Xebona Neca, fom "Wokome th ung MONSTER METAPHORS: NOTES ON MICHAEL JACKSON'S THRILLER album in the history of pop. At the age of twenty-six Jackson is te have amassed a penonal fortune of some seventy-ve million [Bven more rematkably, he has been a star since he was eleven ead with his brothers in The Jackson Five, the biggest sling fon the Tamla Motown label in the 1970s. The Jacksons practically the genre of “teenybopper” pop, cased in upon by white idols 3y Osmond. While such figures have faded from popular mem- tlasic Jackson Five tunes like] Want You Back" and "ABC" ean the enthusiasm which masked the assertive mood of the Black the and his brother let Motown inthe mid-seventies, and took LLB, which established him as a solo str, demonsiates the lhe, texture of his voice and its mastery oera dene range of musical and idioms fron romantic alld to rock, Jat what iit that makes young, gifted and black man so different, so appealing? ibedlyit isthe voice which lies tthe hea of his appeal. Rooted -Ao-American sou tradition, Jackson's vocal performance is char- boy breathy gasps, squeals, sensual sighs and other wordless which have bocome bis tlic signature. The way in which this punctuates the emotional resonance and bodily sensuality of theWiecome To The Jungle Monster Metaphors anxieties, He lives like a reeluse and is sid to Ycome alive” only hae is om stage in font of his fans. The medi’ exploitation of fascination with Jackson the celebrity has even reached the point music corresponds to what Roland Barthescalledthe "rain" ofthe voice— \ “the grin isthe body in the voice as it sings” (Barthes, 1977: 188). The ‘ational and erotic exprenivenes ofthe vice is complemented by the sensual grace and sheer dynamism of Jackson's dancing syle: even as a ‘did his stage performance provcked comparisons with Jacke Wilon and James Brown, But ther is another element to Jackson’ poplarity—his image. Jack son's individual style fascinates and attracts attention, The anklecut jeans, the single gloved hand and, above all, the culy-penm haistyle which ‘have become hs visual tademarks have inluenced the sari repertoires of black and white youth cultures and have been incorporated into mai stream fashion, Most trking isthe change in Jackson's physical appear nce a he has grown. The cute child dreted in gaudy Hower. power geat ‘and sportnga huge Afro airsylhas become, 2s young adult, paragon ‘of racial and sexual ambiguity. Michael reclines actos the gatefold sleeve (ofthe Thriller LP dresed in esp back and white on a glassy metalic srficeaghnst a demure pink background. Look clser—the gosy sheen ‘of bis complexion appears lighter in color than before; the nose seems sharper, more aguiline, less rounded and “Afican,” and the lips scem tighter, les pronounced. Above all, the large Afo has dissolved into 2 shock of wet-look curls and a new tyistic trademark, a singe lock over *pahologizing” his personal eccentricities [Bren Michael Jackson's millions of fins find his isle sage. Ws [uti one of shit sous, OFF The Wal. Pept inthe know say— His bigaet thil taking isto Disneyland His lst fends ae ‘oo ania. He als totals dunn ins ounge Te fs vey _ Sindy sen dance es bolo unl be dre of easton So showbusiness fk rep asking the question I Jacko Wacko? Two top American psych ane pent hows cain deta desir Te acaon Heres their onthe sport (The Sun, Apel 9 1984 5 complains: edocs and wont make public atement abot his se ie, beease he eleva he sigh —that is none of anyone slic bosine ‘Micaela Tada Tog coetsaton about and he fl thal aytine Sear inthe pbc eye ad den alk othe pres, they tend fo make wp these rumor ofl ce pages. (quoted in Nebon Gouge, 1964 16) nla, Jackson's sexuality and sexual preference have been the of intense public scrutiny, as a busines asocite of his, Shitley the forhead, appears ‘What make thisreconstracton of Jacksons star image more intriguing isthe mythology built up around it, in which its imposible or simply [esde the point to distinguish truth from flehood. tis sa that he has undergone cosmetic surgery in order to adopt a more white, European Took, although Jackson himself denies it! Bu the definite sense of racial