If the label hadn't request a soulless edit instead, the new rihanna vid could've been this little gem.

Official edit: www.youtube.com

I kinda like the official edit better? The one take feels forced to me, like the editor wanted it to feel more emotional than it really is.

But maybe that's me reacting against the antvillism that one-take videos (even at the expense of making the video interesting) are somehow the holy grail of music video purity.

I like the one-take edit because I think it tells a better story. Simple and yes, pure. Just a heartbroken girl in her bath. And you can't take your eyes off Rihanna.

Official edit on the other hand removes all the charm of the one-take and leaves us with an uninspired, standard performance video. I find it hard to like.

I'm with Budget on this. The official works better for me. And "the one take" seems more to be a stolen moments shot than a real one take.

There should always be a point to a one-take. If you use it, use it for a reason. I feel like in the music video world it's just become a shorthand for "arty video clip."

As far as mainstream pop music videos go, I'll take a pointless one-take over a pointless edit any day of the week.

And what makes this edit pointless? It moves with the music, highlights the different aspects of the performance, and creates an atmosphere for the video.

Have we really gone so far down the music video rabbit hole that having "edits" in your music video is now perceived as a less authentic form of cinematic expression? Guy, maybe you just don't like mainstream pop music videos.

I love mainstream pop videos, just not a fan of this one. I saw the one-take first, then the official version and felt like the editing didn't add anything more to it. It touched me less.

the 1-take edit i find pretty difficult to follow throughout, although it's quieter and more intimate

the edit version is easier to sit through, but its chopped very soulessly, no sense of dramatism, no twists in the plot, no revealing shots; i look at it as a way to put the featuring artist in and also show some really nice close up's which didn't make the 1-take cut.

so, overall, id choose the edited version. however, i find rihanna so annoying that i barely managed to watch either