Spike Jonze

The first time I came across Spike Jonze's work I didn't realise it. I was probably about twelve and I was watching Jackass: The Movie with some friends at a sleep over. I don't really remember what I thought of the film except that it was fucking funny and I wanted those guys' jobs.

The second time I saw Jonze's work was a similiar situation. I was aboout the same age and I had been playing Tony Hawks Underground on my Playstation 2. After reaching a certain point I unlocked a teaser trailer of a skate video directed by Jonze for the skate company he co-owns, Girl. I didn't really know what I was watching and didn't think much of the video.

However after the release of a trio sucessful mainstream films it is interesting to look back at where Spike Jonze came from, and how good some of his early work is.

Jackass has always been one of my favourite shows and I await anything new they do, as a crew or individually, with eager anticipation. While some people will say that the TV show and the films produced are a horrifying commentary on the atavistic nature of modern culture, there is a reason why the first two films have a combined worlwide gross of $163 million. Jonze, co-creator of the franchise, is clearly an innovator and not afraid to operate outside the normal parameters perceived by most film directors. People enjoy seeing things they haven't seen before, things they haven't had the courage to do, or things they are unable to do. Although critics might not be able to see it, there is a method in the madness of the Jackass crew.

Jonze's innovative nature is shown in much of his work, some may point to Being John Malkovich, others to the video he did for Fatboy Slim's Weapon of Choice, however it is perhaps best shown in the video I saw on the Tony Hawks game all those years ago entitled Yeah Right!.

The title says it all. In the video Jonze explores the limits of what can be done through editing, employing slo-mo cameras and clever camera tricks on a skate film which leave you wondering how he did that. True Jonze style.



Jonze has done many music videos and although he has done some famous ones such as Weapon of Choice, he also, especially in his early days, did some obscure ones. One such video is for Fatlip's single What's Up Fatlip. Again some of Jonze's best traits as a director are shown here; the video matches Fatlip's unconventional style and lyrics perfectly. A truly unique video for a hip hop song, full of Jonze's quirkiness and stupidity (sorry for poor quality).



What prompted me to write this piece on Spike Jonze was when I saw the last music video he had directed, a song by LCD Soundsystem, a band who I am listening to a lot at the moment, called Drunk Girls. On first watch it may seem like utter stupidity and an excuse to beat up a good band, however once again with Jonze's work there is method in the madness. The egging, setting off of fire extinguishers, the implied gang rape - all of these things seem digusting and wrong to the sober band and viewer, however after a few drinks the feeling changes completley, and things that seemed wrong beforehand might seem ok now, and this is what the pandas act out.

Obviously Spike Jonze is unconventional, and this may cause man to disregard him as an immature director who got lucky. I do not think this is case. He is daring, innovative, imaginative and unique.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xT6cdfP_cM