Depeche Mode Wrong Dir. Patrick Daughters
Great video, I dont know about the technique but it works for me. The song comes from Depeche Mode new album Sounds Of The Universe. MOV
I dunno. I think it comes off like a sub-par excerpt from a cheesy thriller. More like Saw 1 through 5 than anything by - say - Fincher.
(Edit: It kinda screams, "let me do a feature.")
funny comment and you're right, but, what it takes to let a video director to direct a movie film? talent, experience, friends...
I don't doubt Daughters has the experience and friends to get himself into the chair for a feature. He also has a good eye and the talent for making cute 3-4 minute music videos. But an hour and a half of the above and I would be strapping myself into my car, dropping it into reverse, and clubbing myself over the head.
The concept here is just trite, and if that's the kind of thin pseudo-plot he offers up as a bid to show he can do more than magnify Leslie Feist's charisma, I'm not buying it.
cool school. works perfectly for me from a-z.
so, fam, what's an example of a music video that you find was a successful ploy to get the director into features? (clearly there's been such a video, i take it, since you're hardly setting up a strawman here, right?)
jeez, judge it as a music video, not an excerpt from a movie. Depeche Mode cut to an action scene is always going to be a bit cheesy. This is great stuff. I do wonder why he waited for a not-the-coolest-band-in-the-world to make his first video in a year. I'm assuming it's the budget?
Apparently he is working on a feature; thus the lack of work in 2008.
Needs some twist at the end. Ah, the Karma Police is ruthless...
Well that's a difficult question to answer. It's more about putting direct, trailer-like narratives into a video. If you want a good example that didn't pan out, here you go: Portishead's "Sour Times" (it was pulled from their To Kill a Dead Man film). The video is far better than the short film.
That said, I think "Sour Times" shows more promise than this Depeche Mode video. Not in the least because of the Jean-Pierre Melville references.
Jonze had already nailed himself into the feature film director's chair before this, but of course, Daft Punk's "Da Funk", which is all narrative.
Fincher and Gondry also demonstrated an ability to offset their videos with unique and interesting narrative concepts.
This is a guy driving backwards in a car crashing into things. Tell me, where is the interest here? Where is the great idea? Even the YouTube comments aren't overly glowing.
I'd much rather watch Bruntel's recent attempt at narrative than this.
As far as what it means for a Daughters-helmed feature, it doesn't bode well.
Edit: Daughters was wading into some fairly deep waters by presenting something like this. Bottom line is that by the time the telegraphed end comes, who cares? And that is the point of a video like this: To make you care; or at least consider the narrative as a slice of something much bigger. Karma Police certainly did that.
As for the movie, it's supposedly an adaptation of After The Plague. A short synopsis gleaned from the interweb:
"After the Plague is an end-of-civilization-as-we-know-it scenario in which the narrator, sequestered on a self-imposed wilderness writing retreat, has survived a fast-moving, global, Ebola-like virus that has all but exterminated human life."
I'm not holding my breath.
no one music video gave someone a pass into features... of course. Jonze/Fincher/Gondry/Glazer/Akurland/Mills/Lawrence... it's about a body of work isn't it? And a few commercials, and probably a short film or two.
Familar- your analysis of Daughters and this video seems to be a bit off kilter. You accept that he is a talented video director but completely refuse to accept that he might make a good movie director based purely on this video! I don't really follow your logic at all. The two mediums are completely different and i think Patrick is intelligent enough to spot the differences between them and will turn his creativity and eye to making a fine feature I am sure. You liken this to Saw but his videos for secret machines and interpol reveal a fan of Tarr and Tarkovsky respectively... I think it is possible that there could be depths to him as a director that videos have not revealed.
and captain marc... depeche mode... not cool???
My point is that film making and music videos ARE different, and that so far I don't think Daughters' videos make a compelling argument towards a strong feature film, whereas the others I referenced (Gondy, Jonze, Fincher) exemplify what it does take. Beyond that, in the case of Fincher and Gondry at least, they've had their fair share of feature-film missteps that highlight their own flaws.
