[8] The video also portrays Marion Cotillard's character (who is presumed to be a prostitute) suffering from gruesome stigmata, with the detailed depiction of the blood bursting from her wounds, while the priest is dancing with her.

The music video ends with the stigmatized woman apparently born again as an innocent girl and Bowie saying simply, "Thank you Gary, thank you Marion, thank you everybody."

[14][15] The former archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, also criticized the song as "juvenile" and urged other Christians to "rise above."

"[16] Also, Andrea Williams of Christian Concern questioned the point of the video while Jack Volero of Catholic Voices referred to it as "desperate".

The writing contains an explicit response to the depiction of "the served eyeballs", which is acknowledged to be a reference to Saint Lucy.