My Interpretation of "Telephone"

The first thing that needs to be said about "Telephone" is that it is a short film, not simply a music video. To call it a music video negates its wonderful cinematic qualities. With that said, I find that the message hits two major points.

One of the first things I noticed about the film is that it was a complete BABEFEST. There were women everywhere. Without a doubt, GaGa is encouraging the empowerment of women. The "Prison for Bitches" is a place where men put away women that they feel they cannot control. Remember, this is a continuation of "Paparazzi". GaGa was sent to jail for killing her violent boyfriend and when a woman rises up against a man, other men begin to feel uncomfortable and put such women away. I'm interested in the use of bodybuilder type women for the guards... Perhaps it's a comment on the idea of beauty and what it means to be a female. Beyonce of course bails GaGa out and they drive off together. The sisterhood between GaGa and "Honey B" is beautiful, powerful, and reminiscent of Thelma and Louise. The ending shows our heroines driving into the sunset with the female symbol as a part of the transition to the credits.

The second major theme I saw was a comment on the country. The diner and the flag-inspired outfits was all very classically American, but it seems like a criticism. White bread seemed to be a major symbol as it sounds the same as "white bred" and represents the plain, one-sided things in life. I believe that GaGa is saying that the American culture of normalcy and perhaps traditional Western/patriarchal society is poisoning us. An interesting thing about the diner is that the patrons represent a diverse group of people. Perhaps this acknowledges that while America is quite diverse, we are told to look at things one-dimensionally.

There are a lot of other clever tidbits, such as the GaGa look-a-like who I'm told is her sister. I feel that GaGa puts a meaning into every little detail, so perhaps it is a look back at the past or literal sisterhood to suggest a figurative sisterhood between women. Also, a lot of the dialogue in the movie seems quite characteristically Tarantino, who lent GaGa the Pussy Wagon. Love it. I'm still trying to find the connection between the song and the video. GaGa comments on the society and the way we consume technology, but I feel as though I only have an obscure understanding of this aspect of the video. Additionally, the non-subtle way the product placement is included almost serves to criticize commercialism, but I'm not sure.

These are just thoughts of course and may be totally off, but I'd like to think I know exactly what is going on.