Harry Styles is the gift that keeps on giving. On December 2, 2019, Styles released the official video trailer for “Adore You” and finally put an end to all the confusion and theories fans had about the mysterious isle of Eroda (adore backwards), which turned out to be an epic marketing strategy for his upcoming song “Adore You.” The trailer provides a background and history of the fictional isle of Eroda and centers around the birth of a “peculiar” Boy who is played by Styles. The narration is done by Spanish singer Rosalia and features different actors who play mean Erodians that never smile (what they call “resting fish face”). We soon learn that the Erodians alienated the peculiar Boy because of his bright smile, and although they didn’t mean to be mean to him, they couldn’t help it because they were used to how things were.
One of the most interesting scenes in the video trailer is the one scene where the Boy screams his pain into jars and then closes them. Some fans have noted that there are nine jars in this scene which are meant to represent nine years of fame. Others believe there are twelve jars that represent the twelve songs from Fine Line. Since the shot of the jars happens quickly and some jars are in a bag, it is unclear how many jars there actually are. Regardless of this, it is an incredibly strong scene since it suggests that at some point in his life, Harry was bottling up his emotions. Another heart breaking scene is when the Boy goes to the ocean and fills the pockets of his coat with rocks. Right as he is about to go into the ocean, a fish jumps out of the water and lands on a large rock. The Boy sees the fish and throws it back into the ocean, but the fish jumps right back out, and this is what stops the Boy from drowning himself. When thinking about this scene, fans wondered if there was a time in Harry’s life when he contemplated suicide. If the video is true to Harry’s life and the events in it are symbolic of what he’s lived through, then it is incredibly sad to see that such a beloved artist went through such painful moments.
Other fan theories believe that the fish is meant to represent Harry’s fans and suggest that the fans saved Harry from the pain he was feeling. The line, “he had lost his smile and without it the world grew darker,” conveys the sadness that accompanied Styles during his life and how one person’s unhappiness makes the world a darker place. This line potentially highlights the necessity to make sure everyone is being helped, included, and appreciated since loneliness is a major theme in the music video. The line, “but loneliness is an ocean full of travelers trying to find their place in the world. But without friendship, we are all lost and left with no hope, no home, no harbor,” suggests that loneliness was at the root of Harry’s sadness and pain and perhaps in a broader sense, it is the root of everyone’s sadness and pain. As some fans have also theorized, it’s possible that Eroda is meant to symbolize the music industry. This would mean that Harry felt like he couldn’t be himself within the music industry which led him to feel hopeless, excluded and incredibly unhappy.
Here is the full transcript of the video trailer:
“In all the seas, in all the world, there has never been a land quite like the isle of Eroda.
Shaped unmistakably like a frown, it is home to all but forgotten fishing village that has had perpetual cloud cover for as long as anyone can remember.
An isle where some still believe that it’s bad luck to mention a pig in a fisherman’s pub.
Where seeing a minister in the morning, meant you should go home immediately.
Some fishermen still wore a single gold earring for luck, some say it’s to pay to have your body buried if you die in a strange port.
It was also frowned upon to be caught whistling in the wind, in fear you might turn a gust into a gale.
And if ever you leave Eroda, avoid doing so on odd numbered days…
Everyone was always frowning anyway. Which they referred to as Resting Fish Face.
But then…well something peculiar happened…or I mean…someone peculiar happened.
The Boy was… peculiar… from the moment he entered the world.
No one ever meant to be mean towards him, but in a town grown used to the way things were, no one knew what to do with something… different.
They did their very best to ignore it… hoping it would go away… and eventually so did The Boy.
He had lost his smile and without it the world grew darker, the wind colder, and the ocean more violent.
The Boy was not alone in his melancholy.
He wondered what could bring despair to something so beautiful.
He tried to ignore the fish, but loneliness is an ocean full of travelers trying to find their place in the world.
But without friendship, we are all lost and left with no hope, no home, no harbor.
He wondered what cruel twist of fate brought them together, and if fate was indeed involved, what did she have in store.”
After the release of the full music video, fans have expressed their love for the video and song on Twitter and Instagram. The full video tells the story of what happened to the “peculiar Boy” after he found the fish. We learn that the Boy kept the fish and cared for it, but the fish kept growing and growing until he could no longer be cared for by the Boy. Thus, the Boy had to take him back to the ocean and let him go. One day the Boy was walking around town and had the fish in a large fish tank and came across a man who was cutting up dead fish for sale. Then the fish became agitated and broke out of the tank. The Boy knew what he had to do, but the fish was too big for the Boy to carry by himself. Seeing the Boy struggling to carry the fish alone, the Erodians helped him carry the fish back to the ocean, and this selfless act is what brought everyone together. The Erodians finally smiled, and the Boy smiled like never before. The last thing we learn is that Boy sailed away to “find out what other wonders awaited him in the world,” and everyone in Eroda lost their hair because the Boy left the isle on an odd number day.
While the entire video is filled with adorable and touching scenes, one of the cutest scenes is when the Boy takes the fish to what is probably his favorite spot in Eroda and gives him a miniature taco. Afterwards, he dances with the fish in the most lively and charming manner possible. Yes, the fish dances inside the plastic backpack the Boy carries him in and it is the cutest thing ever! The scene is particularly touching because the two outsiders form a beautiful friendship and are freely happy. The fish helps the Boy by taking away his loneliness and sadness, and the Boy helps the fish by caring for it. In essence, they save each other!
Another cute scene is the one where the Boy stares at the fish with so much affection before falling asleep. It was at that point Harry Styles fans wished they could be a fish or find someone who looks at them the way the Boy looked at the fish. I mean look how adorable these looks are!!
In a world where male musicians sing about love and have different women in their videos as their love interests, Styles stars in his music video with a fish, and the concept could not be more original and delightful! It was really moving how at the end, the Boy uses a scream from one of the jars to set sail. It symbolizes how people can use their pain and sadness to move past it and to go farther. What Styles has done with the artistic approach to this video is change the way musicians approach the making of music videos. Hopefully the “Adore You” video will influence other musicians to step up their game since the experience and emotional journey this video took us on was like nothing before. For now, all there is left to do is dance to “Adore You” like Styles did in the video and thank him for another gem.
(The Boy and the fish saying goodbye)
(The Boy using his pain to sail away)