The music video for M.I.A.’s “Born Free” premiered this morning across the web. It was adorned with warnings of Not Suitable For Work and was immediately removed from YouTube after it was posted. Thus I had to watch it as soon as possible. Clocking in at just over nine minutes and filmed with a grittiness a la The Hurt Locker, “Born Free” is as much as short film as it is a visual companion to the single.

The video is extremely graphic and violent, and the NSFW warnings do heed true. Aside from, or partially because of this, I think it is an important milestone in music video history. M.I.A. is using a key visual medium for her single to comment on a subject with political and moral implications, and doing so in a gritty, “realistic” manner. Green Day’s “Wake Me When September Ends” is a notable video that comes to mind when thinking of relatable visuals, but loses out as the implicative violence of “Born Free” create a new level of understanding in bringing out the underlying themes. Director Romain Gavras’ carte blanche pays off well and has set the bar for future quasi-political videos that are anchored in social commentary.

• The Sonorus