Metallica-The Memory Remains

Artist: Metallica feat. Marianne Faithful Song: The Memory Remains Director: Paul Andreson Year: 1997
Guitarist/Vocalist:James Hetfield Guitarist: Kirk Hammett Bassist: Jason Newsted Drummer: Lars Ulrich

The video was filmed at Van Nuys airport on 20 and 21 October 1997. It cost $400,000. The large spinning box cost over $100,000. The actual song is based on the film Sunset Boulevard (1950, Billy Wilder). The lyrics are about an ageing washed up Hollywood star who obsessively wants to be famous again. This is seen in the lyrics; “Heavy rings on fingers wave/ Another star denies the grave/ See the nowhere crowd/ Cry the nowhere tears of honour.” This suggests that the protagonist spends her time waving to imaginary crowds and imagining their tears of admiration.

The main events of the video are that Faithful let the band ride in the spinning box in the style of allowing them onto a fairground ride. There is then footage of the band playing in the spinning box and of them playing both together and individually in a room with a tilted floor. There are also shots of a funeral procession led by Faithful riding the spinning box. During certain parts of the song Faithful sings and plays a street organ.

There are two main locations in the video. The first is the giant box where the walls, floor and ceiling spin creating the illusion that the platform in the middle is spinning vertically. The second is a room where the floor is tilted upwards creating the illusion that the people who stand there are leaning further forward than is possible. This is symbolic of the illusion that the protagonist is trying to create for herself; a world where she is still famous and loved by all.

The costume of the band is fairly regular and styled to that of rich hollywood people. This is included with clothing items such as the sunglasses on Hetfield and Ulrich. Faithful's costume is very different though as she wears the costume of a 1950s circus performer which links back to 'Sunset Boulevard'