ambiguity writ large in his new image is at the same time, and by the same token, the site of a sewal ambiguity bordering on andkogyny. He may sing as awect ae Al Green, dance a hard as James Brown, but he looks more like Diana Ross than any black male soul artist. The media have seized upon these ambiguities and have fabricated a persona, private sf behind the public image, which has become the subject of ‘mass speculation and rumor. Such mythologization as eulinated in the constuction of a Peter Pan figure. We ae tok that bend the sta’s mage ia lonely “lst boy," whose life i shadowed by morbid obsesions child nor adult, not clearly either black or white, and with an 1s image thats nether masculine nor feminine, Jacksons tar isa “social hieroglyph,” as Marx said of the commodity form, demands, yet defies, decoding, This article olfers a reading of the video Tiler rom the point of sew of the questions raid y the omenal popularity of this at, whose image i a spectacle of racial sexual ineterminay. REMAKE, REMODEL: VIDEO IN THE MARKETING OF THRILLER In recent yeas the new, hybrid medium of music video has come to 4 central importance in the sale and significance of pop musi. ais to promote records, vdeas are now prerequisites to break singles| tame ean ‘nto the charts. s industrial produc, the medium—now instittinalized in America’s cable network MTV, owned by Warner Communiation, and American Express—has revitalized the declining profitability of the singles market by capitalizing on new pattems of consumption created bythe use, on a mass scale, of vdeo technologies From it inception in 1981, however, MTV maintained an unspoken policy of excluding black artists, Jackson's videos for singles from the Teller LP wete among the first to penetrate this invisible racial boundary, ‘Videos for “Billy Jean” and “Beat 1” stand out inthe way they fore ‘round Jackson's new star image. “Bll Jean," drcted by Steve Baron, sualies the cinematic fee ofthe music track and its narative of paternity claim by creating, through a stucio-et scenario, sharp and yarous effets, an ambience that complements ater than ilaates the song. Taking its cue from the LP cover, it sess Jackson's sein his des and in his dance. Paving stones light up as Jackson tists, ich, and turns through the performance, invoking the “mage” of his tardom, “Beat directed by Bob Gira who made TV commercial for MeDon- ald’s hamburges and Dr Pepper soft dink), visualizes the antimacho Iie ofthe song. Shots alternate between “juvenile delinquent” gang. about to start a fight, and Michael, figile and alone in his bedroom, ‘The singer then disarm the stret gangs wit his superior charm a he leads the all-male cast through a choreographic sequence that synthesizes the cinematic imagery of The Warrior and WestSide Story. ‘These videos—exeeuted from stoybaards by Jackson himse—and ‘thes in which he appears, such as "Say, Say, Say” by Paul McCartney and °Can You Feel it’ by The Jacksons, ar important aspects of the commercial success of Thriller, because they beach the boundaries of ace on which the music industy is based. Unlike stars such as Lionel Richie, Jacson has not “ersed over” from black to white market to ‘end up in the male ofthe oad: his succes as popularized black music ‘among white audiences by explicitly playing with visual imagery and syle which has always been central to the mass matketing of pop. Ins doing, Jackson’ experimentation in musi vdeo has reopened a space in which new stars like Prince are operating, a the interface of cultural boundaries ‘efned by race. “Theil,” the title track, was released the thid single from the Monster Metaphors, hen-erablished con- “The accompanying video went beyond the th and limitations ofthe medium. According to Dave Laing, these have been tid t the economic imperative ofthe pop sales, inal wee mbordinted othe ound, whic hey wee Be closed nc win aa ned fr ning tn nbestctan sesh sto einige ory he pees, hy declension comers convention, tha of pid editing devised fom the montage Eon sien bs en re wh snd ato ‘between naturalistic or “realist” modes of representation (in the song i performed “lve” or ina studio and mimed to by the ‘or group), and “constructed” o fantastic modes of representation ch the singegroup acts out imaginary roles implied by the Iytes atmosphere ofthe music). "Thales" incorporates such montage alteration convention, but oqanizes the image flow by framing ' powerful storytelling ot narzational direction which provides, fy and closure. Since “Tiller,” this storytelling code has itself ‘a music video convention: Julian Temple's “Undercover ofthe {Rolling Stones, 1983) and azzn' for Blue Jean” (David Bowie, represent oof the more imaginative examples ofthis arava ‘music by the dretion ofthe low of images. “Tiles,” moreover, ished not ony by its internal and formal stucture at the level n-ne, but also bythe fact that itis “detached” fora a primary i imperative ot rationale. The LP was already a “monster” of & before is tle track became a single: thete was no obvious need “hard sell.” Thus the “Thrill” vdeo does not so much seek to the reco a primary pret, but rather celebrates the stardom the LP has brought to Michie! Jackson. Inthe absence of a direct, fc imperative, the video can indulge Jackson's own interest in its use of cinematic codes thus provides 2 narative framework in Jackson may perform asa “movie sr." Jackson himself had acted cin The Wiz 1977), Motown’ all-black remake of The Wizard of in which he played the Scarecrow. He profes a deep faxcination acting pers| ay ove itso much. Its ape. Hs fan, es jut nto become another {hing mother penon, Especial when sa wet end ee ‘ The porte at sot" It shoul Tainay ted sed ago ae ‘morc thar that a should be move ies Beles ean ener et rete te sects de Arm et Ge yao Shei ete a Sn eee “THRILLER™: A READING coin il apie en erepetlege | Sera acer een Soiree ee ee cee ae eeetn Cree rae aaa Hwee Men ee deere ‘on the meaning of the word “thriller.” ‘The lyrics weave a litle story, Seema poe ae . ‘horror movies with a lady friend” (George, 1984: 108) and narrate such emrawtinne pee 1s close to might aod somethin’ eis lin in the dak is Yan fen bl sth ound bese emake a Sato fee 8 hoo i betwee the aan ie yon ih the ees ‘Who is this "you" bein tumaround ofthe th is made evident adtesed? The answer comes in the semantic verse and chorus, in which the pun on the title sie Monster Metaphors Tout eng tn os So cae on omen Benue yous ‘that (Chorus) = Ths tie, tle night ‘cause 1 could hil you more woul dre ty than ary gh ia Ber dirk S kt me hd Bcet so se ti iaaget the ies play on 3 double entendre of the meaning of til” in Chamber has obec. “Disiled int the metalnguage of mo the dandetne cultural libeaon of soul musi is the employment of asexual iene" Chambes, 1985: 48). Along nto complenty of iatinate lationship, seat i pe the central preaceuption ofthe soul rdtton. But as Chambers the power of ula cla frm to expres sexuality does 0 much lie nthe litral meaning ofthe words bu in the pasion singe’ oie and vos! performance. The explicit meanings of re in this serse secondary to the serual resonance of the ‘chatatr ofthe vie, is “grin.” While the “in” ofthe cocodes the contains of eal relationships, thee pleasures in the insistence of he shyt san open invitation to the body Dance, a cltutl form apd erotirital,amode of decoding and meaning generated inthe muse In netement ofthe to dance, to become an active priya in the etre of vice, tnd yt, soul music isnot merely “abut” seuaiy, but mavial means forthe etiiation of the ody (ae Hd, 143 Richard Dyer, 1979 In“Thille” isthe ain of akon’ voice expres an plas wi hisenl abet anditsthis dimension that the detaton ofthe es and escapes aalfie rection ierpetation of Tempero’ yi infec he allusions in tn order to hematin a dicoune on sexality, rater than la, and ory” evoked by the Ives se up teveteaion between to Bi pce eran mse mano al close loeb. Th eof ny ton yh sate panty te aspect ofthe sense of par that perades the song Sou 7 ring don eel howling depreciate po he = Above al the play of paradyapeads ut in Vincent Pic's, Now i the efor you and I cute close together iWelcome To The tungle which closes the tune. The idea ofa well-established, white, movie actor like Price delivering a rap, a distinctly Black, urban, music form, is fanny enough. But the