Author Archives: Jedadiah Leland

Music Video of the Day: Burning Heart by Survivor (1985, directed by Jerry Kramer)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

This song was written for Rocky IV.  Survivor also did Eye of the Tiger, which was the anthem for Rocky III so it only made sense to approach them to contribute a training song for Rocky IV.  Burning Heart may not be as classic of a song as Eye of the Tiger but there’s no way Rocky could have defeated Ivan Drago without it.  And if Rocky hadn’t defeated Drago, the Berlin Wall would never have fallen, America would never have won the Cold War, and Adonis Creed would have had to find a different mentor.  Without this song, the world would be a very different place.

The video is a performance clip.  There’s another version out there that features clips from Rocky IV.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: Kokomo by The Beach Boys (1988, directed by ????)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

Having watched Cocktail earlier tonight with Lisa and the FridayNightFlix crew, Kokomo seemed like an obvious choice for today’s music video of the day.  Kokomo started out as an unreleased song by John Phillips.  When The Beach Boys were commissioned to provide a theme song for Cocktail, Phillips sent the song over.  The Beach Boys, of course, put their own spin on the material and the end result was a surprise hit for the band.

The video was shot at the Grand Floridian Resort at Walt Disney World in Florida, with the band performing in front of an audience that included several cheerleaders from the University of Nevada.  This is the only Beach Boys video to not feature Brian Wilson.  It does, however, feature actor John Stamos playing the conga.  (Stamos, apparently, is a long time friend of the band.)

While I couldn’t find a credited director for this video, it does contain several scenes from Cocktail, which was directed by Roger Donaldson.

Incidentally, at the time this song was recorded, there were no resorts called Kokomo.  After the song became a hit, however, several island resorts borrowed the name.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: The Night You Murdered Love by ABC (1987, directed by Les Bull Terriers)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

I had never heard this song or seen this video until I happened to do a search through all of the music videos that were released in 1987.  Unfortunately, there’s not much behind-the-scenes information about this one.  I can’t even tell you who played the video’s skateboard assassin.

I can tell that The Night You Murdered Love peaked at #31 on the UK singles charts.  It was the 2nd single to be released off of ABC’s fourth studio album, Alphabet City.  The song was produced by Bernard Edwards, who is best remembered for his work as a member of Chic (of La Freak fame).  ABC, which was first founded in 1980, continues to tour that Martin Fry is the only permanent member.

According the imdb, this video is the sole directing credit for Les Bull Terriers.

Enjoy!

Music Video Of The Day: Mr. Kirk’s Nightmare by 4hero (1990, directed by Garth Jennings)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

At the risk of sound like a grumpy old man who is about to tell all the kids to get off his lawn, this is the type of shit that you used to be able to find on MTV.  The channel sucks now but, back in the previous century, they actually played music videos and sometimes even introduced people to new groups and new sounds.

Because of this video’s science fiction feel, a lot of people probably thought the Kirk of the title was meant to be Star Trek‘s Captain Kirk.  (On YouTube, a lot of the comments run along the lines of “Beam me up, Scotty!”)  Instead, the Kirk of the title is a reference to an old song called Once You Understand, which is sampled in Mr. Kirk’s Nightmare.  Once You Understand was an anti-drug song from the late 60s that ended with a voice saying, “Mr. Kirk, your son is dead. He died of an overdose.”  Throughout the whole son, Mr. Kirk has been complaining about his son having long hair and not having any direction in his life.  All Mr. Kirk’s son wanted to do was start a band and, when Mr. Kirk didn’t care about that, his son turned to drugs.  Things get a little easier once you understand.

4hero were pioneers in the UK’s electronic music scene.  They’re still together to this day.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2 (1983, directed by Gavin Taylor)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

This video was shot at Red Rocks in Denver, Colorado during U2’s tour supporting War.  (The album, not the concept.)  U2’s reputation has never really recovered from the Songs of Innocence fiasco but when they were a young group and before Bono’s messianic tendencies got the better of him, they were a rocking band who were responsible for some of the best songs of the 80s.  Sunday Bloody Sunday was one of their signature songs and this video captures them at their best.  And, even if modern-day Bono does sometimes seem to be too impressed with himself, no one can deny that he’s done a lot of good in the world.

The song is meant to be a condemnation of the atrocities committed by both sides during The Troubles.

Enjoy!

Yaphet Kotto, RIP

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

Yaphet Kotto in Blue Collar

I saw rumors on twitter last night that Yaphet Kotto had died but, since it was just random people on social media, I didn’t want to say anything until the news was officially confirmed.  Sadly, it was confirmed this morning.  Yesterday, at the age of 81, Yaphet Kotto passed away in the Philippines.

