Bad Religion - American Jesus

What this video is

Released in 1993 as the lead single from Bad Religion's album Recipe for Hate, 'American Jesus' was written as a satirical critique of American exceptionalism and the conflation of national identity with religious authority, directly inspired by President George H.W. Bush's framing of the Gulf War as divinely sanctioned. The video's sepia aesthetic and use of cross-carrying blindfolded civilians in Los Angeles…

Why it matters

A landmark artifact of early-90s major-label punk crossover, demonstrating that politically explicit anti-nationalist content could penetrate mainstream MTV programming. The video's conceptual sophistication and symbolic visual language elevated the production values of punk music video beyond the…

The director

Gregor Justin 'Gore' Verbinski (born March 16, 1964, Oak Ridge, TN) graduated UCLA Film School with a BFA in 1987. After signing with Palomar Pictures via director Julien Temple, he directed music videos for bands including Bad Religion, NOFX, and Monster…