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Director's Series, Vol. 2 - The Work of Director Chris Cunningham

Director's Series, Vol. 2 - The Work of Director Chris Cunningham

List Price: $19.99
Your Price: $17.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: a TRIP
Review: The music videos range from the hilarious ( the Aphex Twin's "Windowlicker" ) to the incredibly beautiful (the stunning "All is Full of Love") to the downright spooky ( "Come to Daddy" also by the Aphex Twin, which made me turn the lights back on in the house it scared me so much ). Most of the music is techno ( drum and bass, trip hop, etc ) and the visuals always manage to compliment the music perfectly, as if they were created at the same time, by the same person. I found myself several times thinking one would be useless without the other. The short films in the bonus section are also very good, especially the one with the mechanical looking monkey with the multiple human arms, playing drums along to an Aphex Twin ( there he is again ) track, which tickled me to no end. Even the 30 second commercials warrant repeated viewings ( and THAT is really saying something.) I showed this to a friend the other night, and at the end he had a blank look on his face and finally said "WOW...that was a TRIP"

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good, but could have been Great.
Review: This is definitely worth picking up, but it's lacking quite a few things that would have made this a worthy package like the Spike Jonze and Michel Gondry dvd. I cannot believe only 5 minutes from Flex was used! I've seen the whole video and its brilliant, where's the rest of it?. Here's a list of whats missing.

1.Auteurs: "Light Aircraft on Fire"(This is seen on DVD menu page with the dog holding a guitar)
2.Auteurs: "Back with the Killer Again"
3.Auteurs: "Dubstar"
4.12 Rounds "Personally"
5.Jesus Jones: "The Next Big Thing"
6.Lodestar: "Another Day"
7.Gene: "Fighting Fit"
8.Jocasta: "Something To Say"
9.Nissan: The complete commercial
10.Dubstar: "No More Talk"
11.Holy Barbarians: "Space Junkie"
12.Life's Addiction: "Jesus Coming In for the Kill"
13.XFM : "Clip Clop" commercial for UK radio station
14.ITV : "Sport Is Free"commercial
15.Flex: the full 17 minute short film.(this is unforgivable, its the real reason I bought this dvd in the first place).

...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The only way to have Chris over to your house.....
Review: To be honest I didn't find the DVD lacking at all, to consider previous concerns: the videos that are not on the DVD suck. That's the bottom line. You wouldn't want to sit through those videos and they are better left alone to be re-run late at night on MTV2. Again the clip from FLEX is far more enjoyable than the entire film, which I have seen. I think that is is far better to have a sweet taste than to have the magic wear off after 5 minutes. That is the best section of FLEX and the rest is marginal. I think that many people are missing the point of this release. It is hand picked by Cunningham and it is his choice what is to be seen of his work. We are lucky enough to even have this on the shelf or in the player. To be more specific to the concerns above, the clip for the Auteurs 'light aircraft on fire' is terrible and all the best moments are in the stills on the directors file website and in the booklet. All the other videos that are not on the DVD are as bad (good) as your friends first paintings or demo tapes, just that, rehearsals for the real thing. I must agree that the Nissan commercial is a poor addition as the original is AMAZING! The content on this thing is a short cut and even bothering to mention that the music is by Boards of Canada is a bore, I'm sorry, anyone could have made the music to that clip. The booklet is interesting although not a far cry from a glossy magazine interview and offers little to no information on the videos. This DVD is fantastic to say the least although in today's market where we have to learn what size underwear the producer wears from our DVD-info-factoid-pills this DVD is lacking, I am sooooo pleased about this, because there is so little that you can actually learn from this information other than just that, and I don't give a damn what size underwear Cunningham wears. As far as the content from the MTV2 documentary, I mean commercial, Thank God it's not on there! That was the worst junk that I have ever seen! And the interviews with other directors? Oh my! Spike Jonze is the most BORING interview subject in the world! SNORE!!!! and to fill anyone in on the content of those interviews, here is EXACTLY what EVERY interview was like: (subject turns to person off screen) "Hey you remember that video I showed you? The one with the Creepy children?" "No." "Well, uh, that was cool huh huh." That was it! And Spike Jonze is bringing in this cheap looking latina and asking her about the video and she hasn't even seen it! It was a nightmare! Imagine the depth of a boring snooze fest Spike Jonze sitting with some latin goth kids on a sidewalk (one descibes Cunningham like a Slayer video) and spouting this junk.... This is the problem with the DVD addiction and as well the CD reissue craze, sacrificing quality for content. So what, it's missing hours and hours of worthless crap, GOOD!
This DVD is fantastic and do yourself a favour BUY IT! NOW!
Peace.

