The Smiths - Ask (official Music Video) -

The official music video for (1986) is a quintessential collaboration between The Smiths and avant-garde filmmaker Derek Jarman . It captures the band's signature "miserabilist" charm through a lens of artistic defiance, juxtaposing upbeat, jangly guitar pop with imagery of social awkwardness and looming existential dread. Visual Narrative and Symbolism

Directed by Jarman, the video eschews high-budget 80s gloss for a grainy, artsy aesthetic. The Smiths - Ask (Official Music Video)

: While Jarman’s "Version 1" is the artistic standard, a second version exists featuring live performance footage superimposed over the original visuals. Another 1988 video directed by Peter Fowler was released to promote the live album Rank . The official music video for (1986) is a

: The Smiths appear in blurred, dreamlike intersections, maintaining their air of mystery while focusing on Morrissey’s expressive performance. Production Context : While Jarman’s "Version 1" is the artistic

: The video features a "nerdy," bespectacled teen attempting to declare his love to a girl with a bouquet of flowers—a literal embodiment of the lyric, "Shyness is nice, but shyness can stop you from doing all the things in life you’d like to" .

: Reviewers often highlight the contrast between Johnny Marr’s optimistic rising guitar chords and Morrissey’s themes of isolation and social failure.

: Set against an abandoned warehouse, youth celebrate and dance even as a skeleton dance partner appears. This reflects the song’s darker subtext: "If it's not love, then it's the bomb that will bring us together," referencing Cold War-era nuclear anxiety.