fruity, gurling tones ofthe actor's voice, which immediately evoke the semicomic self parody of “horor he has become, express the playful sense of humor that underpin the song: Datine fills ars the land. "The midnight out close a hand Creators cra in vearch of ood, to teoze yal eight And whowweer shal be foun, wiht sol fr geting down, must wand and fae the hoards of hal, and ot ide conc’ shal ‘The parody at play het ies inthe quotation of soul argot—“get down, “midnight hou,” “unk of forty thousand years'—in the completely die. ‘ent context ofthe hocor genre. The almost camp quality of vefined ‘exaggeration in Price's voice and his “Bitsh” accent i at striking odds withthe discourse of Back American soul music ‘As we “ten” to the production of meanings in the music tack, the ‘arious “vices” involved in the process (jackson, Temperton, Frc, Quiney Jones) are audibly combined into pazodic play. One’ way of approaching the transition fiom musi to vdeo, then, mould be to suggest that John Landis, its decor, brings aspects of his cwn “Voice” as 2 Hollywood auteur into this dialogue, It scems to me that Landis’ voice contributes tothe puns and play on the meaning of “thie” by drawing ‘on the filmic conventions of the horor gente STORY, PLOT AND PARODY Landis introduces two important clement from film into the medium ‘of musi video: a nareativediection to the image ow, and specialefees techniques asociated with the pleasures ofthe honor film, These eects ae used in the two scenes that show the metamorphosis of Michael into, fit, a werewolf, and then, a zombie. Such cinematic technologies, which introduce the dimension of the fantasmati, ceatly distinguish “Thuile” fom other music videos. Moreover, it isin this way that “Thier” gives the video audiences rea! thrill—the “hil” of tension, anxiety and fear whose release undedines the distinct pleasures feted by the horror gente. The spectacle ofthe visceral transformation of eu ‘Michael Jackson into a howli’ wolf of monster is disturbing jy becate it seems so convincing and “rel” as a result of these ques. As Philip Brophy temarks: “The pleasure ofthe (horror) ext fet getting the sit seared out of you—and loving tan exchange ‘by adrenaline’ (Brophy, 1985 88) oth special effets and narrative retum us tothe authoral voice of Landis, who diectod An American Werewolf in Landon (1979). ‘Werewolf is actually a hortor-comeds; it recalls the folkloric myth, sting ils protagonists as tours in England attacked by ‘animal, into which one of then turns dasing the full moon cfm employs pop tunes to exacerbate its underying parody ofthis Moondance” (Van Moron), “Bad Mon Rising" (Creede rater Revival] and “Blue Moon” (Frankie Lymon and the Teen- ‘And this humor i combined with the versmilitude of special sand makeup techniques which show the boily metamorphoris of to wolf in “real time,” as opposed to les credible time-lapse tech Thuile” not ony alludes to this fin, but to other generic xs, including Night ofthe Living Dead (1969) by George Ro- and Helloween (1978) by John Carpenter. Indeed, in keeping with gene, the video i strewn with allusions to horror fils. As Brophy “tis a gee which nimi itelf merel)—becaue i sateen i Be tics mney Hoses dat teeter "Byres or igre te caventins of gn, ised int Molen awareness sated ene (phy, 1985 83) us cinematic horror scems impelled towards paody of i own codes {conventions as a constitutive aspect ofits own generic identity." With ght its tempting to suggest that “Ther” 's music tack was almost to be fined, ait seems to eve these cinematic references. Cetin is within the video appear to be staihtforsad transpositions the song: “They're out to get you, there's demons elasn’ in on ry side ..- Night ereatures all and the dead start to walk in their yerade,” and 50 on. But it is atthe level of ts naratve structure the video engages in an intrtextual dialogue with the music track.” Unlike most pop videos, “hile” does nat begin with the Fist notesWelcome To The Jungle ofthe song, bul with long panning shot of car driving through woods at night andthe "cinematic" soun of ecorded lence. This masershor etablishing the alseing but invisible eye ofthe camera, s compare tothe discursive funtion ofthid-person narration. The shovewese sine sit which fames the opening dialogue leten the two grotagean (about the car running out of gas) establishes “point-of-view” tama, anges, analogous o subjective, fst-penon modes of enunciation, Thee ‘oecfe cinematic ends of manationstuctre the entie ow ofinages and thus give the video a beginning, a middle and an end, “Thali ‘eosporates the pop vdeo convention of witching fom “ical” to "foe. ‘astic” modes of representation, but binds thi into continuity and elon through its narative. The two metamorphosis sequences are of enacted importance to this narative structure; the Bist disrupts the equiv, ‘ofthe opening sequence, andthe second repeats but diffen fom the fat {in onde to bring the flow of images to an end and this seesablinh “suilibrium. Within the stonyelingcomentionsof generic hort the ve ‘ppeatance ofthe monstr/werewolGanpitelalien signals the violation of uilibrium: the very presence of the monster activates the narative ‘dynamic whose goal or ending is achieved by an act of counteriolence {hat climinats i (se Stephen Neal, 1980: 21, 56, 62), Inthe opening sequence equilibrium is eablshed and then dsupted, ‘The dialogue and exchange of glances between Michael and "he (asthe male and female protagonists ofthe story) establish “romance as the narrative pretext. The git’ look at Michael asthe ca stops his at 8 quation, answered by the expresion of bemused incredulity on ha face. Did he stop the car on purpose? Was ita romantic ruse, to he hee {into tap? Thegit’scoquettsh response Michel sdefonce Honest, ‘were out of gs" lingers sensually on the syllables, “So. what we age ‘9ing to do now?” Her question, and his smile in return, hint at ard ‘cacesbate the undetying erotic tension of romantic inte between the two characters. Michels dialogue gives a minimal "characte" to his tole asthe boyfiend: he appears somewhat shy, very proper and polite “hoy next door.” "The gil on the other hand, isnot s0 much chanster 48 the “plrend” type. AL another level, tit cathes a pastiche ice ‘eto style—connoteyouthfil innocence, the couple as archetypal try overs. But this innocent representation is unset by Michael's tte, ee eee ee recs S El ees ee Breen eee ects ars eee ere _pererieerennepengoal rere esa enes sree ee aan Pa I vcr tna etna gis Te et yh =e os i ens kd ert Sets Ge in Ins ene Ue ) tile | Was @ dpa eet ay rc tn es yn mre ene ects meena STS ce et ai hie piace ig Ter eters a pe Paro epensonancaplictslconsiounesn “il hime the dilogue, dress syle and acting in the opening vequence In its pare Monster MetaphorsWilcome To The Jungle of a parody it also acknowledges that there is no “plot” as suc: the nanative code that structures the vido fas no story to tell. Rather it reaiesasimulaerum ofa sor in issue send-up genre consentions, But itis precisely at the level ofits selEconsciousnes thal “Uhllee”"s mimicry ofthe gender roles ofthe horot gente provides an anchor for the way it visualizes the sexual dscouse, the play on the meaning of the ‘word “thle” on the music tac, GENRE AND GENDER: SEXUAL SUBTEXT As the video switches from fantastic to realist modes of representation, the roles played by the two protagonists shift accordingly. The fin! film within the video, with its narative pretext of “romance,” positions Michael and the gil as boyfiend and ginlfiend, and within this the horeiying metamorphosis transforms the relation into one of tor be ‘ven monster ad victim. If we go back to Michael’ statement mae inthis sene, “Tm not ike other guy,” we can detect a confusion abot the role he is laying. ‘The pt’ inital reply, “THRILLER” ‘Of course not. "That’ why Tove you," implies that itt obvious that he is “ferent” because he isthe real Michael Jackson. When, inher pleasure a his propos she calls him by his Proper name she interpelates him in two roles at once—as fictional bofitend and real supestar. Ths ambiguity of reference acknowledges Jackson's self-conscious acting spl: we, the video audience, get the impression he is playing at playing a role, and we “now” that Jackson the singer, the tar, is playing atthe role of a “movie st” Michael's ‘outfit