The Work of Director Michel Gondry (2003) (V)

Directors:

Michel Gondry
Lance Bangs
(more)

Release Date:

23 October 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | Comedy | Music

Plot:

A look at the work of director Michel Gondry, through his music videos, short films, and commercials. |

Cast

Michel Gondry	...	Himself (numerous segments)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Akhenaton	...	Himself (segment "Je Danse Le Mia") (as IAM)
Patricia Arquette	...	(segment "Like a Rolling Stone")
Thomas Bangalter	...	Himself (segment "I've Been Twelve Forever")
Beck	...	Himself (segment "Deadweight" and "I've Been Twelve Forever")
Jean-Michel Bernard	...	Farfisa Organ salesman
Björk	...	Herself (numerous segments)
Jim Carrey	...	The Driver (segment "Pecan Pie") (archive footage)
The Chemical Brothers	...	Themselves (segment "I've Been Twelve Forever")
David Cross	...	The Turd (segment "One Day")
Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo	...	Himself (segment "I've Been Twelve Forever")
Robert del Naja	...	Himself (segment "Protection") (as Massive Attack)
Foo Fighters	...	Themselves (segment "Everlong")
Miho Hatori	...	Herself (segments "Sugar Water" and "I've Been Twelve Forever") (as Cibo Matto)
Taylor Hawkins	...	Himself (segment "Everlong") (as Foo Fighters)
Yuka Honda	...	Herself (segments "Sugar Water" and "I've Been Twelve Forever") (as Cibo Matto)
Mick Jagger	...	Himself (segment "Like a Rolling Stone") (as Rolling Stones)
Stephanie Landwehr	...	Girl (segment "Let Forever Be")
Grant Marshall	...	Himself (segment "Protection") (as Massive Attack)
Massive Attack	...	Themselves (segment "Protection")
Nate Mendel	...	Himself (segment "Everlong") (as Foo Fighters)
Kylie Minogue	...	Herself (segments "Come Into My World" and "I've Been Twelve Forever")
Daft Punk	...	Themselves (segment "I've Been Twelve Forever")
Keith Richards	...	Himself (segment "Like a Rolling Stone") (as Rolling Stones)
The Rolling Stones	...	Themselves (segment "Like a Rolling Stone")
Tom Rowlands	...	Himself (segment "I've Been Twelve Forever") (as The Chemical Brothers)
Ed Simons	...	Himself (segment "I've Been Twelve Forever") (as The Chemical Brothers)
Pat Smear	...	Himself (segment "Everlong") (as Foo Fighters)
Tracey Thorn	...	Herself (segment "Protection") (as Massive Attack)
Mushroom Vowles	...	Himself (segment "Protection") (as Massive Attack)
Charlie Watts	...	Himself (segment "Like a Rolling Stone") (as Rolling Stones)
Jack White	...	Himself (segments "Dead Leaves & the Dirty Ground", "The Hardest Button to Button" and "I've Been Twelve Forever") (as The White Stripes)
Meg White	...	Herself (segments "Dead Leaves & the Dirty Ground", "The Hardest Button to Button" and "I've Been Twelve Forever") (as The White Stripes)
Ron Wood	...	Himself (segment "Like a Rolling Stone") (as Rolling Stones)
David Grohl	...	Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)

Directed by
Michel Gondry
Lance Bangs		(segment "I've Been Twelve Forever")
Olivier Gondry		(segment "Brothers Star Guitar")

Produced by
Lance Bangs	....	producer
Georges Bermann	....	producer (segments "Like a Rolling Stone", "Bachelorette", "The Hardest Button To Button")
Richard Brown	....	producer
Paul DeGooyer	....	executive producer
Julie Fong	....	producer (segments "Everlong", "Bachelorette", "The Hardest Button To Button")
Vincent Landay	....	producer
Lou Stellato	....	executive producer: MTV2

Cinematography by
Lance Acord		(segments "Bachelorette" and "Let Forever Be")
Ali Asad		(director of photography)
Lance Bangs		(segment "The Hardest Button to Button")
Jean-Louis Bompoint		(segment "Les Cailloux")
Emmanuel Carlier		(segment "Like a Rolling Stone")
Michel Gondry		(segment "The Hardest Button to Button")
Phil Klemmer		(segment "Drumb and Drumber")
Alex Lamarque		(segments "Around the World" and "Come Into My World")
Max Malkin		(segment "Deadweight")
Tim Maurice-Jones
Pierre Rouger		(segment "Everlong")
Harris Savides		(segment "Like a Rolling Stone")

Film Editing by
Jeff Buchanan
Andy Grieve		(segment "The Hardest Button to Button")
Geoff Hounsell		(segment "The Hardest Button to Button")
Russell Icke		(segment "Like a Rolling Stone")
Charles Johnston		(segment "The Hardest Button to Button")

