Reviews
Let me tell you about Marilyn Manson’s new video before you decide whether or not to watch it. If you’re under the age of majority, please don’t even read on.
Most of the "Running to the Edge of the World" clip features Manson emotively singing to the camera. Eventually we see him after a crime has been committed, and then the crime is revealed…we see Manson brutally and mercilessly beating a woman to death. He leaves her bloody, naked body in the bathtub.
You can find the video here if you feel the need.
I have to say it…this is just wrong.
I think the band’s new album is great, and it’s my understanding that some of Manson’s inspiration for it came from his break-up with actress Evan Rachel Wood. So he releases the record on which he expresses his feelings and then he releases this video? It’s like he said "here’s the art, and now here’s the porn."
I’ve never been shocked by anything Marilyn Manson has done and I’m still not shocked. I’m disgusted. After all these years of being a fan, I feel he’s crossed the line.
I think the inclusion of the scene is childish and sadistic.
Given the song’s subject matter, I can’t help but think he chose this direction for the video in order to be able to say "Yeah, I went there."
I think Manson’s always done quite well at explaining and defending, if need be, why what he does is art and how it should therefore be respected. No explanation will be good enough this time.
Someone watching the video might be influenced by it in a very negative way, not to mention that the actress in the video is probably meant to portray a specific young woman.
How incredibly irresponsible.
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11 Comments
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Very BIG fan of Manson im in love with the song but he kinda went a little overboard on the video.
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Not the best choice of subject matter for a video. The song is good, but it’s probably going to get lost behind the extremely violent act depicted at the end of it.
I have to wonder how much of this is Marilyn Manson doing it just to say he did, and how much of it is the expected/perceived shock value from anything with his name attached to it?
Audiences have changed a lot since he first started, and they don’t react to the same things that may have been provocative once upon a time.
I don’t condone the violence, there’s no excuse for it, but I can’t help but ponder the reasons why this was selected as the visual representation of this song.
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I don’t think that we would have the same reaction had it been a popular female vocalist seen murdering a man “for the sake of art” being depicted in a music video. I’m not defending Manson in any way as our world is already teeming with violence against women/rape culture, but this needs to be looked at critically. Manson’s image and career are all fueled by critique. This video does not surprise me at all because of that fact. We have to question why we think the way we think, I reckon…
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If your a big fan you shouldn’t be suprised, he talks about beating a girl onstage and wanting to kill people in his book. This isn’t even the first he has done something like this, time He took pictures of a girl laying on the ground covered in fake blood and left them random places for people to find to see how they would react.
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On your recommendation, I won`t watch it. However, I will comment. Just part of the ongoing fetishization of ultra-violence in pop culture – whether it`s movies like `Hostel`and `Saw`or TV shows like Criminal Minds.
New ways to hurt more.
Now, I`m not a prude, and I wouldn`t preclude to stop people making or watching fetishized violence, but I won`t watch it.
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As a woman, I don’t really see what’s so shocking about this. There is more violence and gore in any movie (pick anything with a war scene) or a crime drama. The scene itself is unrealistic, and pretty fake, so what’s the big deal? It’s Marilyn Manson people, get over it.
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I agree; this crosses the line. I have always defended Marilyn Manson when he has been called irresponsible for his “shock” tactics, in the name of Freedom of Expression, but I cannot bring myself to do so this time. Knowing, or at least assuming the inspiration behind this video makes it almost real, and that’s where the irresponsibility comes in. Yes, we can see worse brutality in movies or on t.v., but those are stories. This is a murder fantasy played out for everyone to see. I am inclined to compare this video to Eminem’s song “Kim.” I am disappointed that someone as intelligent and artistic as Manson is felt that he had to go there. It seems to be a cheap and juvenile way to express his post-break-up grief.
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Interesting that the track that follows this one on the album is “I Want to Kill You Like They Do In the Movies”…
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Frankly, Manson and his music lost their allure a long time ago. This
seems to be just another attempt on his part to gain back some of the spotlight. -
My thoughts, in chronological order, as I watched that…piece of…hell.
1) Wow. I forgot how nice his eyes are without contacts. Like back in the NIN “Gave Up” days.
2) This is gonna get creepy, like “The Man That You Fear” did, isn’t it?
3) Okay, the chorus sounds like ’80s hair metal. But at least he’s singing and not screaming.
4) Either he’s a better actor than I ever imagined, or he shot this while he was really tormented by something.
5) Uh…oh, god. We’re heading into “Smack My B*tch Up” territory with these bloody doorknob visuals.
6) WHAT THE HELL AM I WATCHING??? This isn’t a music video; it’s a trailer for the next “Hostel” or some other irredeemable chunk of torture porn crap!
7) This will never get airplay. Ever. Anywhere.
Is this supposed to be reminiscent of NIN’s “Happiness In Slavery,” where Trent Reznor sits himself in the previous victim’s place at the end…?9) Been a while since a video nauseated me. Thanks for that, Brian.
Coming from someone who saw a few shows during the “Antichrist Superstar” era, I can honestly say that I’ve never been truly shocked by anything Manson has done. This, however? You said it best. So far over the line I don’t think we can even SEE the line in the rear view mirror by that last shot of the bathtub.
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He does seem very emotional and upset throughout the whole video, most likely because of what he’s just done… I don’t know anything about his and Evan Rachel Wood’s relationship and break-up, I don’t know if he talked about it at any time or if the media covered it, but it could be possible that he hurt her and feels sorry, and this is his way of representing what he feels he did to her. Just a thought.
I personally find it hard to build a solid opinion on the violent subject matter of this video without knowing exactly what he means to express, because it’s so personal.
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