I will first say that I wholly disagree with the previous review written on this.
Anyone who knows *anything* at all about Green Day, or Billie Joe Armstrong himself, knows that this is not an actual "film", but a *music video*. This was not made to be a "film". This song is part of one of the most brilliant rock operas that exists today, that actually had a long running Broadway show named after it, using all of the music from it, "American Idiot". The song itself is a very deep, beautiful, tragic memorial to Billie Joe Armstrong's father, who died when he was 10 in September, from esophageal cancer. His father was also a music artist, at least part time, and that is where a lot of Billie Joe's musical talent comes from. In most Green Day albums, there are varied expressions of pain and struggles through life, which no doubt comes from having to grow up as he did, in his *particular* environment. This song is a true memorial to his father, and that's how one must listen to it and it's lyrics, in order to fully understand it. However, as many people have been able to perceive, especially those who did not/do not know the story of the song, it can be interpreted in multiple ways. It's a song of mourning, loss, and heartbreak. Everyone has experienced that in one way or another in their lives, so there are many different directions that the song could potentially take. It means one thing as a standalone song. It has other subtle differences when seen as part of the American Idiot rock opera. The music video here had an entire short film/story created *around* the themes of the song which I think was done beautifully. Then there is another obvious interpretation that can be gleaned from the song, which I myself have used in making a YouTube video with it, which is its ability to "fit into" (& quite by accident) the tragedy of 9/11. The song was NOT at all written with this monumental, world changing, life-shattering event in mind, but many other YouTubers have agreed with my own interpretation that the song's core themes of loss, pain, and the fact that we are still forced to carry on, fit solidly with this heart-melting song, and as a result there are many "fan adaptation" videos available. I believe this is an extremely pliable song that can easily address many of life's situations and essentially is timeless. This video was very well done and they did a good job of telling ONE particular story that this song could fit into, and in doing so, shows the audience that the song IS a tender, haunting reminder that means so much more than its original purpose. It is a song that embraces the pain of separation and gives its audience the permission, or encouragement, to take time to grieve, but ultimately shows us that we must ultimately continue to live our lives, while keeping the memory of those who have gone before still close to our hearts. As a multi-decade Green Day fan, I believe this song is one of their masterpieces, and am quite pleased with the direction this video's creators took in expressing its messages.
