Not So Smooth
I can't decide if Michael Jackson is paying homage to
himself in his latest video, "You Rock My World," or
simply ripping himself off. In this video for the
first single off his new album, Invincible, he
appears to be entering the new millennium by doing
what everyone else is doing. And, of course, everyone
else is doing what Michael Jackson has done before.
"You Rock My World," edited for music television
rotation (from 14 minutes to five), features elements
from many of Michael's other videos. Consider its
striking resemblance to 1988's "Smooth Criminal," in
which Michael enters a funky club where he encounters
mobsters. This is the primary concept of "You Rock My
World," only this time, he's after a girl who seems
painfully uninterested in his advances. Comedic actor
Chris Tucker (Rush Hour) and Michael head into
the club, whereupon Tucker, claiming "bad vibes," begs
his pal to leave. But Michael has a job to do, which
is to score the girl in the sexy green dress. He
dances up to her while being watched closely by a
bunch of mobsters at the other end of the club. Cut to
Marlon Brando, sitting in a chair smoking a cigar: the
girl is his, hence the henchmen poised to beat Michael
up.
Michael has often used celebrities in his videos, and
so there's nothing new about the appearances of Brando
and Tucker, as well as usual movie baddies Michael
Madsen (Reservoir Dogs) and Billy Drago (The
Untouchables) as the thugs. Michael's well known
love of the movies has translated into his casting of
such performers as Vincent Price, Wesley Snipes,
Macaulay Culkin, Eddie Murphy, and a host of others
(especially in his 1988 Liberian Girl short
film, which featured everyone from Debbie Gibson to
Rosanna Arquette and back again). Still, Tucker et.
al., while more than a little hammy in their roles
here, are fun to watch.
More troubling than the worn-out movie star cameo,
however, is the repetition of dance moves in "You Rock
My World." The major dance number is the same routine
Michael performed at the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards.
Six years ago, this performance was perhaps the
greatest of Michael's career, but its rehashing here
is a disappointment, especially coming from the man
known as the music video innovator. Following
this, Tucker and Michael end up "on the waterfront,"
complete with splashing water, fire, and breaking
glass, much like the city street sequence in "Black or
White" (1991). Michael and Brando's woman then engage
in the same silhouetted kiss seen in 1988's "The Way
You Make Me Feel." Come to think of it, similarities
to that video occur throughout "You Rock My World,"
with Michael following the girl, dancing around her,
and chasing her every which way. The only difference
being, it was fun in '88, with Michael constantly
smiling and his lady of choice playfully flirting.
Here, everyone just looks irritated.
Despite all these repetitions, producer Rodney Jerkins
claims the video for "You Rock My World" breaks new
ground. "It was blazing," he recalls of the shoot.
"From what I saw, Mike's about to change the game.
It's like movie. It's a storyline, but it's dope,
because Michael's videos have always been serious, but
this one's got some humour in it." To cap off his
inane pre-release comments, he adds, "Of course it's
going to funny, 'cause it's got Chris Tucker in it."
Yeah, they said that about Money Talks.
Where has Jerkins been? Since 1983, most of Michael's
videos have been mini-movies, and they have not always
been serious. One of Michael Jackson's most endearing
traits is his ability to laugh at himself. Humour
abounds in many of his short films, including
Thriller (where he confesses that he's "not
like other guys"); "Jam" (he teaches Michael Jordan
the art of moonwalking); the opening moments of "Black
or White" (George Wendt and Macaulay Culkin battling
over the kid's amp levels); or "Say Say Say" (he
clowns around with Paul McCartney in a tribute to Hope
and Crosby). Ironically, while Jerkins says "You Rock
My World" is humourous, Michael looks far too serious
throughout.
Perhaps Michael, obviously in some control over the
video, was attempting to introduce new fans to the old
MJ? Or perhaps it was director Paul Hunter's idea to
make a nostalgia piece? I don't know, but looking
backward like this doesn't do much for Michael's
longtime fans, who have waited since "Blood On The
Dance Floor" and "Ghosts" in 1997 to see just what
Michael could come up with now. Instead, we're
seeing everything we've seen before.
While "You Rock My World" features some glorious
scenes of Jackson dancing on a stage and descending an
eerily shadowed staircase, it's nothing compared to
what other directors have come up. John Singleton,
Martin Scorsese, David Lynch, David Fincher, Spike
Lee, and John Landis have all worked closely with
Michael before, and concocted images that were,
mostly, new and brilliant. Many of them took him out
of his usual pop-dance situations: think of Andy
Morahan's straight-up rock video for "Give In To Me"
and the similarly dance-free story of prostitution and
despair in Fincher's "Who Is It?" Spike Lee and
Michael went to Brazil, to comment on racial prejudice
and slander, for "They Don't Care About Us." These
videos delivered what was least expected. But instead
of showing the world yet another side of Michael, "You
Rock My World" is well worn and obvious.
That said, Michael himself looks great in the video,
as he slinks and slides across the club floor. It's
always wondrous to see Michael Jackson anywhere doing
anything, and this is why I can forgive whoever made
the decisions on "You Rock My World," and move on to
waiting for whatever comes next. After all, if I've
already waited four years, I can surely wait longer.
