Orbital - The Saint

What this video is

Released April 1997 as the lead single and title track for the Paramount Pictures blockbuster 'The Saint' (dir. Phillip Noyce), Orbital's version is an electronic reworking of Edwin Astley's iconic 1960s British TV theme. The single reached No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart, making it one of Orbital's highest-charting releases. The video exemplifies mid-90s synergy between UK electronica and Hollywood studio marketing,…

Why it matters

A landmark example of UK electronica's mid-90s mainstream breakthrough via film soundtrack placement. Alongside Chemical Brothers, Prodigy, and Daft Punk in the same era, this single and video demonstrate how IDM/electronica acts leveraged cinematic tie-ins to achieve top-10 chart success without…

The director

Giles Thacker is a UK-based music video director active in the mid-to-late 1990s. Jonathan Charles co-directed this video alongside Thacker. Both are credited on IMDB and the Music Video Wiki for the Version 1 official video. No further substantial public…