Yaphet Kotto was a busy actor who appeared in so many classic films that I think we took sometimes took his talent for granted.  Kotto, though, was an actor who could play almost anything.  He was usually cast in dramas but he could also do comedy.  He could play both villains and heroes with equal skill.  He held his own opposite Anthony Quinn in Across 110th Street.  He was one of the best Bond villains in Live and Let Die.  He was one of the toughest members of the crew of the Nostromo in Alien and a key member of the resistance in The Running Man.  Long before Forest Whitaker won an Osar for playing the role in The Last King of Scotland, Yaphet Kotto brought Idi Amin to terrible life in Raid on Entebbe.  He was just as believable as an FBI agent in Midnight Run as he was as a auto worker in Blue Collar.  Blue Collar was probably he best performance, one in which he easily upstaged both Richard Pryor and Harvey Keitel.

For me, Yaphet Kotto will always be remembered Lt. Al Giardello in Homicide, the philosophical leader of Baltimore’s murder cops.  Giardello was written to be a stern and no-nonsense leader but Kotto played him with a subtle sense of humor.  He was the ideal leader and one the key cast members of one of the best shows of the 90s.  Andre Braugher may have gotten the critical acclaim and Richard Belzer may have gotten an entire new career based on playing John Munch in a dozen different shows but Kotto was the one who often held the show together.  Though Homicide was cancelled before it’s time, the show was allowed a reunion movie to tie up loose ends.  The movie ended with the death of Giardello and it felt appropriate because, as played by Yaphet Kotto, Giardello was the heart and the soul of the show.

Yaphet Kotto, a great actor, has left us but he will never be forgotten.

Music Video of the Day: Missionary Man by Eurythmics (1986, directed by Willy Smax)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

I always assumed that Missionary Man was meant to be a specific attack on people like Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell but, according to Annie Lennox, this song was actually inspired by her brief marriage to Radha Raman, a devout Hare Krishna.  The missionary man of the title is meant to represent anything or anyone that demands total and unquestioning belief, whether it’s the leader of a cult or a televangelist.  Still, when the song and this video originally came out, it was controversial because many interpreted it as specifically being an attack specifically on Christianity as opposed to an attack on fanaticism in general.  Regardless of how you interpret it, it’s still a rocking song.

This video came out shortly after the monster success of the video for Peter Gabriel’s Sledgehammer.  Stop motion animation was all the rage.

Enjoy!

Music Video of the Day: What Have I Done To Deserve This? by Pet Shop Boys and Dusty Springfield (1987, directed by Eric Watson)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

“Someone who’s in this relationship that they know they shouldn’t be in. It’s this dysfunctional relationship, and they don’t have the strength to get out. And ‘what have I, what have I, what have I done to deserve this?’ – there’s a real sense that they shouldn’t be there, but they’re basically a slave to this obsessive love. It’s one of the few songs of mine that is about that but doesn’t turn itself around and go, ‘I’m leaving here, screw you, go make someone else miserable.’ Usually I don’t just leave it at ‘what have I done to deserve this,’ but it felt right for the group, so that’s what it was.”

— Allee Willis, co-writer of What Have I Done To Deserve This?

Though this song may be out a toxic relationship, I always think of it as being about the showgirl taking off her glasses before going out to dance on stage.  That’s the power of a good music video.

This video was directed by Eric Watson, who spent most of his music video career working with Pet Shop Boys, though he also did videos for Samantha Fox, Rod Stewart, and Debbie Harry.

Enjoy!

10 Bloody Essential if Lesser Known Michael Caine Films

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

A Shock to the System (1990, directed by Jan Egleson)

Today is the 88th birthday of the great actor and British cultural icon, Sir Michael Caine!

As I did with Chuck Norris earlier this week, I want to commemorate Michael Caine’s birthday by sharing ten of his essential roles.  Since 1950, Michael Caine has appeared in over 130 films and countless TV productions.  Trying to narrow his long and prolific career down to just ten films is not easy, nor is it really necessary.  All of Caine’s films are worth watching, even the ones that he made during the period where he basically accepted every part that he was offered.  Because he’s so prolific and because so many of his films are already well-known and regarded as classics, I’ve decided to focus of listing ten of his lesser-known but no less essential roles.

