Megadeth is awesome. I'm gonna start by saying that. But on this music video, the first from their upcoming, seemingly self-titled farewell album, (17 albums in 40 years... not a bad run!) the creative decision to utilize artificial intelligence feels like a fumble in the end zone.
Of course, art is subjective, so don't take my word for it, but check out the video for "Tipping Point" (I have to admit, not the most inspiring or catchy Megadeth tune ever made). The video finds frontman, Dave Mustaine, resigned to his confinement in the concrete and steel cage of an ancient, dilapidated prison (which may be the same one his character has been in since 1992's "Sweating Bullets" video). As he grunts out the lyrics (not his most poetic, and some in the 'Deth spaces online are wondering if they're AI generated), we see the rest of the band, outside the cells, blasting out the brash thrash-metal sounds we've come to expect from this band. Then there are some other characters - a warden or some official-type man in a suit standing near Mustaine, grimacing at him with a powerful disapproval. There are shots of Dave's point of view as he sings into a broken mirror (again, a reference at the '92 video), shots of Dave gripping the rusty bars of his cell and shaking himself against them violently... all good fodder for any metal music video.
But then things start to get... weird.
Certain random shots look... not quite right. Is that a demon? Are those crabs on Dave's face? Are those supposed to be... ghosts. What's going on here?
What's going on, my friends, is an overt, obvious and in-your-face utilization of bad artificial intelligence in video. And my first reaction is... WHY? Why do this to an otherwise cool and aesthetically “on-brand” music video? Sure, we’ve had countless music videos (mostly in the 80s and 90s) that implemented early CGI to varying levels of success. But somehow, this feels different. This feels like something almost anyone could create from a still shot. The info on YouTube claims that the video’s director, Leo Liberti (a name new to me, but one who seems to have done a lot of work with big-name brands as well as respectable hard rock and metal artists, and - from what I’ve looked at online, he’s talented and knowledgeable about his cinematic work), is himself the culprit behind these oddly juxtaposed images. I thought, perhaps someone took the original director’s footage and, after the crew had all gone home, ran the footage through some AI program for reference, and then spat out a handful of shots that could be edited in with the serviceable stuff. But, alas, no. The YouTube notes also claim: “CGI Post Production by R.O.D. post, a division of Leo Liberti Films”.
Now, I don’t know that Mustaine & Co. didn’t specifically request for this treatment, either during pre-production or possibly as a change of plans during post. As we all know, our beloved clients sometimes like to shift things up in the 11th hour. (Honestly, that’s not a bad thing… it can just be very stressful… most of the time.). But further investigation reveals that it was probably part of Liberti’s plan all along. On his website, the blurb about “R.O.D.” (Render Oneness Delivery), claims that they’re “equipped with a state-of-the-art infrastructure to handle all stages of post-production, from color correction and VFX to cutting-edge AI workflows.” Ah, there it is!
R.O.D. goes on to claim that “virtually all VFX softwares rely on AI at their core. We believe this advancement should not (and will not) replace artistic creation. Instead, it exists to empower artists, making it possible to deliver high-quality effects and solutions at a fraction of the cost, once reserved only for multi-million-dollar studios.”
So, it would seem that this is something the post house created by design. Mr. Liberti - who, by the way, seems like a lovely person, a talented producer, director, filmmaker and a skilled musician himself - is dedicated to being a forefather in the world of AI video creation. Okay, fine, fair enough - that’s one way to corner the market and offer clients something fresh, new, and topical, as they say, for a lower price than what such imagery used to cost. And that’s as it should be - that’s progress. That’s grabbing the bull that has shown up in our stables by the horns and being proactive in this brave new world of AI.
On the other hand…
I felt that these particular uses of AI imagery – peppered in with authentic, real light and shadow, color and movement – is extremely out of place and sticks out like a sore thumb. It may be in the same color palette, frame rate, and including very life-like depictions of Mustaine’s visage, but it does not look like the rest of the video. It stands up on its hind legs like an eager puppy and screams, “Look at me! I’m a weird, fake clip created by an algorithm! Aren’t I cool?”
Frankly… no, anthropomorphic, sentient, talking video clip; you’re not cool. I mean, sure, on your own, you may be kind of interesting, but thrown in against this otherwise-awesome, actual footage, you seem desperate. You’re not part of the narrative, you’re not doing what everyone else in the video is doing, you’re barging in with your own weird nonsense when we’re trying to enjoy a classic heavy metal video. Stop it, AI video clips!
From the looks of Leo Liberti’s demo reel, I get the feeling he and his post crew usually do a pretty good job blending their AI imagery into the scene, maybe even to the point of no one being able to tell it’s AI. But this? (Sorry, Leo, but…) This is not the way to use AI.
Now, if I had my way, AI imagery and video clips would have never been invented. Aside from the ethical issues of replacing actual, living, breathing artists with algorithms that are essentially stealing from millions of resources online without any permission, the aesthetic of today’s AI (in 2025) swims in a cesspool at the basin of the uncanny valley. It dabbles around the laws of physics, but never seems to fully understand them. It lights things strangely, it moves inhumanly; it’s an evil robot trying to blend in while it contemplates this concept the humans call “love”.
But let’s face it - AI does exist and, short of an act of congress, it’s not going away anytime soon. And, despite my protestations, it’s obviously a handy and innovative tool in many, many respects. Even in video production. The artistry comes in one’s ability to blend it in seamlessly, without the audience being able to tell you did anything with the image at all. Flashes of AI creations amidst film or video that is real actual, non-AI content. That can work. That can be amazing.
Or, to the other extreme, a music video that consists of nothing but AI-created video clips, as in last year’s “I’d Like To Help You With Your Problem” video by The Dandy Warhols - every shot is that weird, “uncanny valley” aesthetic, so nothing stands out more than anything else, and it all feels cohesive and unified. The imagery may not make any literal sense, but there are themes of toxicity, death and decay, and almost every shot seems to take place on a blustery, cloudy, sandy beach. It’s mood fits the tone of the song and is just appealing to a tone and a vibe that appeals to the subconscious. The same might be said for the Megadeth video, but… the AI shots simply don’t match the look of the real footage. It’s inconsistent. It’s jolting. There is no flow of imagry.
And the quality of the AI, from the Warhols’ 2024 video to this Megadeth video in 2025, has advanced in leaps and bounds – a world of difference! But the problem remains - no matter how close it gets to “reality,” it’s still not ever there. It may halve and halve and halve its distance to “real”, but that’s still never actually “there.” And when mixed in with real footage, in entirely different shots, it’s simply off-putting.
Video professionals and filmmakers, let’s take a lesson from this. There are good and bad ways to utilize AI in your projects… and, (just as the case has always been with our old pal, CGI,) the best ways will be invisible.
That’s my 45 cents. (Inflation.) What do you think about this video? Love it? Hate it? Any insights about the AI shots that I didn’t cover here? Let me know!