Queens of the Stone Age Get Drunk, Fall in Love with SnorriCam Rig

The legendary Bram Teitelman at Metal Insider notes that Queens of the Stone Age’s new, Hiro Murai-directed “Smooth Sailing” video “plays like a more serious version of The Hangover.” I’m not sure if Bram is conscious of it or not, but I’m positive the reason his mind went to that particular film isn’t just because, like the “Sailing” clip, it involves getting shitfaced; I’m sure that the video also reminded him of this well-known shot from the movie:

These shots are achieved with something called a SnorriCam Rig, a device which attaches the camera to the body of the actor, creating a wobbly visual effect which is ideal for conveying a character’s intoxication, anxiety, etc. (According to Film School Rejects, called a  “SnorriCam Rig” because both of its Icelandic creators had the last name Snorri, even though they weren’t actually related. Weird but true.) It looks like this:

The Hangover obviously wasn’t the first film to use it; there have been versions in use around for decades. Perhaps most recently and famously, it was a signature of the work of director Darren Aronofsky and cinematographer Matthew Libatique early in their careers:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5dbQ7beEO8&t=45

It’s clear watching the QOTSTA video that Murai basically fell head-over-heels fucknuts in love with the SnorriCam, and while that should be annoying, it actually works. Part of that is, again, due to the clip’s subject matter, and part of it is because the song is so friggin’ catchy it was bound to make almost any footage seem cool.

But part of it is just because SnorriCam shots look so damned rad.

Watch: