It’s not often that you see a “Parental Advisory” warning before the start of a music video, but for The Weeknd’s new clip for “False Alarm,” it’s incredibly warranted. Directed by Ilya Naishuller, “False Alarm” gives you a first person perspective of what it’s like to rob a bank, with all the violence and gritty details to go along with it.
Music videos are at their best when they act as a cinematic before they act as simply a music video, and that’s what The Weeknd is pulling off effortlessly here. Through the eyes of the singer, you watch as he robs a bank, takes a hostage, gets into a shootout, and ultimately meets his demise. It’s probably one of the most heart-pumping videos that’ll be released all year.
Interestingly enough, at first glance, the video seems to have a lot in common with something you’d see out of a first-person shooter video game, and given Naishuller’s track record, it’s not a surprise: Naishuller’s first-person action film, Hardcore Henry, recently was featured in the crime-centric video game, Payday 2, earlier this year.
The music video for “False Alarm” continues The Weeknd’s trend of unique offerings when it comes to his upcoming record, Starboy. And after a Daft Punk collaboration and this gruesome video, we can only imagine what’s on deck next.