Below, you will find Disturbed's "Inside the Fire" video. I will warn you in text, and the lead singer, David, will warn you vocally, that this video is very graphic, and if you are squeamish, do not watch it. They also let you know that if there is someone or you are someone hurting and in need of help because you are suicidal, that there is help at both the beginning and end of this. However, those of you brave at heart and willing to see why this was chosen for the portrayal of women, I wish you nothing but good tidings. For those not willing to watch, continue reading.
I'm going to start off by saying that I had to watch this video several times to make sure I had this right. For the first time in several videos I have found one where women are not pictured as sexual beings, objects, or crazy.
First, you see David, the lead singer, recognizing what this video is and what it means to him. For him, the portrayal is not sexual. This woman is meant to be treated with love, respect, and a certain sense of empathy. She is not an object, she is someone he cared for. He takes her limp corpse into the bathroom and begins to bathe her, not for sexual pleasure, but as the final act of respect.
Later and all throughout this video you see this woman as a bloody corpse to represent the haunting he feels for the rest of his life. There are constant referrals to how he will take his life to be with her. He wants to die so that their souls can be reunited. So, instead of Sut Jhally's idea that women go crazy and depressed when men are no longer around, Disturbed force it to be the exact opposite. The only minutely "sexual" appeals are where the female is being bathed (but as a corpse I think that was more from the respect aspect) and the times where you see her dancing in blood, but considering the rest of the band is seen doing the same, it's hard to say that it's her sexuality being presented or the fact that she's dead and they are all in this crazy land of insanity together.
Speaking of the female being a corpse, there are a few instances where someone could argue that she is being manipulative and trying to force him to stick the gun in his mouth, but she does not manipulate him with her sexuality as Jhally would point out as "manipulative sexual behavior". She just tries to mess with his mind enough so that he will do one of 2 things. He will either take the AK 47 off the wall and shoot himself or he will go complete unhinged and be forced into an Asylum. Huh, come to think of it, that was their very next album.... NOW I see why they did that...
Anyway, back on topic. In the end, you do see him put the gun in his mouth and "pull" the trigger which forces us back into reality and we see him in a straight jacket where at the end he pulls his hand free at the last second.
So, was this a real occurrence where his girlfriend/lover/best friend/fiance/possible wife committed suicide? Well, he explains that suicide has touched him personally, so reasonably, yes, this could have happened, and he may have been locked up for mental unhinging, sure. The dancing in blood part, not so much, but the answer to Sut Jhally's idea of rock video portrayal of women, I believe has been sidetracked, even for just one video.
The idea of objectivity makes this woman into a person that needs taken care of, love, and respect. Not for her to serve any purpose but to be taken care of because someone loved her and felt bad that she died.
As a side note, I would like to say that the way Disturbed handled this with both starting and ending the video with regard to others' safety was a responsible thing to do, and their lead singer was very upfront about it. I say kudos to Disturbed, personally.
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