ands stylistic Features—the wet ook hainiye, the anke-cut jeans and the letter “M" emblazoned om his acket—renfore this metatextal superimposition of toes. f Michael, asthe male protagonist, is buth borfiend and str, his female counterpart is both the girfiend and, at this metatetua level, the fn. The gi isin two places at once on screen and in the audience. As spectator to the fil within the video she is homed by the image on the secen and ges up to leave. “Fooled” by the violent spectacle of the metamerphei,she mistakes the fantatc for the real, she forgets that “it’s enly-a movie.” ‘The gts positions inthe and realist scenes mio those of the video spectator—theefets erate thal forthe audience are the events, inthe story work, eat tera forthe gi. girl occupies a mediate postion between the audience and the which ofrs 4 clie tothe way the video visualizes the music the middle section, asthe couple walk away from the cinema begin the song, the narative roles of boyfriend and gin lished, but now subordinated to the songs performance. This ‘of arate function is underined by the differentiation of cos- [Micheal now wears a ashy red and black ether jacket cut in style and her ensemble is abo contemporary—T-shit, fight ahead of cul like Michael’ own. This imagery echoes public: es of Jackson the stage performer. As the song gets under way Tbecomes “himsl,” the star. The gil becomes the “you in the Gir, | could thrill you more than any ghost would dare to ty.” the music tack, the “you” could be the listener, since the pesonal ‘mode of erucation erates a space forthe listener to enter pat in the production of meanings. In the video, itis the gi esthis place and, asthe addresse ofthe sexual sublext encoded in ther postions in the video-tet creat possibilities for spectatorial, ‘These lines of identification are hiated at in the opening in which the gis response to Michael's seduction enacls the iy of being a pop star’ gilriend,”a fantasy which i realized in jon af the ideo.” BEAUTY AND THE BEAST: MASKS, MONSTERS AND MASCULINITY ‘conventions of horror insribe a fascination with sexuality, with deny codified in terms that revolve around thesymbole presence monster. Women are invariably the victims ofthe ats of terror bythe werewolfvampitefaicn thing" the monster s nonhue (Other. The destruction ofthe monster establishes male protagonists Shere, whose object and prize is of course the woman. But a6 the force against which the hero hast compet, the monster itself “masculine” postion in relation tothe female vet. Monster Metaphors‘Welcome To The Jungle “Theiler” 'sshetore of parody presuppones a degre of selé-conscious- neson the pat ofthe spectator, ving ie toa supplementary commen tary on the sexuality and sexual identity ofits star Thus, the warning, “Tm not like other guys,” can be tea by the audience as reference to Jackson's sexuality. Inasmuch a the video audience is conscious ofthe ‘s0sip which circulates around hisstar image, th statement of iference Provokes other meanings: is he homosenual, transexual or somnchos ‘sexual? In the fist metamorphosis Michael becomes a werewolE As the lm Company of Wolves director Neil Jordan, 1984) demonstates, werewolf ‘mythology—Iyeanthropy—concers the representation of male sexual 8 “naturally” predatory, bestia, aggresive, violent—in a word, “mo stows." Like “Tiles,” Comparyof Wolves employs similar special fects 'o show the metamorphosis of man to wolf in seal time. An like the Angela Carter story on which ts bed, the film canbe read as tewiting ‘6F the Buropeanflltale of Lite Rel Riding Hood to evel its concer, vith subjects of menstmation, the moon and the natureof male sexwaliy, In the fetonal opening scene of “Thriller” the connotation of innocence around the git hens her to Red Ring Hood. Butis Michal a big Ind wl? In the culmination ofthe chase sequence through the woods the gi takes the role of victim, Hete, the dspastion of pointa-view angles between the monster's dominant postion and the supine postion ofthe victim suggests rape, fsing the underlying sexual relation of romance with teror and violence. As the monster, Michael's transformation might suggest that beneath the