Art Direction by
K.K. Barrett		(segment "Let Forever Be")
Jean-Pascal Chalard		(segment "Around the World")
Gilles Chapat		(segment "Lucas With the Lid Off")
Christopher Chesney		(segment "Dead Leaves & the Dirty Ground")
Robbie Freed		(segments "Levi's: Drugstore" and "Smirnoff: Smarienberg")
Samantha Gore		(segment "Bachelorette")
Marc Homes		(segment "Sugar Water")
William Lakoff		(segment "Everlong")
Happy Massee		(segment "The Hardest Button to Button")
Pierre Pell		(segment "Come Into My World")

Production Management
Raffi Adlan	....	production manager
Gina Fortunato	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Bertrand Delpierre	....	first assistant director (segment "Like a Rolling Stone")
François Nemeta	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Jon Spira	....	sound recordist

Camera and Electrical Department
Jean Marc Mirete	....	still photographer (segment "Like a Rolling Stone")

Animation Department
Sébastien Fau	....	animator (segment "Fell In Love with a Girl")

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Karen Baird	....	costume designer: segment "The Hardest Button to Button"
Heidi Bivens	....	costume designer: segment "The Hardest Button to Button"

Music Department
Bruno Mercere	....	music mixer

Other crew
Becky Hutner	....	intern
Katya Mokolo	....	production assistant (segment "Lou Bennet")
Katya Mokolo	....	production assistant: segment "Lou Bennet"
Katie Mulligan	....	intern
Mary Osborne	....	interview transcriptor

Thanks
Amro Hamzawi	....	thanks

Production Companies

• Palm Pictures
• Partizan (segments "Like a Rolling Stone", "Army of Me", "Hyperballad" and "Everlong")
• Vanguard Productions (III) (segment "Around the World")

Distributors

• Madman Entertainment (2006) (Australia) (DVD)
• Madman Entertainment (2006) (New Zealand) (DVD)
• Palm Pictures (2003) (USA) (DVD)

Special Effects

• BUF
• Duran (segment "Fell In Love with a Girl")
• Mikros Image (segment "Fell In Love with a Girl")
• The Mill (segment "The Hardest Button to Button")

Other Companies

• Lost Planet  editing (segment "The Hardest Button to Button")

Runtime:

USA:300 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color | Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:16 | UK:E

Company:

Palm Pictures

Trivia:

The White Stripes famous "Fell In Love With A Girl" lego video took over two months to complete. Every shot was done by hand, and changing a single block required much of the "sets" to be rebuilt.

Movie Connections:

Features I've Been Twelve Forever (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground

From playing traps in music, to plying them in film

Normally I'd lament the loss of an art-punk rocker to the realm of cinema, but in this case it is clear that Michel Gondry belongs in the director's chair, rather than behind a set of drums.

Throughout the overlong dual-sided disc, Gondry repeatedly lays traps to tromp l'oeil. He is French, you know. I actually had rented the Spike Jonze film from this series after getting jazzed by the previews for all three. But that one ended up putting me off a bit... It was only after seeing the remarkable "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" that I felt compelled to rent this. I should say I had also seen "Human Nature" which had its charm, but technically felt more akin to the cinematography of a Porky's sequel than to a renegade auteur.

But based on reviewing this, and again "Eternal" I do see remarkable promise for Monsieur Gondry. On this film, we get a glimpse of just how bad "Eternal" could have been thanks to a sixty second slice of "Pecan Pie" and Carrey's patented jim-nastic facial work-out. A lot o' yucks, and not the funny kind. David Cross however was the "bomb" in his scatalogical sketch. Even when Cross is not working blue, nor brown as in this case, he is scathingly funny.

The videos alone here radiate creativity. The center of Gondry's solipsistic solar system is childhood (dreams, puppy loves, memories of school dances). I sense that there's enough stardust to mine for quite some time. Even if Gondry does ever turn 13, at some time he may be able to tap into his own progeny for production. Although the brief boat-by shooting of film indicates that his son might be an enfant and perhaps terrible as well, but perhaps no "enfant terrible."

Anyways the videos are captivating, rarely do I come across a music video that as soon as it is done, I'm ready to watch it again. Or see it backwards. Remember that, all you folks old enough to have had home movies on super 8 and such?

Speaking of home movies, the longest section on this film is split in two, and does trace much of Gondry's connection to his family. I found this decently engaging, especially when we see the construction of a zoetrope, discussion of flipbooks and early films. Plus his grandfather created the clavioline! Though I'm more of an Oskar Sala guy myself, that's still pretty cool...I think Sun Ra played one.

I get the feeling Gondry will choose some significant challenges over the course of a long film career, but fortunately he was born with gigantic hands despite the fact that he's so tiny...so tiny...so tiny.

While this is not essential viewing, I enjoyed it, even though at times I was paying to watch commercials, very imaginative ones nonetheless. My young kids really dug some of this videos, as did my wife and I.

6.5/10