Right on the heels of having just released the song itself, M.I.A. comes with a video for “Born Free.” Clocking in @ nine minutes, it’s explicit & graphic, the perfect embodiment of the raucous & rebellion of the song itself. Not only has the song grown on me, it’s given me dreadful feeling that the apocalypse is coming.
Via MIAUK
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whoa
Damn…Someone really hates gingers.
WTF did I just watch?
damn! – that is a good look
that was intense
Wow… very disturbing.
That was stupid. Everyone knows Americans love gingers. Second, hire American actors. I half expected the “Americans” to ask each other to passively aggressively sit down for some tea and crumpets while they debate why the ginger should go with them.
It was a video trying to be violent just to be violent.
Interpretation? Anyone?
The music does go perfectly with the video. I’m not sure what it is all about though.
Whoa! Fuck! Intense! Looking forward for here 3rd one!
@ T-Bone *crickets*
hmm….if this is any indication….
ICE may act like this when it comes to “illegals” in AZ…..
but yeah…very rebellious.
Don’t like the video or the song if I’m honest. I think Ms Badu might have beaten her in the creative video stakes.
Yeah, i like this – the point is a little bit laboured but I came away from this video with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth and that’s what it’s setting out to do.
The Badu video was great but this is really in another league in terms of filmmaking, the marriage of the song and the visuals here is some truly powerful stuff.
The Badu video was great but this is really in another league in terms of filmmaking, the marriage of the song and the visuals here is some truly powerful stuff.
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True indeed. The cinematography in this alone is impressive. Only thing is, the song gets some what lost in the visuals and barely compliments
@ deen – it was trying to make a point that we (as Westerners) don’t really see the injustices and the heinous crimes of the world because the people don’t look like we do. the gingers in the video could represent the Palestinians, some of the ethnic groups being killed in Africa, etc. at least that’s my take on it.
@sherm I think you’re right on as far as what the video was trying to say. I didn’t like it, personally. Way too forced. “You’re telling me that the U.S. Government is oppressing minorities, only it’s gingers instead of a more traditional minority group? That’s edgy! It’s changed the entire way I think about the Palestinian conflict!” I mean, come on. Plus, the fat people in bed was pretty disgusting.
Yo guys… I don’t think you should see this video as something that takes place in USA. The gingers & the S.W.A.T. might only represent government soldiers & Tamil children in Sri Lanka. This is a crazy bloody video, but it’s only over-exaggerated if it should represent North American everyday life, but fact is that ‘expendable’ children are used as human bomb detonators in other parts of the world – and then it’s not the video that’s crazy, it the world!
Peace…
I’ll never get that 9 mins of my life back will I?
Good video. Bad song.
Great look for the director, Romain Gravais – not so much for the singer, M.I.A.
I got the point about persecution of fellow humans with more melanin being an abstract thing to the first world/Anglo viewership. Replace them with some kids out of a Ken Loach film slap them in a familiar urban non Irish setting and bam!
It’s Children of Men west coast edition with some V for Vendetta salt
The record company has ensured a definite write up via Pitchfork, Popmatters, Antville, The A.V. Club, the House Next Door and the rest of the critical blogosphere
but in terms of the song, I only remember the opening dramatic music – and some distorted scream-o in the middle of the apartment building sweep – not the actual M.I.A. song….(I guess she and Lady GaGa can fight now over the most memorable video presentation for an unmemorable song)
Romain Gavras also did this video for Justice’s “Stress”
http://vimeo.com/963614
Sort of “La Haine” meets “Man Bites Dog”
I wasn’t even paying attention to the song. lol Good cinematography though. This album is gonna be HARD!
Anyone else think of Schindler’s list while watching this?
its ok guys… Gingers dont have souls
Good for thoose fucking lazy no good gingers there exactly whats wrong with America i think we would all be happier if they went back to gingerland, including the gingers. Us real Americans are tired of paying my hard earned money to suport theese fucking gingers. << lol how ridiculous does that sound.
I hope that martin rev and allen vega get royalties for the sample that runs the length of this.
This is just what happens in those fucked up 3rd world countries. They have NO respect or value for life and I hate them for it!!!!Neo fucking Nazi’s!!!! USA should take over the whole friggin world and call it “United States of the World!!! Every one should be valued and no one’s life is underminded! What the fuck with the Ginger’s on this video???? And what about the blonde hair, blue eyed girls back in the 80′s? People cannot help what body they were born into. I’m just pissed of how this world has become and GOD IS MAD!!!! Everyone will see it soon because shit IS GOING TO HAPPEN and the time is near regardless of what idiots think.
This is not about gingerism, it’s about state/government sanctioned discrimination anywhere in the world. Just look at Arizona’s new immigrant law in the US. This is against states/countries being able to do what they want and target a select group of people based on their race, religion, spoken language or political afiliation. Once you get past the whole “oh look their ginger” you will see this video for what it truly represents. The persecution/targeting of a group based on their looks, culture, religion,national origin, or any other uncommon afiliation.
This is actually a flip on what happened during the genocide in Burma. Just google Burma, mine fields, genocide… it should all come up. It’s a different victim and culprit in the video of course.
But that’s perfect. I think it’s a good thing to mess with people’s minds. It makes you question the ‘us’ versus ‘them’ theory.
I love that MIA did this, too many women just talk about sexuality and dancing (riding, grinding, sliding, whatever). This is a GREAT look for her.
The funniest part about this whole video is the fact that M.I.A. openly supports the Tamil Tigers, a terrorist (or militant) group depending on how oblivious you are to the obvious. Last I checked the U.S.A. doesn’t make people run through minefields while shooting them in the back, but im pretty sure the Tamil Tigers do. Also, the song is ABSOLUTELY WACK.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJkymylTNU4&feature=youtube_gdata Lord baby Jesus! Why are people treating the Badu video likes it’s the only one with naked-ness Matt and Kim had that like a year and half ago And was a way better video
ok…WTF??? really M.I.A.??
@jmag M.I.A. was originally born in England but has Sri Lankan roots and has been interviewed on several occasions about her life during the Sri Lankan Civil War. She also studied to be a filmmaker so I think what she was trying to convey in this video is to take something Conservative Americans (or Conservative people in general) would recognize (red head kids) in order to for the viewer to relate and feel what it would be like to see normal kids being taken out and executed as opposed to some black kids from Sri Lanka (here’s the shock factor part). Personally, I think it’s pretty creative and it’s of course always open to interpretation. But usually you can always look to an artist’s background and figure out where they are coming from and it will shed light on the situation.
ok SHOCK video,GARBAGE song.
^^^ LOL at this idiot talking about United States of The World….wtf are you on buddy.