Here are the exact contents as listed on the case:
Autechre - second bad vibel
Aphex - come to daddy, windowlicker full and bleeped version.
Portishead - only you
madonna - frozen
leftfield - afrika shox
squarepusher - come on my selector
bjork - all is full of love, making of documentary
shorts / commericals - monkey drummer with afx, flex clip with afx, mental wealth (sony), photocopier (levis jeans), Engine (nissan short version), Drukqs clip with afx music.
ENJOY! !!!!!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Instant cult classics!
Review: Two simple words come to mind.....pure genious! Though some of the excess material (Monkey Drummer, Flex) seem to be a little too long and (dare I say this) too weird, the videos are extremely stunning. From Aphex Twin's sci-fi/horror trip "Come To Daddy" to Maddona's captivatingly gothic "Frozen," this is a peculiar dvd that will survive numerous times of extended play. Not for the squeamish, but a milestone in audio-visual production for all open-minded listeners. Innovative to an almost offensive extent.....Again, pure genious!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent Collection from a Talented Video Director.
Review: Video directors are a dime a dozen, and only few are able to distinguish themselves with any trace of personality. But Chris Cunningham is among the most talented and the most distinguished. His images are harsh, disturbing, yet elegant, and they wonderfully compliment the music these videos promote. This DVD is a collection of not only his videos, but it also has a collection of short films, commercials, and other clips. The picture quality is amazingly sharp, and the music is presented in a booming 2-channel stereo soundtrack. The highlights? Apex Twin's spooky "Come to Daddy" (banned on MTV) and the hilarious "Windowlicker" show Cunningham at the top of his game (the bleeped version of the latter video is also on this DVD, but make no mistake: my favorite is the original, cuss words and all). Drum-and-bass kings Squarepusher's "Come on My Selector" is an interesting clip set inside a Japanese psychiatric ward, and Leftfield's "Afrika Shok," which features a man who slowly dismembers himself, is quite bothersome yet well made. But one of my very favorite clips is the promo for the PlayStation video game "Mental Wealth." In this weird commercial, Cunningham features a Scottish girl whose face is eerily distorted to resemble a cross between Bjork and a space alien. It's bizarre and brilliant at the same time. Another standout is the clip "Flex" which is simply wonderful. Many complain that this isn't the full version, but I didn't care. All said, this is a hugely entertaining DVD collection for those who aren't fainthearted and have a taste for the alternative. You'll be shocked, amazed, and even disturbed, but one thing is for sure: you won't be bored.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent Collection from a Talented Video Director.
Review: Video directors are a dime a dozen, and only few are able to distinguish themselves with any trace of personality. But Chris Cunningham is among the most talented and the most distinguished. His images are harsh, disturbing, yet elegant, and they wonderfully compliment the music these videos promote. This DVD is a collection of not only his videos, but it also has a collection of short films, commercials, and other clips. The picture quality is amazingly sharp, and the music is presented in a booming 2-channel stereo soundtrack. The highlights? Apex Twin's spooky "Come to Daddy" (banned on MTV) and the hilarious "Windowlicker" show Cunningham at the top of his game (the bleeped version of the latter video is also on this DVD, but make no mistake: my favorite is the original, cuss words and all). Drum-and-bass kings Squarepusher's "Come on My Selector" is an interesting clip set inside a Japanese psychiatric ward, and Leftfield's "Afrika Shok," which features a man who slowly dismembers himself, is quite bothersome yet well made. But one of my very favorite clips is the promo for the PlayStation video game "Mental Wealth." In this weird commercial, Cunningham features a Scottish girl whose face is eerily distorted to resemble a cross between Bjork and a space alien. It's bizarre and brilliant at the same time. Another standout is the clip "Flex" which is simply wonderful. Many complain that this isn't the full version, but I didn't care. All said, this is a hugely entertaining DVD collection for those who aren't fainthearted and have a taste for the alternative. You'll be shocked, amazed, and even disturbed, but one thing is for sure: you won't be bored.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best one of the Director's Series
Review: Wow. This left me totally speechless. Unlike Spike Jonze or Michel Gondry, Chris Cunningham is all about the visuals. Part Mark Romanek (but really, really disturbing) and part Floria Sigismondi (but slightly less nightmarish and with a dark sense of humor), his music videos are more than just astonishing eye candies -- they are more like mini horror movies. I loved all the videos but the standouts are the 2 Aphex Twin videos (spooky "Come to Daddy" and twisted but hilarious "Windowlicker"), and Björk's "All is Full of Love" which is the best and most realistic CGI I have ever seen.


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