5. John Landis: Michael Jackson - "Thriller"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOnqjkJTMaA Come on, you knew it had to feature. Juxtaposing the term 'music video', John Landis' sublime and extended effort for Michael Jackson's 1982 title track actually gained a proper release. It was classified by ratings boards in the United Kingdom and the United States, and even attempted to qualify as a Short Subject Film for an Academy Award nomination. In truth, "Thriller" is more than a track and indeed a film, it is an experience; something we all recall and cherish. The imagery is as important, perhaps more so, than the audio, and it is one of the rare occasions when this is entirely appropriate. Deemed 'the most successful music video of all time', Landis also directed Jackson's video for "Black Or White" in 1991 as well as enjoying a dense career in popular horror cinema. Pictures including An American Werewolf In London (1981), the less-scary Coming To America (1988) and Blues Brothers 2000 (1998) all serving as big box-office winners.
Chris Haydon
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Film and UFC obsessive with a passion for scribbling words about them. Avid NFL fan and big Chelsea supporter too.
Film Studies degree graduate from the University of Brighton.
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