Between the release of THE DEVIL’S REJECTS (2005) and the making of his re-imagining of John Carpenter’s HALLOWEEN in 2007, director Rob Zombie focused on the music side of his career and released a new album called “Educated Horses”.  “Educated Horses” featured the single “Foxy, Foxy”, which was selected to become a promotional music video.  Zombie had directed several of the music videos for his own songs in the years prior to his feature debut HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES (2003), so naturally, he was comfortable stepping again behind the camera.  “FOXY, FOXY” (2006) is relatively straightforward, presenting nothing new in the realm of the art form.  It’s a performance piece that aims for a modern Woodstock Festival feel, except for the fact that the audience is populated entirely by a gathering of beautiful young hippie women, led by Zombie’s wife Sheri Moon.

The idyllic rural setting is filtered through Zombie’s requisite layer of grunge, manifested in the unwashed, greasy look of the performers and the audience.  I’d describe the overall aesthetic as very 1970’s, an old-fashioned look attained through lots of lens flares and shadows that are skewed into a faded green color via post-production grading.  I’ve noticed that Zombie’s music videos in general are very post heavy, with lots of mirror filters, split-screen frames, and snazzy effects.  With “FOXY, FOXY” he even switches between 2.35:1 and 1.85:1 aspect ratios with wild abandon.  However, all of the visual activity and energy infused via post-production process can’t hide the fact that the video itself is basically an uninspired performance piece.

In terms of Zombie’s growth as a director, there’s not a lot to see here.  With “FOXY, FOXY”, he is staying firmly within his comfort zone—not that he needs to go outside it for a piece like this.  It’s a low-stakes project as far as I’m concerned, since he didn’t really need to prove his directing skills in this particular instance.  If anything, it was made to sustain his music career first and foremost, and its journey-man-like quality might just have been a result of having to squeeze it in between THE DEVIL’S REJECTS and development of HALLOWEEN.

ROB ZOMBIE: “FOXY, FOXY” is currently available via the Youtube embed above.