Vids › The Weirdness, Part 4

Miike Snow – Genghis Khan

2016 · Directed by Ninian Doff

496K Likes

Watch on YouTube

Best comments

1.“Miike Snow: 'I need you to make a video for Genghis Khan.' Ninian Doff: '...Did you say Gay James Bond?' Miike Snow: '...YES.'”

More comments

2.“I love how it hits 5 o'clock and evil activities just stop... Guess the minions have a good union.”
3.“'So, agent, how did you stop him this time?' 'I... uh... married him, sir.' '...Well, congratulations.'”

The story

Every Bond villain's shift has to end sometime. Ninian Doff's video for Genghis Khan starts right there. A Goldfinger-type supervillain, backed by Soviet-style henchmen, has the captured spy strapped down and ready to die. Then the workday runs out, so the killing waits.

At home the villain's marriage is miserable. He lets the spy go. The spy runs, then comes back on his own. The two break into a full choreographed dance number, and for the first time the bad guy actually looks happy. Doff was having fun with the homoerotic subtext that's been hiding in plain sight in superspy movies for decades, and he shot it on 35mm. The last beat belongs to the jilted wife, watching the new couple and clearly plotting revenge.

Adam Jones plays the villain, Edward Hayes Neary the spy and Caroline O'Hara the wife, with choreography by Supple Nam. The song was the second single from iii, the band's third album, and went platinum in the US. The video premiered on BuzzFeed in January 2016, won Best Pop Video (International) and Best Cinematography at the UK Music Video Awards, and got a Webby nomination. Turns out the villain only wanted somebody to dance with.

In my playlists

The Weirdness, Part 4 · #101

More Pop music vids

1.Tristen – Gold Star★ favorite
391 Likes
4:07
Best comments
1.“The most baffling thing about it is only 7K plays...”
More comments
1. 2.“This song makes my soul tremble with excitement.”
2.Matt Berry – Take My Hand★ favorite
14K Likes
4:21
Best comments
1.“This video always makes me a bit weepy... I wish I had a better relationship with my robot son.”
More comments
1. 2.“Matt Berry, national fucking treasure. There's nothing I wouldn't watch him in. Even my wife!”
2. 3.“When I first heard this, I thought it must be a classic from the 1970s. It's astonishing to find it's a wonderful, wistful original.”
3.Ladyhawke – My Delirium★ favorite
11K Likes
4:20
Best comments
1.“Doc: Stop playing with my DeLorean!”
More comments
1. 2.“If I shut my eyes, it's like I go back in time to when I was a teenager and didn't have a care in the world.”
2. 3.“I shudder to imagine how *long* it took to get all the watercolor frames ready.”
4.Diane Coffee – Soon To Be, Won't To Be★ favorite
1.5K Likes
3:15
Best comments
1.“Tame Impala mixed with Unknown Mortal Orchestra.”
More comments
1. 2.“Most hidden 14/8 time signature ever. Love this song.”
2. 3.“I'll check this out next time I'm trippin'.”
5.Coldplay – Up&Up★ favorite
1.9M Likes
4:11
Best comments
1.“I stopped the video to make sure I'm not high.”
More comments
1. 2.“Editor: What kind of editing do you want? Coldplay: Yes.”
2. 3.“Every frame is a wallpaper!”
6.Miley Cyrus – We Can't Stop★ favorite
4.9M Likes
3:33
Best comments
1.“The world was not prepared for this when it came out.”
More comments
1. 2.“'This is too sexual.' Cardi B: 'Hold my WAP.'”
2. 3.“9-year-old me: wtf. 15-year-old me: relatable.”

All 67 Pop music vids →