Burn The Witch - Radiohead Scene Analysis

Question 1

Who wrote Burn the Witch?

Answer 1

Thom Yorke

Question 2

When was it released?

Answer 2

3rd May 2016

Question 3

Who animated it?

Answer 3

Jackknife prints over 2 weeks

Question 4

How was the song initially released?

Answer 4

As a download on Radiohead’s website

Question 5

How successful is the song?

Answer 5

Lead single from 9th album
Nominated for best rock song for 59th Grammy Awards

Question 6

What was the opening scene of the song and analysis?

Answer 6

Bird which we return to at the end - cyclical structure

Question 7

What does the bird connote?

Answer 7

Connotations of nature, peace and freedom

Question 8

What does the tweeting noise via the bird connote and what shot was this?

Answer 8

Calmness, ambience and establishing shot

Question 9

What does the car scene suggest?

Answer 9

Nostalgia and classic, animated figures

Question 10

What does some characters not having mouths suggest? Connotations

Answer 10

Connotations of silence, restriction

Question 11

What is the scene like when they arrive in the village?

Answer 11

Visually appealing, safe, old-fashioned

Question 12

With the houses looking historical, what can this suggest?

Answer 12

Can suggest that injustice has always been a problem

Question 13

We can see that there is hierarchy with someone being portrayed as the mayor, what does this connote?

Answer 13

Importance

Question 14

What does the NVC of the mayor connote and suggest?

Answer 14

He nods and then they all follow - this connotes unity and power

Question 15

We see them painting the postbox with red paint and then red crosses on the door - what does this suggest?

Answer 15

Everyday innocent job to violence and separation - isolating the woman

Question 16

What do we connote with the postbox?

Answer 16

Connectivity - connects everyone together

Question 17

We see a construction of something which we later see in the video then cutting grass and decorating with flowers - what does this suggest they are doing?

Answer 17

Keeping up with appearances and quite domestic activities

Question 18

We see different types of buildings such as post office, village pub, what does this suggest?

Answer 18

Sense of community and togetherness

Question 19

What does the name of the pub suggest?

Answer 19

Name is violent and dangerous and has historic context. Predator vs prey

Question 20

What does the speared boar have intertexuality references to?

Answer 20

An American Werewolf in London

Question 21

We see the mayor and inspector walking past while people are painting the red crosses - what does this suggest?

Answer 21

So many historical context and references e.g The Plague

Question 22

We see the woman getting a red cross on her door - what does connote and suggest?

Answer 22

Isolation and vulnerability - historic context and shows how people are getting locked out of the community

Question 23

The woman has a mouth! - what does this suggest?

Answer 23

She could of spoken out about being punished

Question 24

We see the model village and dunking chair - what does suggest and connote?

Answer 24

Connotations of children and can be a form of masking as it looks like a see-saw- context about if you drowned, you weren’t’ a witch.

Question 25

What does the woman being tied up with people around her with swords and masks suggest?

Answer 25

Hiding identity and it looks like a ritual scene

Question 26

We see a triple of images which were woman in house, dunking chair and woman tied up, what does this show?

Answer 26

Inequality

Question 27

We see the tree outside of the village alive but the one she is tied up to being dead - what does this represent?

Answer 27

That it happens often - symbolic of death and can suggest that communities which are undisturbed and unchecked are dangerous

Question 28

We see the inspector being in shock at the hanging structure which we saw this getting decorating earlier - what does this suggest?

Answer 28

Seen as normal to them - concealment

Question 29

When the inspector and mayor walked through the gate - what does this suggest?

Answer 29

Lush vegetation and these people are being kept out of the community - otherism

Question 30

The inspector starts to climb up the wicker man - what does this suggest?

Answer 30

Intertexuality

Question 31

We see the wicker man get set alight - what does this connote?

Answer 31

Fire and danger and impending threat

Question 32

We then see the crowd turn around and start waving the audience - what could this suggest?

Answer 32

Turning away from horror behind them

Question 33

We go back to the bird at the end after we see him escaping - what do we call this?

Answer 33

Cyclical structure

Question 34

What is the band known for?

Answer 34

Not following the mainstream