  1. A Hill in Korea (1956, directed by Julian Aymes) — This nearly forgotten war film is significant because it featured Michael Caine in his first credited screen role.  (He had appeared in three previous films but wasn’t credited.)  A veteran of the Korean war, Caine was hired to serve as a technical advisor and he was given the small role of Private Lockyer.  Years later, Caine would say that, “I had 8 lines in that picture and I screwed up 6 of them.”  The film is a standard war film and Caine is barely onscreen but everyone had to start somewhere and this film did allow Caine to appear opposite Stanley Baker, Robert Shaw, and Harry Andrews.
  2. Billion Dollar Brain (1968, directed by Ken Russell) — In 1965, Michael Caine shot to stardom by playing the working class secret agent, Harry Palmer, in The Ipcress File.  Caine went on to play Palmer in four more films.  Billion Dollar Brain finds Harry trying to keep a computer and a mad millionaire from starting World War III.  This was Ken Russell’s first major feature film and, through not as flamboyant as some of his later films, Billion Dollar Brain still feels like Harry Palmer on acid.  Caine gives a typically good performance, as does Karl Malden in a key supporting role.  Caine’s future Eagle Has Landed co-star, Donald Sutherland, has a small, early role.
  3. Zee and Co. (1972, directed by Brian Hutton) — Caine is married to Elizabeth Taylor and having an affair with Susannah York.  This is the type of movie that probably could have only been made at a time when studio system veterans like Elizabeth Taylor were trying to prove that they could keep up with the new wave of filmmakers and stars.  Providing proof of his acting abilities, Caine somehow keeps a straight face and gives a credible performance while Taylor emotes all over the place.  The end result is loud, vulgar, and undeniably entertaining.
  4. Beyond The Poseidon Adventure (1979, directed by Irwin Allen) — I’m including this film as a stand-in for all of the films that Caine made strictly for the money.  It’s a ludicrous film but hard not to enjoy.  Michael Caine plays a tugboat captain who, with the help of Sally Field, attempts to salvage the cap-sized Poseidon before the luxury liner finally sinks.  Also showing up: Telly Savalas, Slim Pickens, Peter Boyle, and Billion Dollar Brain‘s Karl Malden.
  5. Mona Lisa (1986, directed by Neil Jordan) — The same year that Michael Caine appeared in his Oscar-winning role in Hannah and Her Sisters, he also played a gangster named Mortwell in Mona Lisa.  Caine is chillingly good in a rare villainous role.
  6. The Fourth Protocol (1987, directed by John MacKenzie) — This underrated spy thriller features Michael Caine as a world-weary British spy who has to stop KGB agent Pierce Brosnan from detonating a nuclear device.  This is a well-made spy thriller and it’s interesting to see Caine (who started his career as the anti-James Bond in the Harry Palmer films) acting opposite future Bond, Pierce Brosnan.
  7. Without A Clue (1988, directed by Thom Eberhardt) — This genuinely funny comedy stars Caine as Sherlock Holmes and Ben Kingsley as Dr. Watson.  The catch is that Holmes is actually a clueless actor who was hired by Watson to pretend to be a great detective.  When Prof. Moriarty targets Watson, Holmes is forced to actually solve a case on his own.  Caine and Kingsley make for a surprisingly good comedy team.
  8. A Shock to the System (1990, directed by Jan Egleson) — In this very dark comedy, Caine plays an executive who, sick of being passed over for promotions and criticized by his wife, decided to just kill everyone who annoys him.  This is one of Caine’s best performances and this underrated film’s satire feels just as relevant today as when it was released.
  9. Blood and Wine (1997, directed by Bob Rafelson) — This underrated neo-noir gave Michael Caine a chance to act opposite Jack Nicholson.  The two iconic actors bring out the best in each other, playing partners in a jewelry heist gone wrong.
  10. Is Anybody There? (2008, directed by John Crowley) — In this low-key but emotionally effective film, Caine plays an elderly magician who is suffering from the early stages of dementia.  Having entered a retirement home, he befriends the son of the home’s manager and the two of them search for evidence of life after death.  Though the film didn’t get much attention in the States, Caine described it as a favorite in his most recent autobiography, Blowing The Bloody Doors Off.  75 years-old when he appeared in the film, Caine proved that he could still take audiences by surprise and create an unforgettable character.

Music Video of the Day: Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money) by Pet Shop Boys (1985, directed by Zbigniew Rybczyński)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

Yesterday, I shared the first video for Opportunities.

Today. I’m sharing the second version.  The second version was released after the song itself was remixed and re-recorded.  This is the version that subsequently became a hit for the Pet Shop Boys.  This is the version that is currently being unironically used by Allstate in their commercials.

(As much as I complain about this song being used by Allstate, it did lead to both Opportunities and West End Girls reentering the charts.)

The director of this video is the Polish artist and filmmaker, Zbigniew Rybczyński.  Before directing this video, he won the 1982 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Tango.

Enjoy!