10 Best Music Videos Of The 2000's

When it came time to do promotion for their rock opera American Idiot, Green Day had a unique opportunity at their feet. With a record centered around a punk kid trying to make sense of 2000s America, the visuals for these songs could be much more grandiose than anything the band had ever attempted.

Once the band hooked up with director Samuel Bayer, everything began to fall into place. Bayer was known for creating epic videos such as Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit," but the band's "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" called for something much more down to earth. Opening like the end of the band's previous single "Holiday," you can practically feel the tone shift from confident to uncertain from the first few frames.

The set is very similar to the one used on the previous video, but the feeling is drastically different. This city that seemed to be the most exciting place in the world has now turned into a wasteland, with the band playing their hearts out in an abandoned house. The punk ethos may be present in the graffiti-ed walls, but the actual heart of the video has a much more sullen quality to it. After coming off their previous single's highest form of debauchery, these four minutes is the perfect accompaniment for the phrase "I walk alone."