Lady Gaga: Judas (2011 Music Video) User Reviews

this is tight af

[DepressedCumstain · 8/10 · 3 April 2017]

4get what every other creatively deficient energy-vampires have previously said, this video is A1. e.g. Thierry Mugler outfits, Alexander McQueen and Lacroix! Not to mention the amount of attention to detail to the set designs, the studded leather jackets and the perfect casting of Reedus as Judas and Gonzales as our lord and saviour, you cannot deny the video is GOAT. H/w in terms of music, catchy and simple (how else are you gonna climb the charts? Shakespearean sonnets?), lyrics seem like something you come up with when you do your homework on a Sunday night at 3am. To put it simply, its better to watch the video version of the song rather than the radio, it still gets stuck in your head in the middle of the day.

Plot

[AlexanderCliftonDesnoyers · 10/10 · 16 January 2024]

The video opens with a motorcycle gang cruising down a freeway, wearing studded leather jackets. The motorcycle gang are the Twelve Apostles that Jesus is said to have, including Judas. Gaga as Mary Magdalene clutches onto a Jesus (Rick Gonzalez) who wears a golden crown of thorns. Among the riders is Judas, who crosses Gaga's bike as she looks meaningfully towards him. The gang passes under a flyover, when the song starts. They reach their rustic hideout called "Electric Chapel" where Gaga dances wearing a red sarong and a bikini top with crosses stitched onto it. Once the gang arrives, Gaga Magdalene pushes Judas, further showing they have history. At the party, Judas causes a ruckus and starts fights, showing he's trouble. While trying to protect Jesus from the fights she attempts to warn him about his apostle's impending betrayal, but becomes hypnotized by Judas' allure. The pat on Peter's back as she sings "you can build a house" references a line in the Bible when Jesus said, "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build My Church". After the second chorus, in a climatic sequence, the singer holds a gun up to Judas' mouth, and a stick of red lipstick bursts out and smears his lips. The scene portrays Gaga's choice to refuse to shoot Judas in the heart. As the breakdown ends, the music stops and Gaga is seen in a bathtub with Jesus and Judas, washing their feet and cleaning it with her hair. The sequence is interspersed with Gaga standing lonely on a rock as waves engulf her. The music restarts and Judas is shown pouring beer in the bathtub. The sequence is interspersed with Gaga standing lonely on a rock as waves engulf her, the scene being reminiscent of artist Sandro Botticelli's The Birth of Venus and Jesus marching towards his fatal destiny. Next Jesus is shown standing on a stage, surrounded by his supporters, the setting being inspired by scaffoldings present around newly constructed buildings. Gaga kneels in front of Jesus and tries to explain something to him, but he places his palm on her head as Judas looks on. After Judas delivers the fateful kiss upon Jesus' cheeks, marking him for his death, Gaga falls on the ground with a silent, anguished cry. The video ends with the death of neither Judas nor Jesus, but of Gaga as she's stoned to death by the crowd in a bridal dress.

Shock value instead of artistic value

[Horst_In_Translation · 2/10 · 17 October 2014]

Here we have Lady Gaga as Mary Magdalene being the girlfriend to a Jesus biker, who actually seem to be in love with the man who betrays her boyfriend. Early on, the color contrast between Gaga's purples dress and blonde hair to everything else in black and white tells us who the star is in this "motion picture".

The song is nothing special either and for the whole second half we see the biker gang drinking and brawling at some pub, with short intermissions showing us Gaga alone at certain other locations. Nothing remotely worth watching and I cannot say for sure if the song or the video is worse. Even Gaga's otherwise extravagant costume changes seem kinda uninspired in this one. Oh yeah, the Judas is played by "Walking Dead" actor Norman Reedus, so fans of the show may want to take a look at it. Everybody else should stay away.