was

something new, and adults liked it because the story reminded them of when they were young. In

1988 music videos had only been around for a few years and Jackson quickly found a way to

create content that appealed to the masses in a different way.

In contrast to Jackson’s version, the 2001 cover of “Smooth Criminal” also used pathos

to appeal to the emotions a new generation but in a completely different way. The band Alien

Ant Farm, who recreated the music video, was an alternative rock bank which attracted a

completely different set of viewers than the original, by introducing the song to a different genre

of music. The main claim of the video was showing us a visual tribute to Jackson. This version

was released thirteen years after the original, and would appeal to a new generation that might

not have seen the Jackson version. The band attracts older viewers by paying tribute to Jackson

throughout the video. The video is filmed as a backyard party with a band singing in a boxing

ring and partygoers surrounding them all paying tribute to Jackson throughout the video. They

intelligently appeal to emotion by highlighting some of his famous dance moves, the famous lean

and moon walk along with having the sidewalk light up like the stage Jackson famously used.

The alternative band also showcased things like the horror masks used in Jacksons’s “Thriller”

and by using a baby chimp as a prop in the video, like the one Jackson notoriously took

everywhere with him. Alien Ant Farm took an iconic pop song, and created a rock video using

well know components of Jacksons life, fame and videography to pay tribute to the artist while

appealing to new age of listeners, while attracting the seasoned fans of Jackson’s music.
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The relationship between the two videos is how both artists use different methods to

appeal to the emotions of two generations. The recreated 2001 and the 1988 original version of

the music video “Smooth Criminal” both emotionally appealed to a new generation while using

something of the past to appeal to the older generation at the same time. Jackson did this by re-

inventing how music videos were made, using a 1920’s mobster style theme, and mature

situations to appeal to viewers from all age groups. Alien Ant Farm’s head banging version of

the video was successful in doing this by changing the genre of the song from pop to alternative

rock, and by paying tribute the songs famous creature all throughout the video. It is evident that

if an artist creates a new category like Jackson, or simply puts its own twist on an original like

Alien Ant Farm did, that both can be wildly successful and appeal to wide audience. Both videos

have a combined 440 million views on youtube.com, and Alien Ant Farms version of the song

went number 1 on the charts in 2001.

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Works Cited

Jackson, Michael. “Michael Jackson - Smooth Criminal (Official Video).”YouTube, YouTube,

19 Nov. 2010, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_D3VFfhvs4. Accessed 22 Sept

2019.

AlienAntFarmVEVO. “Alien Ant Farm - Smooth Criminal.”YouTube, YouTube, 7 Oct. 2009,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDl9ZMfj6aE. Accessed 22 Sept 2019.