Rupert Sanders directs this grim music video for Trent Reznor & Co’s new music project How To Destroy Angels. Not for the squeamish, as it focuses on the aftermath of a violent attack on a well-dressed couple in a hotel room, and the visual effects in this video are actually quite good. If you like what you hear, you can also download the band’s new ep for free here.

To add critical commentary, I should say that the visual of people unaffected by a burning room has been a re-occurring image since I first saw it in Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, NY, a film that I cannot recommend highly enough. I have seen it in at least one other piece since and it’s possible that it has been done several times before in a similar fashion that I am unaware of, but I’m attributing it to Kaufman. In my opinion, this doesn’t take anything away from the music video because it is done so well, but the next time I see it, it will start to feel derivative.

Before this video, I had never heard of Rupert Sanders, but I definitely remember his work. Sanders has directed several mainstream commercials that all tell gritty, gripping narratives that you don’t forget. You may remember seeing his epic commercial for Halo ODST. Videos after the break.