michel gondry

Green Hornet to Look a Lot Like a White Stripes Video

8:28AM Seth | The departure of director Stephen Chow from Seth Rogen’s The Green Hornet suggested the project might be postponed indefinitely. Thanks to Michel Gondry, however, the Hornet flies (stings? What does the Hornet do, anyway?) again. More »

For Just $10 Million, Jerry Seinfeld Gave Microsoft This Shoegazing Stumper

10:00AM Defamer Hollywood | In its bid to top the deceptively simple “I”m a Mac/I’m a PC” ad campaign of its rival, Microsoft went big, hiring auteur Michel Gondry to direct a commercial featuring Jerry Seinfeld alongside Bill Gates (update: we’ve been informed that though Gondry shot at least one commercial for this campaign, this particular ad was crafted by director Bryan Buckley). For his involvement, Seinfeld was handsomely compensated to the tune of $10 million — a big number, but small potatoes compared to the whole ad campaign’s rumoured $300 million budget. For that kind of cash, you might expect the end result to be an orgy of CGI with all participants covered in a thick sheen of liquid gold. However, Microsoft had something considerably quieter and more head-scratching in mind. Take a look at the lackadaisical proceedings and then try to physically restrain yourself from bolting out the door to buy a PC. That is what’s being advertised, isn’t it? [Microsoft] More »

Be Kind Rewind: An Homage to Amanda Bynes?

7:30AM Defamer Hollywood | When it comes to imaginative and inventive indie auteurs, you can have your Spike Jonzes and your David O. Russells and your Vincent Gallos. But us? We’re sticking with Amanda Bynes! Thanks to the copious research of one delightfully outraged YouTube user, it has come to light that the plot of Michel Gondry’s Be Kind Rewind was lifted lock, stock, and barrel from an 8-year-old episode of Nickelodeon’s The Amanda Show. More »