Daughters' are cute videos, and he is good at what he does, but I don't think it's going to carry over. And again, my point is that this video tries to get more serious and drive a narrative and falters.
Depeche Mode = not cool is true too. Very not cool in fact.
Kind of relevant,
does anyone know where to get a quicktime of a short film Daughters did, something like "In Life We Soar" or "We Soar in Life" or something.
It used to be on the RSA website, but i cant find it anywhere since he signed to TDB.
Good film, definately adds to his merit as a features director.
^^^ I'd love to see this.
The video he did for Liars had me excited and Fiest's were good, but this one... no. Also no on the YYY's videos.
Depeche Mode is cooler than Feist.
I think the video works in the sens that it develops, at first your not sure whts going on, then you see a man in the car but there is something wrong with his face, etc, it works for the track and i think some people are bitching because it doesn't hold their hand and tell them exactly whats happening. Depeche Mode will always be cool. Also the comparisons to Gondry, Fincher, Jonze etc is a little unfounded, Daughters got in the game just as budgets and creative liberty were beginning to go down, different folks different strokes.
^ |
What spence said.
I feel like too many music video directors wait for the perfect opportunity and budget to make a film. An established video director has so many advantages over someone like Courtney hunt or Lance Hammer, there's nothing stopping them from grabbing a HD camera and shooting something. Usually the extra gimmicks that most mv directors try to take from the video world are their biggest weaknesses.
Also "After the Plague" sounds pretty close to "The Road" currently being adapted by John Hillcoat (which should be awesome).
yeah, what up with The Road, otc? Haven't seen a concrete release date recently (I could look harder, I suppose).
way off topic, sorry, dudes.
I'm essentially with familiar - I wanted the whole thing to abstract itself a bit more. Cool as it is though.
Not the biggest payoff but I still really enjoyed this.
This is the first video I've seen in a while that actually made me anticipate the ending.
great video, good band and good to see some $$$ spent. it works and shows thought and craft.
ok now that we sobered up - we like the video, more than the one he did for liars which was too lost on the highway for our taste. we always appreciate high production value & big budgets. and although we aren't too keen on punch (& crash & boom & bang) lines, this time we feel they worked just fine. besides, we love it whenever we get the chance to see a video where the band appear 'incidentally', just for a few seconds, like some sort of cameo/ product placement.
le: as for mv directors transitioning to features, david slade comes to mind - after a taste of that mouthful of shit (hard candy) i thought he wasn't going to make it as a feature director. but the chilling 'Check on Gus. Board the windows. Try to hide. They're coming.' proved me wrong. i fucking love that movie.
"Unloved" {2002}, Daughter's third short and it won a Nintendo film contest.
There are definite similarities in the narrative between this and the Depeche Mode video.
I like it; it suits the song. -j
The cinematography is well done, the editing is rock solid, the overall pace works nicely, and I could go on... The video is wonderfully put together but like some others have mentioned the video doesn't amount to enough. By the time the ending rolls round I'm thinking, 'that was interesting to watch; I wonder what's for lunch'. It doesn't stick with you...
K
This video is longer available due to a copyright claim by Depeche Mode.
I see that "Unloved" clip and I feel like my Saw reference becomes even more relevant. I guess that "OMG so weird and creepy" (but not really if you spend two minutes to think about it) horror shtick just isn't my thing.
Oh come on people. This is really great.
I agree budget.......This is some really great work from Daughters. I've been waiting for this video for some time now, and it lives up to my expectations if not more.
@birds - Depending on which dubious source you trust the most it's either a complete disaster and it's been pushed back because the Weinsteins want to recut it or it's a complete masterpiece and the weinsteins pushed it back to focus on releasing The Reader. And that's why I don't follow pre-release reports. I think it'll be fine.
He's made some of the best and most interesting videos in the past years. And anyone who's held a camera knows there's some serious craft in properly filming cars crashing in to anything.
I think it's a good video, especially for the song.
Though I think the Liars video is his best. At least my favorite.
