Lana Del Rey has been a cultural phenomenon this year, and a polarizing one at that: whether people love her or hate her, they do it with a vehement passion. No matter how you currently feel about the blues-y songstress, it's worth setting aside eight minutes to watch her latest video for the single, “National Anthem." Del Rey alternately channels Marilyn Monroe and Jacqueline Kennedy, while putting her own twist on the leading man they shared. She just might mesmerize you. Even though I suspected how the dramatic climax of the video would unfold, when it finally happened, I still got goose bumps.
“I am in awe. This is a piece of art,” Marc10 posted.
Jmrmartinho sees this video as an expression of Lana’s vision and of her devotion to her craft. “It’s beyond words and I would never guess she would take such a big step,” he wrote. “This is the step where she becomes an artist, not a music artist but a simple artist, a visionary. I think this is, by far, the most [self-expressive] Lana Del Rey video.”
Melfreya declared it, the “video of the year,” and *ana* agreed, saying: “It's one of the best pop videos I've seen in a while. Everything in it fits Lana's aesthetic perfectly. The photography, the story, the styling, the humor, the American culture/cinema references… You can see they wanted to cause an impact… but they managed to do it without making it seem too try-hard, and they mixed in everything we associate with Lana.”
What do you think? Does the “National Anthem” video measure up to the hype?
