British filmmaker Jonathan Glazer began by directing pop promos and advertisements before transitioning into features. His video style is crisp and clean, yet vaguely menacing. There's always more going on than meets the eye--a quality carried over into his films. Like Kubrick, he's partial to Steadicams and empty hallways. Massive Attack's "Karmacoma" even features twins straight from The Shining, while Blur's "The Universal" cops from A Clockwork Orange, so he's not exactly shying away from the influence. Glazer's commercial style, on the other hand, is more wide-ranging, less easily identifiable. His ambitious ads for Guinness, Levi's, etc. bring out his playful side in a way the videos do not. Interestingly, oddball actor Denis Lavant (Beau Travail) shows up twice, in the creepy clip for UNKLE's "Rabbit in Your Headlights" and the "Last Orders" spot for Stella Artois. This Director's Series edition also features excerpts from Sexy Beast and Birth.--Kathleen C. Fennessy

See More

Be sure to check out The Director's Label Boxed Set Vol. 2, featuring The Work of Jonathan Glazer, and volumes by Mark Romanek, Anton Corbijn, and Stéphane Sednaoui.