Madonna, on the other hand, took a rather large leap of faith in choosing Chris Cunningham to direct the first single from her new album, Ray of Light. At the time she had only seen Come to Daddy. That would seem to be evidence enough of a director's talent, but this was Chris' first experience with a big name, a big budget, and the negotiations they invoke.
The shoot itself was doomed, as they were shooting motion control footage in the Mojave desert, and it rained for the first two days, so many of Chris' ideas were not executable. Chris explains in his Directors Label book, "The original treatment was, like, massive piles of bodies in the desert. All these figurative sculptures made up of bodies that were all multiple Madonnas. They were all going to split and break up and change into ravens and then change into dogs. Just a performance video, but a really elaborate one using her, her clothes, and any shapes that would come out of her clothes. It was 'some visuals' in search of an 'idea.'"
But this was a Madonna video! Madonna can carry "some visuals" and hit them out the ballpark.
Frozen is definitely not her worst video. Quite the opposite, as is the case with Madonna's best videos, it transformed her public image. After the modern pop of Bedtime Stories, and the lets-go-clubbing sexuality of Erotica, Frozen ushered in a new era of the spiritual Madonna--not to mention the henna craze it jump-started.
As accomplished as Frozen is, though, Chris points out that the effects shots are shoddy. He would rather the resulting footage focus on Madonna's mystical, moody performance.
How, then, the awards? Perhaps overindulgence. Getting Chris and Madonna together at the time was a brilliant idea. And while some of the effects themselves are excellent, they lack composition. Instead of three Madonnas looking Hydra-like, it looks merely as if their hems are sewn together.
Frozen is available on Chris' Directors Label DVD, and Madonna's Video Collection 93-99.
Awards
1998 MTV Video Music Awards
Best Special Effects .. Steve Murgatroyd, Dan Williams, Steve Hiam, Anthony Walsham at The Mill
1999 MVPA Awards .. Best Special Effects in a Music Video
Nominations
1999 MVPA Awards
Best Hair in a Music Video .. Peter Savic
Best Make-Up in a Music Video .. Joanne Gair
Best Cinematography .. Darius Khondji
Best Direction of a Music Video .. Chris Cunningham
1999 Music Week CAD Awards
Best Special Effects in a Video
Best Editing in a Video .. Gary Knight
Best Dance Video
