Malou Prytz Releases Wes Anderson-Inspired Music Video for "Left & Right"

The last time I spoke with Malou Prytz, we were in a Stockholm hotel for the media day leading up to the Melodifestivalen finals. After defying the odds, Malou broke out as a newcomer and qualified direct to the finals and has consequently outdone many of her competitors with her follow-up material.

Exclusive Malou Prytz interview here:

Malou's new single is called "Left & Right and the music video draws creative inspiration from Wes Anderson's 2012 film "Moonrise Kingdom." Wes Anderson conceptualised a story about young love between two 12-year-old protagonists, Sam and Suzy. The film also covers other topics including mental health, family dissolution, and alludes to the Genesis flood myth. "Moonrise Kingdom" is an age-appropriate source of inspiration for Malou's new music video, as "Left & Right" features a melancholic melody soundtracking a narrative about young love. Sam and Suzy both act out and engage in reckless behaviour due in large part to their difficult home lives. Sam is an orphan in the foster system and Suzy's parents have a failing marriage further exacerbated by infidelity. Sam and Suzy find solace in one another and run away from home together, seeking refuge in nature.

"Left & Right" doesn't address as many of these themes as "Moonrise Kingdom" but does utilise certain aesthetic elements and key imagery from it. "Moonrise Kingdom" has a distinct visual presentation, including it's use of symmetry, a warm colour palette, and a unique movement style of camera work. These details don't only enhance the aesthetic value of the film, but serve the world-building by blurring the lines between realism and fantasy. "Left & Right" has some shots that recreate Wes Anderson's propensity for symmetry, though not to the same degree, as well as a similarly designed colour aesthetic. All things considered, this music videos gives a respectable effort in paying homage to a very technically detailed film. Considering that Wes Anderson had to pitch "Moonrise Kingdom" on a lower budget and still managed to put together such an artistic, aesthetic film, it goes to show that having less money is never an excuse to people with an actual work ethic.

"Left & Right" music video: