The video opens with a montage of close-up shots of cash in time to sounds of cash registers opening. After a few seconds, shots of things relating to a wealthy lifestyle, such as a wide shot of an expensive-looking house and a tracking shot of a jet taking off, intercut the shots of cash and become more frequent as the intro progresses and a drum beat starts to sound. There are also shots of the song's album, Dark Side of the Moon, being made, a self-referential nod to the band itself. These shots begin to appear through a filter, appearing as though they are being viewed through an old television. This refers to how many people watch the celebrities who are appearing in the shots on TV and aspire to be like them by earning money, hence the newly intercut shots of crowds of people in business suits travelling around a busy city; it is implied that they are going to work by the mise-en-scene of these shots, particularly the people's suits. It is also suggested by the lyrics "You get a good job with its own pay and you're okay", which can be heard at this point of the video.
As the song progresses, the montage of shots of cash, celebrities and their possessions is also intercut with shots of athletes and cheerleaders, referring to the line "Think I'll buy me a football team".
The shots of celebrities begin to be replaced with mostly wide shots of factory workers, still intercut with close-ups of cash. These shots are followed by a tracking shot of a woman in an expensive-looking dress walking down a staircase, presumably to get to the jet seen in the next shot. The setting of the building in which the staircase is located is grand-looking with many large windows. This continues the theme of people working hard to earn money in order to be like the celebrities and athletes shown earlier in the video. The shots of cash are still in time to the sounds of cash registers and coins being moved around.
As the tempo of the song speeds up slightly, so does the montage of shots. The focus of the montage shifts towards expensive restaurants, followed by a high-angle, extreme-long shot of a bridge, with skyscrapers nearby. The montage continues to use the filter to appear to be on an old television, continuing the theme of aspiration. This is perhaps conveyed by the extreme-close up of a person's eye which is intercut as part of the montage.
Along with the shots of people working, shots of homeless, starving people are intercut. They only appear very briefly, and unlike, the shots of celebrity lifestlye, do n pot move; the shots are static. This suggests that the people in the other shots try not to think about them, and they are ignored. As the montage continues, more shots of poor people appear, many in black and white, possibly to continue the idea that they are ignored. These shots are intercut with more frequently-appearing shots of rich people and celebrities. A number of these are in slow-motion, bringing attention to them, moreso than the shots of starving people, continuing this theme.
Shots of factory workers begin appearing more frequently, moreso than the images of the celebrity lifestyle. Shots of cash begin appearing less frequently, possibly suggesting that the people working are beginning to dream of becoming rich less, and are seeing reality, as conveyed by the fact that shots of poor and hungry people begin appearing more often. This is also conveyed in the way that the extreme close-ups of a person's eyes begin to get even more close-up. There is then a shot of an explosion as the guitar solo begins, possibly to symbolise how people have become less fixated on celebrities and more aware of reality.
There is a montage of a number of shots followed by explosions. A Dark Side of the Moon album explodes, followed by a speedboat. The tempo of the music increases, as does the frequency with which shots appear in the montage. This perhaps represents a person being driven mad by how the money and celebrity-obsessed lifestyle. This is evidenced by the fact that insanity is a major theme of the album itself.
There are then a number of representational static shots of the members of Pink Floyd, then shots of money being burned, continuing the message of the video - that being obsessed with money, and living only for it, is not recommended.
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