Familiar- you are so wrong about depeche mode. Watch Daughters clips for Secret Machines and Interpol. Not 'cute'.
Here's his videography
Shatner - I was referencing the videos I think he did best. If you go back through the archives you'll find I dogged the Interpol video pretty heavily.
Also: Depeche Mode haven't had a new idea since Violator, which I wasn't a huge fan of to begin with. Personally, I'm about as interested in new material by them as I am anything new by U2 (which is not so much).
oh familiar come on you really dont see any creative difference between violator and, say, playing the angel?
and who the fuck is u2 btw
NEW idea, not different sounds.
I mean, their own shoes are admittedly a very big pair to fill. But once you've made your mark by being at the forefront, to become reductive with your craft is - to me - not the best way to go.
Playing The Angel is somewhere between pro-typical post-punk and Radiohead and Violator. The percussion (digital and otherwise) tends to be sub-par.
new idea, like what, reinvent themselves so much that people barely recognize them? with gore playing the theremin, gahan ululating, and fletcher dressing up like a daft punk? ive always had a soft spot for dm and i wouldnt want them to change into something else than dm.
No. Like Joy Division into New Order, like David Byrne after The Talking Heads, like Liars from album to album, like Gang Gang Dance, like Animal Collective.
Sure, New Order and Byrne eventually lost the plot, but playing it safe is exactly why so many artists (DM, The Cure, New Order, Morrissey) eventually just run out of creative steam and stumble forth with a fan-base who want nothing but self-referential nostalgia. I'll vote for change any day.
what you perceive as fear of leaving the comfort zone and indulging in self-referential nostalgia is to me b(r)and identity. i think dm along with radiohead are not only very prolific but also very protean whilst still managing to keep their identities as bands intact. if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Are you saying you don't notice a progression in Radiohead from Pablo Honey & The Bends, through OK Computer, to Kid A & Amnesiac, then on to All Hail... & In Rainbows? They are a band I really should have mentioned as keeping things moving.
Even their image progresses. Stanley Donwood does some amazing identity re-development with Yorke on a regular basis.
Um, shall I bring up Bob Dylan?
If you were in a band, would you want familiar as a fan? And if so, would his list of "artistic" expectations scare you into retirement shortly before your second album? Discuss.
I suppose as a band you might ask yourself, "do I make music to pander to the people, or am I going to flout my artistic integrity like a Jolly Roger"?
i enjoyed this video. did anyone find a quicktime?
visuals and music work well together. no complaints. i chuckled a few times, i didn't take the thing too seriously, especially the DM cameo.
fam, your comments in this thread lead me to believe that your criteria for "important" art is extremely narrow and overly critical. What if Patrick Daughters wants to make a video with car crashes because he's never tried it before and thinks it would be fun? Or because he wants to turn in an exciting treatment and get the job? And maybe Depeche Mode likes making the music they're making. Maybe they aren't interested in trying to be something they aren't just to make people who are overly concerned with a band's artistic legacy happy?
I think most band stop trying to "push the envelope" as they get older because they realize how unsatisfying and pointless it is to cater to the tastes of the sort of people who care too much about that kind of stuff. They don't want you as a fan and they aren't interested in impressing you anymore. They want to make art that they find personally satisfying, and if the ameoba records staff wants to argue about where it fits in their overall canon, they don't care.
This is true. Art without artistic soul doesn't interest me.
@ familiar: please read carefully what i write: "i think dm along with radiohead are not only very prolific but also very protean"
i'm going to end it here: this video is great and so are dm.
Understood. Sorry I must've skipped over "protean" when I saw the parallel you were drawing with DM. We can agree to disagree.
we should stop with the unrelevant arguing and discuss the VIDEO as a Video.
The execution of this video was outstanding. Not only that, the balls for a director to submit, have awarded then shoot this video is amazing. Hats off to Daughters. He's the best out there video for video. Tell me someone better still working?
Familiar, be careful when your request 'artistic soul' in a music video forum. No offense against the medium. Just understand how difficult it is to get an awful video made, rather than a great one.
