Hurt (Queer As Folk vid)

"Hurt" is a Queer As Folk (US) vid by Paraka. It is a slash vid with the pairing of Brian/Justin. 
Vidder's summary: "Ouch! Brian and Justin spend a lot of time hurting each other."
==Reactions/Reviews==
This vid was reviewed by Siren Mage at the reel vidding community on December 3, 2006: 
"Overall impression: Described by Paraka as a vid about Brian, Justin and all of the crap they've gone through, the focus is a bit more narrow than that since the vid only covers the first three seasons. Hurt is, instead, a vid about some of the ways Brian hurt Justin and himself over the course of the first three years of their relationship. At first glance it might appear to be a run-of-the-mill Brian/Justin vid, but I thought it captured a deeper emotion.
Titles: Attractive and fairly clear, though the second frame of titles does seem a bit squished. They're placed at the end which works very well for a song like this which packs a punch from start to finish and deserves to have the series footage as the focus from start to finish as well.
Music choice: I was just mentioning to my family a few days ago how I hate Cash's version of 'Hurt'. I'm an NIN girl myself and I've seen this version used for vids and fall short. Johnny Cash and Queer As Folk may seem like a stretch, and did to me in the beginning, but it works in this case. Cash's vocals and the dissonance of the song compliment Brian's POV nicely and the vocals are a wonderful reflection of Brian Kinney in all of his screwed up glory. The song in terms of video concept might seem contrived, especially if you're new to the fandom, but for anyone who has done any in-depth analyzing of Brian it fits absolutely perfectly in many aspects (for example: "You could have it all/My empire of dirt" in relation to Brian's lifestyle, what he has to offer and his relationship with Justin resounded with me).
Narration, Tone and Movement: More often than not, when I've seen vids with a focus on the pain in the relationship between Brian and Justin, Justin has acted as the narrator. It's a very simple voice to find and to use, really, because it takes a while until one is able to sympathize with Brian in the same way they can sympathize with Justin. The fact is, Brian's an asshole, but he's an asshole for a reason and this video alludes to that effectively. Told from Brian's point of view, the lyrics and Brian's actions combine to tell his story; Brian hurts Justin and he does it often, but this video makes it clear that in doing so, Brian's hurting himself and he knows he's doing it. The tone is resigned, much like Brian himself tends to be. There is less of Brian's cocky bravado represented here and more of his vulnerability which also lends to inducing viewer empathy. The video isn't exactly linear; although you can see structure to it, the focus is always on the pain inflicted rather than re-telling the story of Brian and Justin detail-by-detail.
Cuts, Transitions, Effects & Colouring/Coloring: The clips aren't of the best quality which makes the video come across as a bit amateurish and there aren't a great deal of effects, either. The vidder uses the fade technique a lot which eliminates the potential problem of jerky cuts and transitions, but can be distracting. The only real effect used is the overlay of two clips throughout which I found attractive and sometimes very powerful. 
Specific vid & music notes: As mentioned before, the clips used to align with the lyrics "You could have it all/My empire of dirt" stuck out to me, moreso the first time around (1:17 - 1:26) than the second (2:32 - 3:02).
Other powerful alignment of lyrics and clips: 1:59 - 2:08
I also love the end, which keeps the video from being bleak: 3:12 - 3:32
Final notes: I personally enjoyed this video quite a bit, but more on my second viewing than the first. So to all viewers, I'd recommend watching this vid and then watching it again. And possibly once more. ;) To the vidder I have to say that this is a job well-done. Whether everything I perceived was intended or not, you created a vid with depth which isn't easy to do. There were some hitches, mainly with the fading of clips, but I didn't see anything glaring that experience can't cure."
==References==
Category:Queer As Folk Vids
Category:Slash Vids
Category:2006 Vids