Olivia Rodrigo

“Get Him Back”

General Conventions Analysis
GC1: Lyrics and Visual Narrative
• The video is a mixture of performance and
narrative
• The singer plays the role of the different characters
• The message of the song is of the singer feeling
angry about a breakup and wanting them back as
well as getting revenge
• The narrative is elliptical (Vernallis) but as the
video progresses the singer gets more angry and
destroys more
• The locations are an apartment and the street
• Mirrors are used and adhere to Goodwin’s notions
of looking
GC2: Genre Characteristics
• The genre of the song is pop, and the set
and artist look is very curated
• The singer is glamorous and conventionally
attractive, and is wearing clothes that
represent the target age group of tweens
and teenagers
• The song has an elliptical (Vernallis)
narrative in the video and lyrics, so it can be
easily related to
• There are also stereotypes of the revenge
pop genre, such as keying the car and
smashing the windows
 • There are many references to the colour purple and
GC3: cars, which are strong branding elements of the
singer, as well as an intertextual reference
Intertextuality (Kristeva) to her song “Driver’s License”
and • The number plates are also the name of the new
Postmodernism album, and there is a fake product made representing
the singer’s brand
GC4: Representations
• The singer wears the same costume throughout and
plays many versions of herself
• Men are represented as well, but their faces are blurred
out making it more vague and relatable for the audience
• As the singer and target audience are in the target 13-
25 demographic, her costume is representative of what
they would wear
• The singer initially appears performing (Butler) to
female gender norms, but these are queered, e.g.
cooking but throwing a knife
• The inclusion of knife throwing could give the video a
higher age rating and remove a main demographic, but
as it is a mainstream song with big 3 label backing this
is unlikely
• The singer is wearing a short skirt and crop top and
could be interpreted as appealing to the male gaze
(Mulvey), or showing agency (Paglia)
 • The video was all shot using iPhone and is a marketing
campaign from Apple, so there is a lot of variation in
GC5: shots and effects to show the phone’s capabilities
• The editing matches the fast-paced tempo
Cinematography • It is shot through continuous movement, and there is a lot
and Editing of panning and zooming
• The lighting is high-key, showing the higher budget and
professional effect
Notable Marketing
• Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max was used to shoot the video and is a
marketing campaign to reflect it’s capabilities
Possible Influences
• Using an iPhone
• Elliptical storyline hinted from the song
• Intertextual references
• Two location usage
• Detailed and controlled mise-en-scene