Every girl wants the bad boy. Even Lady Gaga. If it means dumping the King of Kings for him, even better.
In her new video for “Judas,” Lady Gaga transforms the 12 disciples into a motorcycle gang– Heaven”s Angels, maybe? Regardless, it”s a brilliant idea. She”s Jesus”s Old Lady, but she”s got it bad for Judas, played by Norman Reedus, who gets in bar brawls, gropes women and seems adverse to washing his hair. As she sings in “Judas,” “Jesus is my virtue/Judas is the demon I cling to.”
Her longing is so great she has to break out in dance and rock some “Thriller”-type/Michael Jackson moves. While Jesus is off healing people and performing other miracles, she”s declaring her love for Judas for all to hear. Her love has even reduced her to making that stupid little two-handed heart symbol that Taylor Swift made famous.
The video should come with a warning tag: “based very loosely on a true story,” since she takes so many liberties with the story of Jesus, Judas and Mary Magdalene, including sharing a bath with J + J and writhing orgiastically while Judas pours water on her clothed bum. Of course, if one is looking to Lady Gaga for Biblical accuracy, there”s a much bigger problem brewing there, umkay?
[More after the jump…]
Co-directed by Lady Gaga, the video is sumptuous and rich looking with gorgeous jewel tones. The sound is pristine, especially during the breakdown where Lady Gaga attempts to wash herself clean of her sins and then washes Jesus and Judas”s feet. The sound of the water pouring is crystalline. Plus, every viewing brings some new discovery. A college course could be taught on her fingernail designs alone.
Try as she might, she can”t break her Judas Jones (as opposed to Jesus Jones… if you”re too young for that reference, google it). Jesus forgives her, as he, of course, would, but the rest of the world can”t. She pays a pretty big price for her sins. Judas can”t save her.
On the Lady Gaga-meter, this video may be her most lavish yet, but it”s going to draw a ton of comparisons to Madonna”s “Like a Prayer” and we”re not sure it breaks any new ground that way. Plus, girls have been singing about wanting the bad boy since The Crystals” “He”s a Rebel.” Just leave it to Gaga to bring religion into the mix to make everyone squeal.
A longer version drops later today. We’ll compare and contrast after we’ve seen that one.
What do you think?