THE POPE OF VIDEO VILLAGE

In its infancy, the world of rock video was hoped by many to become the New World Pictures of the ‘80s, a place where unproven, younger talents could prove their mettle and earn their stripes, ultimately becoming a breeding ground for major directors.

So far, though, few new figures in video have turned out enough consistently intriguing work behind the cameras to offer much promise. Although Julien Temple, Russell Mulcahy and Steve Barron have made names for themselves and likely have prosperous motion-picture futures ahead of them, their triumphs--such as they are--have been almost entirely stylistic ones.

Recently, though, a new name has increasingly popped up behind videos that offer style and substance: that of Tim Pope, a 30-year-old director working with an English production company that prefers to develop extensive, long-term relationships with pop artists instead of just producing clips on a quick, one-shot basis. Pope’s two most long-standing working relationships are with the Cure and Neil Young--whose latest videos (or “promotional films,” as his company calls them) top the current round of contenders, rated on a 0-100 scale.

As seen in his recent videos for Young (the new one is the second of eight scheduled to be released in conjunction with the “Landing on Water” album), Pope has a proclivity for introducing short stories complete with sound effects and dialogue independent of the musical track. That may not endear him to performers who want their songs left pristine and undefiled, but Pope’s narrative adventurism bodes well for an industry that has so far been all too reliant on either star close-ups (see Belinda Carlisle) or photographic and editing gimmickry (see Wang Chung).

VID CLIPS PICKED TO CLICK:

The Cure’s “Boys Don’t Cry.” Director: Tim Pope. In a quite literal extrapolation of the title, the Cure’s latest clip does indeed feature a trio of young boys lip-syncing and hand-syncing their way through the song’s vocals and instrumentation (and faking it well at that). But as the characteristically dour tone of the song would promise, all is not youthful idyll or innocence here: The young band sings and plays on while surrounded by dancing, hooded, red-eyed ghouls, representing--what? The eerie menace of their own impending adulthood? Don’t look for it to be spelled out, but there’s definitely a horror story going on here. 82

Neil Young’s “Weight of the World.” Director: Tim Pope. Though the song itself is a bittersweet celebration of love and fulfillment found at last after emotional tribulation, the video disguises Young as a sleazy, pathetic character who has completely and totally succumbed--given himself, really--to the weight of the world. He’s also weighed down with gold chains, and sporting a curly black wig and mustache and shades, in his role as a loaded (in every sense of the word) party animal. Young’s lounge lizard is the life of the party--at least until he gets bumped into the pool by a bikini-clad bimbo and drowns, while the madcap fun continues obliviously around him. Like the previous video from this performer/director team, “Weight” achieves a high level of dark comedy that sticks out in the video wasteland like a deliciously sore thumb. 82

Paul Simon’s “You Can Call Me Al.” Director: Gary Weis. Word has it that Simon turned down two other clips that were filmed for this song as “too silly” before finally approving this one for release. Actually, there’s no way that either of the first two tries could’ve possibly been the slightest bit sillier than this one, but it’s a sublimely simple sort of silliness here as guest Chevy Chase hogs the spotlight and does all the lip-syncing of Simon’s lead vocals, leaving the singer himself to do--well, not a whole lot. Now if only Chase could find film roles this funny. . . . 65

WORTH A LOOK & A LISTEN:

Peter Cetera and Amy Grant’s “The Next Time I Fall.” Director: Dominic Sena. You might expect a pop duet between a noted singer of “secular” songs and a crooner famous for “sacred” material to be an uneasy matchup, a pairing of someone naturally sexy and relaxed with someone a shade on the uptight or even unreal side. And that’s exactly what “The Next Time I Fall”--filmed with its two lovers gazing longingly at each other across a dance studio--turns out to be, albeit with a twist. The overdressed-for-the-occasion Cetera looks like a figure out of a wax museum, too clean-scrubbed and clear-voiced to be true, while denim-clad Grant exudes an appealing earthiness that makes this duet seem all the more pointed a role reversal. 47

Wang Chung’s “Everybody Have Fun Tonight.” Directors: Godley & Creme. The odd split-second editing techniques that make the members of Wang Chung rapidly and jarringly flicker back and forth are of passing interest on first viewing, and might be more so if noted video director Zbigniew Rybcznksi hadn’t already milked this gimmicky territory to death long before Godley & Creme got to it. Frankly, rock video is a genre that could stand more cinematographers and fewer editors. And while we’re at it, it wouldn’t hurt to have a commercial moratorium on songs that make repeated use of the artist’s moniker in the chorus, especially as a verb--as in “Everybody Chaka Kahn, Chaka Kahn,” or “Everybody Wang Chung tonight.” Where’s the legislature when you need it? 44

GAMMA RAYS GUARANTEED TO INDUCE ALPHA WAVES:

Billy Joel’s “A Matter of Trust.” Director: Russell Mulcahy. What a swell idea--an unauthorized remake of the climactic crowd-drawing concert scene from “Let It Be,” restaged for the ‘80s, with Christie Brinkley as Yoko Ono! Then again, maybe not. 28

David Lee Roth’s “Goin’ Crazy.” Directors: Roth and Pete Angelus. Rock clown Roth’s latest album is as much fun as anything he’s ever done, but his persona is so relentless and self-serving that it’s actually exhausting to sit through any of his non-vinyl activities. That goes double for his latest videos, which feature more mugging than you’ll find on a Philadelphia street corner. No one in this outfit misses a chance to strut and make faces within inches of wherever the tape is rolling--and since, for some reason, that always seems to be at knee level, Roth does so much bending over he’s probably already had to see a chiropractor. He may have quite the reputation as a ladies’ man, but we suspect that when Diamond Dave goes to bed at night, he snuggles up with a camera . 26

Rod Stewart’s “Another Heartache.” Director: Leslie Libman. In the kind of clip guaranteed to fuel a few months’ worth of fantasies for schoolboys everywhere, rock’s premiere rooster spends some quality time grappling with a pouty, lingerie-clad blonde bombshell, in and out of bed. The initial reaction to this benignly saucy foreplay might be similar to what most folk would experience watching a softcore porno movie for the first time: “Boy, Rod sure must’ve had a blast making this one, even if he and and his nearly nekkid partner were surrounded by a camera crew the whole time.” Then, of course, reason sets in: “Gee, Rod’s in his 40s, and he’s been a mega-star for a couple of decades--he must be bored silly with beautiful women by now.” Scary thought, isn’t it? 15

Belinda Carlisle’s “I Feel the Magic.” Director: Marty Colner. This isn’t a video, it’s a religious ceremony--and the object of worship is, of course, Belinda, who couldn’t get more consecutive, uninterrupted close-ups if she was trying out for a Pepsodent commercial. Sure, there’s some initial novelty just in gazing at someone who’s gone through such a stunning physical makeover since her heavier Go-Go’s days, but as an unawed pal commented at the conclusion of these utterly idolatrous 3 1/2 minutes, “She’s cute, but she’s not that cute.” Nobody’s that cute, Belinda. 15