Russel Mulcahy defined the modern music video as a cinematic experience. At least, he did for me. I grew up on his videos without even knowing it. At the time, MTV didn’t advertise the name of the director in the little lower left blurb, so I had no idea the same man directed The Wild Boys and Pressure (although the preponderance of people being bound to things while forced to watch a large screen television might have tipped me off). Mulcahy’s grand yet surreal imagery (excessive, cheesy, but somehow kind of brilliant) informs my own warped filmmaking aesthetic. Most videos these days seem lazy by comparison.
“Video Killed the Radio Star” – The Buggles
That’s right. He directed the first video to air on MTV.
“Hungry Like the Wolf” – Duran Duran
The best Mulcahy videos look like they belong to a larger feature. Hollywood should stop making movies out of old movies, and start making them out of old music videos.
“The Wild Boys” – Duran Duran
Here Mulcahy came up with the idea for the song itself, which was to be part of a soundtrack to an adaptation of William S. Burroughs’ The Wild Boys: A Book of the Dead. All I know is they spent a million dollars to strap Simon Le Bon to a windmill and it. is. awesome.
“I’m Still Standing” – Elton John
You get the feeling Elton told Russell, “I really like what you did with the ‘Rio’ video.”
“Bette Davis Eyes” – Kim Carnes
Even with a minimal set, Mulcahy can still bring the WTF: “Okay. The choreography for this scene is just slap the shit out of each other.”
“Total Eclipse of the Heart” – Bonnie Tyler
It only makes sense. Mulcahy really is the Jim Steinman of music video directors. And, no, I don’t know what part of this song screams, “Fucked Up Boarding School!” but Mulcahy sure does. He also finds the absolute creepiest way to visually represent the line, “Turn around bright eyes.”
“Vienna” – Ultravox
See, this is why Mulcahy is awesome. “Okay, in this scene we’re at a classy dinner party. Oh, and you over there, put this spider on your face.”
“Pressure” – Billy Joel
Mulcahy’s surrealism really gets to come out and play here. Probably my favorite.
Now, Mulcahy did (and still does) get into the movie game, directing the highly celebrated (except by me) Highlander, among other things, but my fondness for his work will always rest with his incredible run of early 80′s music videos.
Oh. My. God.
Mommy and Daddy wouldn’t let me watch MTV when I was a kid, and I honestly had no idea what I was missing.
The video for Total Eclipse of the Heart has ninjas in it? How did Bonnie Tyler keep a straight face through that?