The Killers - Shadowplay

2007

The Killers - Shadowplay (2007) Director: Spencer Kaplan & Jonathan Sela Era: Post-Punk Revival / Mid-2000s Indie Rock (2007) - Peak era of post-punk nostalgia, tied directly to the Anton Corbijn biopic Control and a renewed mainstream appetite for Joy Division iconography High curatorial value as a documented intersection of two significant 2007 cultural artifacts, The Killers at peak mid-2000s commercial success and Control, one of the most acclaimed music biopics of the decade. The video's hybrid construction (performance + film clip integration) and its confirmed co-direction by a cinematographer who would go on to shoot major Hollywood productions (Jonathan Sela, ASC) makes it a noteworthy production artifact. Tier elevated by the Joy Division / Ian Curtis historical weight embedded in the source material. Context: Released in October 2007 as a digital single and included on The Killers' rarities compilation Sawdust, 'Shadowplay' is a cover of the Joy Division song from their 1979 debut album Unknown Pleasures. The Killers recorded it expressly for Anton Corbijn's biographical film Control (2007), which tells the story of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis. The track plays over the film's closing credits. Control was itself a landmark cultural event, Corbijn's debut feature, shot in stark black-and-white, which premiered at Cannes and won multiple British Independent Film Awards. The music video deepens the intertextual loop by weaving Killers performance footage with scenes from the film, creating a tribute that sits simultaneously within post-punk heritage culture and mid-2000s indie rock. The cover amplified a broader cultural rehabilitation of Joy Division's legacy, contributing to renewed mainstream interest in the band's catalogue. Director notes: The music video was co-directed by Spencer Kaplan and Jonathan Sela (credited as Jonathan V. Sela) and released in 2007 alongside The Killers' cover of the Joy Division classic 'Shadowplay,' recorded for Anton Corbijn's biographical film Control (2007). The video intercuts The Killers' performance footage with scenes and clips from Control, which chronicles the life of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis. The single was released as a digital download on October 9, 2007, and appeared on The Killers' B-sides/rarities compilation Sawdust. The cover version plays during the closing credits of Control itself.