boy-next door image there isaveal” man waiting to beak out, a man whose masculinity is measured by a rapacious sexual ‘appetite, “hungry like the wolf.” But such an interpretation is undermined and subverted by the final shot of the metamorphosis. Michacl-as were ‘wolf lets outa bloodcuding how, but thi isin hilarious counterpoint to the collegiate “MI” om his jacket. What docs it stand fo? Michael? Monster? Macho Man? More like Mickey Mouse! The incongruity be. ‘ween the manifest signifier and the symbolic meaning ofthe monster pens up 2 gap inthe tet, to be filled with laughter Animals are regularly used to signify human atbutes, withthe wolf, lin, snake and eagle all understood as symbels of male sexuality, Jaceon's Monster Metaphort Pei carariroeriie —igeaatle il atieadoat ae ity of Jackson's image asa black male pop star. This plays on the eee - ae i epemleenard es rao Sod imei iced emo ten once se eect rtras Pas Ea alerelepeelsinienn sa nsec pate a sano ace Se ena Bie occas cecuwas eats ices aspect ae ere eae eae _— eee ee rary am iors ea een tate ce seeecs nb al pt wig ne re offic bd nme cone tan ths imge The Gane cot fe nce sat nd ets bod cones alten sore, oe tn he gave Fes tie cen vormantyo 'a tt or e‘Welcome To The Jungle Jeclson only “comes alive" when he is on stage performing, The ving ‘ead eve an extent lminality which conesponds to bth the sexy indeterminacy ofackon’s dance andthe somewhat morbid faye tay "sportely governs his offstage existence. Both meanings are bud the video "eryptogam.”* METAPHOR-MORPHOSIS Finally, Hee compelled to return tothe seen ofthe Fist metamorpo sis W entralls and captivate, ling the spectator’ gaze and ptiying in wonder. This sense of bh fea and fascination is engineered by tre video’ special effets. By showing the metamomphess in “eal tne” the spectacle violently distorts the features of Jackson's face. The honorees of his monstrous appearance depends onthe “aispension of dabei. ne ‘now thatthe monster i Bicton, literally a mask created by mechanical techniques, but repressor disavow this knowledge in order to ptiipte in the “tills” the pleasures expected fiom the horor text. Yet in this spliting of levels of belief which the horror film presupposes, iti the redibility ofthe techniques themselves that at stake in making the “othemess” ofthe monster believable (Neale, 1980: 4), ‘The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriler (1984) demonsteates the spe cial effets used in the video. We see makeup atin in the proces of applying the “mask” that will give Jackson the appearance ofthe monster, Ofparticuarinterestisthe makeupartst explanation ofhow the werewell ‘ask was designed and constructed: a series of taroparent cell, cach with details ofthe animal features of the mask re rally spiny ons pubic image of ackson from the cover of Rang Stone magione Is this superimposition of fantastic and teal upon Jackson's face thet offen clues st why the melamonphoi isso cfitve. Like the opening parody of the 1950s horor movie and is layering of roles tht Jacloos is playing (boyriendstn, there is a slippage between diferent levels of belie onthe part ofthe spectator, ‘The metamorphosis achieves a horfying efect because the monster oes ot just mutilate the appearance ofthe bofiend, but plays on the audience's awarenes of Jackson's double oe thus, the credit ofthe ‘special effects violates the image of the sar himself At this meaterual drama ofthe rasfration sheightenel by other prforance foreground Jackson asst. Thesqveaks,eesand ober wore ich mana fi histhtoat ashe wp hisstomacl grotesque sounds which ae the sist tademark of Jackons vice, enforce the impression that tis the “el” Michel Jcson hs musi, Ae a he yt hts he en makeup om his faethe lghing emphasizes the palo fad or ei ictal ena cp tle. The very appearance of Jckson draws attention to the ‘of his own image As the monsuous mask, Ie, jo ie ot of akup ad comet “othe ena homo lin merely appropri what is lead an atiice pe fa nected texte pire ic meonsrction of Miche acs’ fac Teal consrction ofthe fantastic monster ask res to other, ofthe tr: the referent of he mask, a in i is om ight, lace publi image taken fiom the cove