HelloAngel
ONE love, blood, life
By Devlin Smith, Contributing Editor
2005.02
During the half-time show of the Orange Bowl on January 4, viewers across the United States got their first glimpse of U2's latest music video, "All Because of You." Shot on a frantic day in New York City as the band performed for fans and passers-by on the back of a flat-bed truck, the video reunited U2 with "Rattle and Hum" director Phil Joanou.
From this video, like many U2 videos, we learn a little something about the band members, mainly that they are capable of playing their instruments while being driven at high speeds. Hey, I was impressed. In other U2 videos, like Barry Devlin's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," Joanou's "One," Meiert Avis' "All I Want is You," and Joseph Khan's "Elevation," we've learned that the band members can walk in unison quite well.
In U2 videos, for the most part, not a whole lot happens. There are hardly ever exploding cars, talking animals, manic dance sequences or rumbles. Mainly what we get are performances (like the new "All Because of You" video, Anton Corbijn's "One," Avis' "Where the Streets Have No Name," Avis' "Two Hearts Beat as One" and so on) or mini-art house flicks that don't always make tons of sense (Corbijn's "Electrical Storm" and "All I Want is You").
Even though U2 received MTV's Video Vanguard award in 2001 (the channel's version of a lifetime achievement award) and has made some beautiful and touching videos (like all three versions of "One"), U2's missing those wild, can't-believe-your-eyes videos from its catalog. The only solution I can see to this is for U2 to work with Spike Jonze.
Spike Jonze is a video genius, a man as deserving of the Video Vanguard award as any artist who's ever received it (maybe even more so in some cases). He's had Weezer playing a gig at Arnold's (of “Happy Days” fame) in the "Buddy Holly" video, Bjork dancing with a mailbox in "It's Oh So Quiet" and Christopher Walken tap dancing and flying through the air in Fatboy Slim's "Weapon of Choice." He even created a fictionalized dance troupe (the Torrance Community Dance Group) for Fatboy Slim's acclaimed "Praise You" clip and went so far as to have them perform live on the VMAs. Just imagine what he could do for U2.
Arguably Jonze's greatest video triumph is "Sabotage" by the Beastie Boys, a video that cast the rap trio as the quintessential tough '70s TV cops, complete with shag hairstyles and bad moustaches. The video had it all—car chases, drama, bad wardrobe. Best of all, it gave the Beastie Boys a chance to act up, to really perform, relish the ridiculousness of dressing up as fake cops, and the video became a classic for it.
U2 spent the early '90s trying to prove to the world that its members did have a sense of humor—that Bono, Edge, Adam and Larry didn't spend all their time dressed in black and contemplating the plight of disenfranchised people the world over. Thus far, with just a handful of exceptions (Stephane Sednoui's "Discotheque," Kevin Godley's "Numb" and "Elevation"), the band's videos have not reflected the lighter side of U2. With a new rocking album on the shelves, maybe now is the time to change all that.
Of late, Spike Jonze has spent time away from the small screen, becoming a well-respected movie director with "Being John Malkovich," produced by Bono's good friend Michael Stipe. Jonze, though, does find time now and again to work the video magic, most recently for Bjork where he has her romancing a cat in the clip for “Triumph of a Heart.” Perhaps he could also make room on his schedule to come up with something completely mind-blowing for U2. Then, hopefully, we will never again have to see those four men walking away in black-and-white, soft-focus unison.
2005.02
During the half-time show of the Orange Bowl on January 4, viewers across the United States got their first glimpse of U2's latest music video, "All Because of You." Shot on a frantic day in New York City as the band performed for fans and passers-by on the back of a flat-bed truck, the video reunited U2 with "Rattle and Hum" director Phil Joanou.
From this video, like many U2 videos, we learn a little something about the band members, mainly that they are capable of playing their instruments while being driven at high speeds. Hey, I was impressed. In other U2 videos, like Barry Devlin's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," Joanou's "One," Meiert Avis' "All I Want is You," and Joseph Khan's "Elevation," we've learned that the band members can walk in unison quite well.
In U2 videos, for the most part, not a whole lot happens. There are hardly ever exploding cars, talking animals, manic dance sequences or rumbles. Mainly what we get are performances (like the new "All Because of You" video, Anton Corbijn's "One," Avis' "Where the Streets Have No Name," Avis' "Two Hearts Beat as One" and so on) or mini-art house flicks that don't always make tons of sense (Corbijn's "Electrical Storm" and "All I Want is You").
Even though U2 received MTV's Video Vanguard award in 2001 (the channel's version of a lifetime achievement award) and has made some beautiful and touching videos (like all three versions of "One"), U2's missing those wild, can't-believe-your-eyes videos from its catalog. The only solution I can see to this is for U2 to work with Spike Jonze.
Spike Jonze is a video genius, a man as deserving of the Video Vanguard award as any artist who's ever received it (maybe even more so in some cases). He's had Weezer playing a gig at Arnold's (of “Happy Days” fame) in the "Buddy Holly" video, Bjork dancing with a mailbox in "It's Oh So Quiet" and Christopher Walken tap dancing and flying through the air in Fatboy Slim's "Weapon of Choice." He even created a fictionalized dance troupe (the Torrance Community Dance Group) for Fatboy Slim's acclaimed "Praise You" clip and went so far as to have them perform live on the VMAs. Just imagine what he could do for U2.
Arguably Jonze's greatest video triumph is "Sabotage" by the Beastie Boys, a video that cast the rap trio as the quintessential tough '70s TV cops, complete with shag hairstyles and bad moustaches. The video had it all—car chases, drama, bad wardrobe. Best of all, it gave the Beastie Boys a chance to act up, to really perform, relish the ridiculousness of dressing up as fake cops, and the video became a classic for it.
U2 spent the early '90s trying to prove to the world that its members did have a sense of humor—that Bono, Edge, Adam and Larry didn't spend all their time dressed in black and contemplating the plight of disenfranchised people the world over. Thus far, with just a handful of exceptions (Stephane Sednoui's "Discotheque," Kevin Godley's "Numb" and "Elevation"), the band's videos have not reflected the lighter side of U2. With a new rocking album on the shelves, maybe now is the time to change all that.
Of late, Spike Jonze has spent time away from the small screen, becoming a well-respected movie director with "Being John Malkovich," produced by Bono's good friend Michael Stipe. Jonze, though, does find time now and again to work the video magic, most recently for Bjork where he has her romancing a cat in the clip for “Triumph of a Heart.” Perhaps he could also make room on his schedule to come up with something completely mind-blowing for U2. Then, hopefully, we will never again have to see those four men walking away in black-and-white, soft-focus unison.
any of them would be great
