Chris Cunningham is one of the most innovative music video directors in the business. Combining a passion for electronica with his dark sense of humor, Cunningham has infiltrated both the underground and the mainstream with his state-of-the-art video techniques. His work also demonstrates a profound ability for special effects, something that would eventually earn him an Oscar nomination for his work on ALIEN 3.
Included on this compilation are his amazing, grotesque and groundbreaking videos for Aphex Twin, Madonna, Portishead, Bjork and Squarepusher. Bjork's "All Is Full of Love" in particular, is a nightmarish triumph through its innovative use of robotics and computer generated mise-en-scene. Squarepusher's "Come On My Selector" too is a sparkling bit of artistic accomplishment with its brilliantly edited battle sequence. The video, set in a Japanese psychiatric ward, also unleashes a provocative satire of cross-cultural confusion, to wit, the English speaking Japanese actors dubbed over in Japanese and given English subtitles. Aphex Twins' "Come To Daddy" also slips in a number of ironic moments amid all the shock and awe. Most notably during a brawl between two children where the words "This is Techno," can be seen bearing witness in the background. Perhaps the collection's most shattering bit comes with Leftfield's "Afrika Shox," a haunting sequence in which a man slowly cuts himself to pieces.
Additional features include behind the scenes material, short films, commercials Cunningham did for Playstation and others, among them, the unforgettable "Mental Wealth" in which a girl roams around with a horrifically distorted head. Also making its appearance is the work Cunningham submitted to the highly lauded "Flex" exhibition at the Royal Academy of Art in London. The Chris Cunningham collection is a hair raising descent down one of music videos' darkest rabbit holes. But like Lewis Carroll's acclaimed novel, it also makes for one brilliantly entertaining ride.