of & magazine. In the mink eles nt tothe rel pon or peat self, but Lockwon-a-an-mage. The metamorpiss could ths be seen as ented allegory af the morphological transformation of Jackson's from cid to aul om bye to monster, om ar the ere of wonder generate by the videos pei eflecs an alegory forthe fcinaton with which the wood behold his star image ‘ 1963 Jackson tok patina TV special celebrating Motos ven nivenary, in which vintage Folge was intereut with each act's Peformance; the flim was hen eed at uscd as a support act on arti tours in England, This i how the eception ofthe fin si ect Meith ol cing ph ha an ee sg 8 a s, with which he punctuates the lyric to such stylis Bette le faa we tanecd Tr say t oo pone Sibi te meng itt Revicne si och chnatetomn sonel pcs eee cong weeee tao Be er Shes? ats enn sn orem Monster MetaphorsWiocome To The Jungle Amid all the screaming elicited by “Thier” i is possible to hear an ambiguous echo of those fans’ response. AS a pop idol Michael Jackson thas been the object of such screaming since he was eleven year old and surely such fandom is, forthe tar hime, a source of both please and terror. In “The Face of Garbo” Barthes (1973 (1957) sought to explore the skmest universal appeal of film stars like Chapin, Hepburn and Gasbo by describing ther faces as masks aesthetic arfices on which a society wits large its own preoccupations. Jackson's face may aso be sce such a mask, for his image has gamete the kind of cultial fascination that makes him more like a movie sta than a modero-day shyhi an blues ats. The racial and sexual ambiguity of his image cam alo be seen as pointing toa range of questions about images of race and gendes in popular culture and pop music. If we regard his face not asthe ‘manifestation of personality tts, but asa surface of artistic and social insription, the ambiguities of Jackson's star image call into question ‘eccived ideas about what black male atin popular musi should lok like. Seen from thi angle his experimentation with imagery represents & creative incursion upon a terrain in pop cular mote vsibly mapped ‘ut by white male stars ike Mick Jagger, David Bowie or Boy George At es, these stars have used androgyny and sexual ambiguity as part of their style in ways which question prevailing definitions of male sexuality and sexual identity. Key songs on Thrllerhighlihtasinlat poblematza tion of masculimty: on "Wanna Be Statin’ Somethin’ ” the narrator replies to rumor and speculation about his sexual preference, on “Billy Jean’—a slory about a fam who claims he is the father of her son—he refuses the patemal model of masculinity, and on “Beat I'—"Don't ‘wanna see no blood, Dont be a macho man"—he explicitly deflats a bellicose model of manliness ‘What makes Jacksons se of androgyny more compelling is that his works located entirely inthe Afo-American tradition of popular music, and thus must e seen inthe context of imagery of black men and black imal sexuality, Jackson not only questions dominant stereotypes of Black masculinity, but also gracefully steps outside the existing range oy" ‘of black men. In so dong his syle reminds us how some black mem in ‘he thythm and blues tradition, such as Little Richard, used “eamp,” in Monster Metahers that Susan Sontag cll “the love of the unnatural: of atice on" Sontag 1983 (194) 105, ong bee hie pop ezan to exploit ts shock value or subversive potential. Indeed, is reminiscent of the camp exces ofthe eignatr ofthe musie ‘combination in pop culture, Sereamin’ Jay Hawkins. imagery has fascinated the disney white male musical gente iy meal,” in wich acts like Alice Cooper and Oray Osbourne ath) consume thernseles in sel-parody. But like Hawkins, 1 Put a Spell on You" (1956) borowed imagery from horror esto articulate a sexcam, “that found its way out of my big dirty trough my heat and gut," Jackson express another ing, one that articulates the erotic materiality of Ue human its “grain.” Writing about a musical tradition radically diferent Barthes coined this term to give “the imposible account of 1a thrill that I constantly experience in Tstening to singing 1977: 181). “Tiler” celebrates the fat that this til isshared