Development The
music video for "Hold It Against Me" was filmed on January 22 and 23, 2011. It was directed by
Jonas Åkerlund, while
Brian Friedman served as the choreographer. According to Spears' manager
Larry Rudolph, she became a fan of Åkerlund's work after seeing the video for Madonna's "
Ray of Light" (1998), but they had not worked together in the past, owing to "his availability or her timing". Spears and Åkerlund quickly got together to create the concept, presenting different ideas until, according to Rudolph, "[the concept] took a life on its own". Open auditions were held on December 22, 2010, and the dancers had to learn a routine set to
Robyn's "
Criminal Intent" (2010). On January 22, 2011, Spears tweeted from the video shoot, saying it was "an incredible experience" and would "be one of the best videos I have ever done." Her manager Larry Rudolph later confirmed that a body double was actually used, but only for the scenes in which Spears fights herself. The fight scene was choreographed by
Steven Ho. He commented that Spears incorporated the moves learned during rehearsals, but also incorporated "her own flavor", by adding a small shuffle of steps in her heels. The length of the dresses also presented a problem, and there were discussions about shortening the trains for safety issues. They were later added as 'weapons', as Ho explained, "as if they were sharp blades, giving Britney reason to jump and evade around them." B. later commented about the fashion of the video, saying, "We were going for a
punk-rock couture look in this video, with a touch of glam." For the wedding dress scene, B. worked with Tom Tom fashions to create a custom-made dress.
Swarovski crystals were used for the "arm creations"; a necklace by Dannijo and gloves by La Cracia were added as accessories. After its release, the music video earned Spears $500,000 for the product placement by
Sony,
Make Up For Ever and
PlentyofFish.
Synopsis 's music video for "
Bedtime Story". Spears is then seen wearing shorts and showing her bare midriff in the soundstage, while her dancers in white are getting dressed around her. They are surrounded by cameras and lights, symbolizing her constantly being under the microscope and hounded by the media. As the first chorus begins, Spears appears wearing a white wedding dress inside a cylinder-shaped metal room with wires. The futuristic set and flowing dress are reminiscent of Madonna's music video for "
Bedtime Story" (1995). She is seen rising up the cylinder-shaped metal room and her past music videos surround her, symbolizing her ever-growing career in the music industry (and possibly referring to the carousel of ''
Logan's Run''). When the second verse begins, Spears sings, wearing sparkly red skull-shaped shoulder pads, with microphones around her. Other teasers featured Spears wearing the red outfit, her in the midst of a dance sequence with male dancers, and TV screens showcasing her past music videos. James Montgomery of MTV called the teasers "brilliant" and commented that they "earn[ed] her a spot in promotional history", comparing Spears' and her team use of social media to past campaigns by
Kanye West,
Radiohead and
iamamiwhoami. On February 6, 2011, she tweeted, "Just saw a new cut of #HIAM. SOOOO excited to share it!" It was followed by a live discussion with special guests on MTV.com at 23:00 EST (04:00 UTC). James Montgomery from MTV said that while the video surpassed her most iconic clips in terms of sheer spectacle, it still displayed a level on restraint in its themes. He summarized the review by saying it was one of her all-time best videos, adding that "there's genuine
art to it, which makes it both beautiful to look at and powerful." Montgomery also found that the video was inspired by the
Graeae, iamamiwhoami, Kanye West's short film
Runaway, the music videos for Robyn's "
Indestructible", Madonna's "Bedtime Story" and "
Die Another Day",
The Matrix franchise,
Mortal Kombat,
The Rocky Horror Picture Show and the Cam de Leon painting
Ocular Orifice, which served as one of several covers of the
Tool album
Ænima. Aaron Parsley of
People believed that the fight sequence was the highlight of the video, but dismissed the product placement. Bill Lamb of About.com said the video was visually stellar, although he added that it was "difficult to know" if it would "match the impact of" clips such as "Baby One More Time" and "Toxic". Willa Paskin of
New York deemed it as "a high-energy, professional, dance video", but stated that "[the visuals] make up for the basic fact that she isn't in the dancing shape, or really, performing shape she once was." Leah Greenblatt of
Entertainment Weekly commended the direction of Åkerlund, but criticized Spears for her lack of involvement, and commented, "It's hard not to wonder: Is Britney having any fun?" Ed Masley of
The Arizona Republic stated the video lived up to hype of the teasers, and added that it was unquestionably one of her "artier" videos to date. Drew Grant of
Salon.com said that despite the product placement, the video "[i]s visually stunning, with a
Matrix meets
The Cell vibe that will have Lady Gaga wishing she had thought of IV paint drips first." Alex Catarinella of
The Huffington Post deemed it as her greatest and most mature work, and said the video was ultimately simple in its concept, and added, "The once picture-perfect pop star has returned and is offering fans the new, worn-and-torn and yes, stronger than yesterday Britney." The use of product placement received criticism from the media. Megan Gibson of
Time said that the video was "borderline insulting" and commented, "we get that it's hard economic times all around, but couldn't they have been a tad more subtle with [it]?". Liz Kelly of
The Washington Post called the clip "an
infomercial" and said, "I would write more, but suddenly feel the need to put on some Make Up Forever and dash out to buy a Sony flat screen TV." "Hold It Against Me" video got a certified in the digital platform
Vevo on
YouTube. ==Live performances==