Kim Jaejoong "Mine" MV [Full Review] 5/5
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The Bigger Picture
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In conclusion, I want to touch on The Bigger Picture, because as I pointed out in the opening - that's really the point.
Philosophy is a lost art, but it ultimately spawned the birth of the advancement of the human race. Humanity made a decision a long time ago to record its own history and that of the earth we live in. Why? To Remember. To look back at the past and learn from it - to embrace parts of it that were useful without risking losing them and having to start from nothing and stall out advancement - to pass it on to others and future generations in the hope that the core ideas could be expanded upon. This.. drive for knowledge - this.. exploration of our own existance - was at one point the pride of our fair species.
.. what happened to it? People have forgotten their roots - or concentrated so much on smaller details that they forgot to ponder The Bigger Picture. I can see this clearly myself - especially in the music industry. But this is unacceptable - and so it is my hope that by doing this, I can perhaps inspire that same interest and desire in others. To perhaps revive this "lost art", or at leat gain new appreciation of it.
That being said, I also want to touch on the importance of the symbology this may have for Jaejoong himself. People may say the symbology and interpretation here seems "overboard" because it's "kpop", because it's "just a music video" - but the pain Jaejoong himself experienced was REAL. Much more real to him going through it than for anyone simply *watching* the events alone - and I hope that more really take that into account and consider that this "reinvention of self" as something that I honestly believe 200% he had to journey through and find a resolution for - entirely literally and wholly separate from just his image or the grouping he's in.
He just spent a bit over 3 years in conflict - and nearly A DECADE before that fighting for and living within an entirely different scope of reality than he has available to him now - and that road in and of itself was frought and filled with *numerous* conflicts: language barriers, societal structure, proving himself and his talent and worth time and again, overcoming physical injury, financial limitation, judgment, pressure, "growing pains" - and life lessons in love, friendship, and family. Learning to adapt is absolutely SHITTY, and he's had to do it only god knows how many times through the years, struggling to maintain Self throughout. However, the situation with SM really - and I'm going to be blunt here - REALLY fucked up a lot of advancements he'd made for himself until then. Through circumstance or situation, having his Self - that, however strong or frail it may have been, was still hard won and fought for - invaded, tainted somehow.. clouded over with negativity and to beat all, turned inward on him as he could do nothing but helplessly watch and deal with the aftermath of what to him was (imo) ultimately simply wanting to be *himself* and acknowledged as a human being, is really nothing short of Rape. Yes, RAPE - a violation of personal space and Self that far exceeds the physical and has nothing to do with sex - yet everything to do with self-worth, and Power.
I personally feel that his experiences could have potentially not only confined him - but practically raped his sense of self in the process. The pain of that kind of violation - the kind that albeit forced upon a person, makes them turn the blame and pain inwards to themselves as the faulted and makes them feel insecure enough in *themselves* to simply "take it" because they have no other choice - is hell to recover from. Utter and sheer hell - because even if the source causing your pain isn't there in front of you - it ultimately forces *you* to be your own enemy. That is an enemy you can not get away from - ever. There is no choice but to make peace with it, and that's damned hard to do. There's a reason people say, "you are your own worst critic."
Although I also feel much of this was in response to his situation with SM - I also want more people to acknowledge him as a person: actual and whole.
In the last 3 years, he's had to deal with a lot more than just that alone. What has contributed to his potential loss or damage of Self is not JUST SM. His friend committed suicide - and he felt guilty for it. Yoochun's father passed, and he could barely hold onto himself, let alone hold his friend together - to the point that he couldn't even attend the funeral/wake. Fans have pressured him from -all- angles: to be one thing or another, forcing their own expectations on him - fighting *over* him, *with* him, *for* him, *against* him, and *because* of him. The very essence of his Self was put up for public scrutiny with scandals - not really allowing him to develop that easily without outside interference. He is watched nearly every second of the day. God only knows what's happened in his less-publicized life. Yet somewhere along the way, he's managed to consistently bounce back and keep moving...
I can't help but admire that kind of strength - or the kind of strength that unabashedly publicizes that struggle like this.
This song and video are simply amazing to me because of this.
Overall, I feel that this was an Exploration of Self - a journey through the recovery process of past experiences and re-learning to *live* after facing adversity. LIVE - and not just exist in some blurred-out confusion parodying Life.
Dealing with loss and the pain that comes with giving up something (or even people) you cherish - in order to truly LIVE in any semblance of reality worth living for - is not easy. Learning to accept the parts of yourself that you don't like and being able to make them *useful* again is not an easy process, either - it's one I've been through myself and one I'm even still *going* through now. However, it's necessary to truly discover the person you CAN be, and that's really the ultimate goal for any person to reach: the extent of their realized potential.
It doesn't mean "it's all over" when you reach it, either - and this is something I really feel the Skull symbolizes, as well. Mortality and humanity means falling, injury, pain, loss, and eventually - death. The point to life is making it all *worth it* in the end by accepting yourself enough that the desire to find your place in the world - your role in this life - is not overriding what you're *doing* with that role or forcing you to languish in self-pity or insecurity to the point that you can't even truly *see* the world around you, let alone live in it. The metaphor of "spreading your wings" means exactly that - the ability see more of the world from an expanded viewpoint, free from the limitations that insecurities and the expectations you have of yourself enforce.
It's also important when metaphorically "exploring" to not be OVER confident, either - another point seemingly embraced by Jaejoong in his tattoo choices - such as, "The pleasures of the mighty are the tears of the poor." Not only could your over-confidence and egotism affect someone else - one day you could very well BE "the poor" and in essence be kicking your OWN ass for it. Succeeding doesn't mean you'll never fall - it only means you'll have a wider variety of places to LAND when you do.
If you're careful enough to navigate terrain that isn't as harsh, stay in environments that allow you to thrive, arm yourself with the confidence of Humility and Knowledge of Self - and make plenty of friends capable of catching you along the way - your likelihood of surviving the inevitable downfalls of life intact is much greater.
This is my experience... It seems like our Jaejoong is finally walking that path himself - and it's a DAMN FINE sight to see!
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THE END - FINALLY! XD ~
AN: I would personally say that this is a fair - and very detailed - estimation of the message behind this video, but I always appreciate different views than my own (as long as they're not *attacking* me in the process - I have teeth of my own, y'know ~_^ )