Janet Jackson - Design of a Decade

Janet certainly had a hand in the design of that decade, all right. Her energetic pop tunes and irresistibly appealing hooks help her make a name for herself and step out of the shadow of her famous family. Includes Escapade; Black Cat; Rhythm Nation; Nasty; Runaway; That's The Way Love Goes , and more. 1995/color/90 min/NR/fullscreen.

The arc of Janet Jackson's career from the late 1980s to the late '90s was a story of determined growth by an artist and woman. The extent to which Jackson served as a role model for many an adolescent girl during that decade (a phenomenon illuminated on another DVD, The Rhythm Nation Compilation) speaks to the formidable yet feminine image she presented via her music and music videos. Design of a Decade includes 16 of her videos from 1986 to 1996, taking us through Jackson's early, "don't trifle with me" attitude in the "What Have You Done for Me Lately" era, to her more rapturous, sensual makeover in "Love Will Never Do (Without You)." Of course, this video is also a record of some of the most ambitious music videos ever produced, including Julien Temple's elaborate "When I Think of You," Peter Smillie's "Escapade," and Marcus Nispel's ecstatic, fantastic "Runaway." --Tom Keogh