This should be a forum of support for a dieing form. Not a place to knock talented directors pushing themselves, and therefore the medium.
The music video past is so different from the present it shouldn't be a point of contention.
Daughters' made an outstanding music video!
I thought the leeway to do what you wanted came with being the best -- being given the freedom to express yourself.
In any case, the above argument sounds like insular protectionist bullshit to me.
It's not just music videos that are changing, it's the way we live, and the context in which we create that is taking an entirely different turn.
The funny thing is that amongst those I talk to outside the context of this forum, there is a general feeling of agreement regarding this video, and the body of work that surrounds it. There is a distinct lack of balls, but a lot of ball sucking around here.
this video = lack of balls??? I disagree completely. that kind of talk I feel can only come from someone who perhaps has directed himself, familiar, have you?
"this video = lack of balls" this is one of the dumbest things i have ever read on antville.
Agreed. And it would take someone who makes the "what have YOU directed" argument to misread what I wrote to that extent.
"Shut up" -- let me explain this to you. I was not saying this video lacked balls. I don't even think we've been talking about the video for a while (which someone else brought up, and is a good point). What I was saying is that occasional tendency to draw the carriages around chosen people here is lame.
Brilliant video.
It's so sad that this is not doable in the UK at all. This is the shit we should be doing.
Here it would be a Movietube on HVX.
One 6K light ("can't you get a really tall stand instead of a cherry picker?")
And a short alleway in Shoreditch ("because we can't go outside the M25 or it's a penalty").
"Wetdown? Well, you've got two runners with buckets.."
Think big. Thing bigger. Think biggest.
"Wetdown? Well, you've got two runners with buckets.."
haha
this is a fucking brilliant video - what is up with you people?
dark, bleak, totally depeche mode and an absolute joy to watch.
yes this is a great video.
people on this site don't seem to make videos, just moan about them. and that make me sad.
Jesus christ. Do you people know how to use the internet?
lil bit.
Best post in this thread by FAR ^^^
this video is totally inspired.
familiar has far too much time on his hands
Slow typist/thinker ^^^^^^^^
what's not to like this is fucking brilliant.
wrong in mov www.thedirectorsbureau.com
no worky...
Self-Titled Magazine just posted an interview with the director
wow, cant wait to see a patrick video for grizzly bear.
the MOV worked for me...
@stoney: you mean the department of eagles video, but yeah, it looks cool.
nevermind, stoney, you were right, he's doing a grizzly video too, according to this interview. apparently it's for "two weeks."
that's a lot of daniel rossen.
Familiar: You are an unbelievably arrogant and judgmental armchair quarterback. I'm just curious, what the fuck exactly is your "new idea"? Miserable prick.
Ahem. Better yet: Paullix's profile on BBW 24-7.
Lots of discussion here and after listening/watching the video several more times I wanted to supplement/modify my previous comment.
IMHO:
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The video is gorgeously directed, shot, edited.
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It's wonderful to see some serious production value and ambition in a video these days.
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The song itself hasn't really been mentioned. It's absolutely killer and really lifts the video up beyond its already lofty heights.
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But... the weakest link here is the narrative - it's trite, very 'deja-vu', and not even tight conceptually (e.g., the antagonist goes through all the trouble and precision to set this reverse-car thing up but the ending death/injury seems left entirely up to chance - or, if you want to argue it was the killer him/herself in the attacking car, then said killer is gonna have some serious explaining to do to the cop that was following the protagonist by the end).
In short, this was hot sex without the orgasm.
K
come on, kalstark, now what were you expecting? 'memento' meets 'los cronocrímenes'? the video is great, i thought you knew better than familiar.
This is not brilliant or great, it's pretty good. The ending is disappointing and it felt a little too ambitious for what it tried to accomplish. For my money I preferred Nash's "Lucky" short.
cool video. nice and dark.
daughters talks jonze cameo, budget, etc.
Lolz at pitchfork calling 1234 "retina-burning." Still dig this video.
Storyboards, interview
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