When we heard there was yet another Axe viral...uh...branded entertainment thing floating about, we were fully prepared to hate it, figuring it'd be more of the same, lame tickle/dress/undress/ogle the hottie trivialized trash. But after viewing Let the Game Continue, a multi-part full-blown movie that follows the travails of a guy whose car has gone up in flames and the escapades he experiences with various women on his way home, we were truly stunned by its entertaining goodness. We watched the whole thing...every bit of it...all the way to the end. That in and of itself earns this effort very high marks from us.
Since this is a commercial, Axe does make several appearances in the movie but they are fully part of the story line and do not detract from but actually add to the the subtle humor that carries through the film's plot. Damn, I just called it a film. Hate that. Anyone for Filmercial?
With the simple but true tagline, "The Faster the Speed, the Bigger the Mess," this :60, launched April 26, from Ireland's Road Safety Authority and Northern Ireland's Department of Environment delivers a powerful but simple message: The faster the speed, the bigger the mess. Entitled "Mess," the commercial is born from statistics that find 30 percent of Republic of Ireland and 24 percent of Northern Ireland road fatalities are due to excessive speed. The spot is part of an increasing trend towards the use of reality-based shock and brutal honesty to deliver the message.
As with most accidents, the spot, created by Lyle Bailie International Limited, begins with a peaceful, unassuming moment then progresses through the surprise, shock, horror, despair, retribution, regret and sorrow experienced by each person involved in the horrific ordeal. The mesmerizing soundtrack with the lyrics, "I can't take my eyes off you" lends even more intensity to the gravity of the unfolding after effects of the accident. Watch this spot a few time and you'll think twice the next time you consider pushing the pedal a bit more than you should.
Now here's an art director's wet dream. Giving sunglasses far more cred than they deserve, Chuck McBride's new agency, Cutwater, has turned the average pair of Ray Bans into some sort of cultural icon. Oh wait, they already earned that status so we guess it's all good. Produced by HSI Productions and directed by Michael Haussman, the spot ends with the super, "Never Hide," which, for a sunglasses commercial, is pretty twisted but exudes so much positivity.
Any commercial that tells us to "make up your fuckin' mind fuckin' make up your mind" is good in our book. This might not be saying much but we liked this commercial more and more with each viewing. Fans of frequency in the media department will love that notion. Give it a watch. It's not your average sunglass commercial. Maybe Chuck's stabbing video has, indeed, led to good things.
Ad-love is fickle. Shortly after dropping the slanderous Imus, advertisers decide they want him back.
That is, with the exception of Nike, which happens to be a major sponsor of the Rutgers' men and women's basketball teams. Duncans has an exclusive interview with the talking heads that matter, but essentially what happened is Nike released a print ad thanking Imus for reminding us we've still go a long way to go before ignorance is dead.
Typically the tastemakers for victory, postivisim, etc., Nike demonstrates they do even righteous rage better than most. Nice.
Wieden + Kennedy, Portland, put this bad-boy together.
Scavenging snippets of nostalgia, scribble, arbitrary Flash and profound gibberish, Game, Game, Game and Again Game is a strange visit to what life must be like at the intersection between broadcasting airwaves and media-laced stream-of-thought.
Created by evil genius Jason Nelson of Hermeticon, the sensory digital plaything leverages a player's ability to pick knowledge up quickly and put it together. And while little makes sense, the collective information keeps you moving from level to level and may even spark inexplicable emotional reactions. The format and your feelings are all about as logical as identity construction via media consumption, a strange occupation that may drive whole cities to commercial bulimia.
We showed the game to a few friends who later told us we were psychotic media-tards. But several small children got it right away and laughed out loud in all the appropriate places (there aren't any). We think that means the game is good.
The ending is a sight worth seeing. It might just change your life. Or not. Go play already! (And make sure your sound is up.)
Watching these new Montana Meth spots makes one want to grab a gun, hunt down a drug dealer, stick the barrel of the gun in his mouth and blow his fucking head off. Yes, these new Venables Bell & Partners-created spots are powerful. Very powerful. Shot in single continuous takes and directed by the brilliant Darren Aronofsky, the four spots explore the effect of Meth not just on the individual but also on that individual's friends and family. A girlfriend gets sold for drug money. A mother gets hit by her drug-addled son while he steals her money. An overdosed girl gets dumped at the hospital by her "friends." A husband and wife lock their out-of-control son out of their home. Powerful stuff, indeed.
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Don't know how we missed this but back in January, Zima launched a video called Mom My Ride in which three guys at a repair shop give their special version of Pimp My Ride to a minivan. Complete with scratch marks, sour milk, spilled soda, jammed CD player, broken mirror and duct tape, this minivan gets the full makeover. Definitely one of the more ingenious and amusing ways to sell soda....or whatever the hell Zima has turned itself into.
Catch Up Lady points us to what is perhaps the best car dealer promotion we've ever seen. Of course, that might not be saying much as we avoid their marketing like the plague but go with us on this one. Clay Automotive, located just outside of Boston, has created a hilarious but very informative video in which the seven ways car dealers take you are explained. Citing several terms associated with buying a car such as hosed, porked, betrayed, cheated and slammed, a very round man explains how Clay Automotive makes car buying a pleasure buy...yes...undressing. It's a metaphor, of course, for Clay Automotive's opening it all up and hiding it from the buyer. We say brilliant to this one. We just might travel to Clay to buy our next car.
Here's one for you neat freaks out there and, well, for you slobs as well because, after all, you're the ones who really need the help. For its client YES Essentials which makes stain and odor resistant, custom fit automotive floor mats, Erwin-Penland has created Splat the Mat, a site hosted by one of those annoying perfectionist neatniks who deserves what she gets: Ketchup, blueberry pie, coffee, dirt and an ice cream sundae pour all over her.
After choosing your method of splat, you are treated to a time-lapsed cleanup during which the mats is cleaned using just paper towels and water. Hmm. Maybe they should add baby puke to the list. Now that would be the true test of a mat's cleanability. Actually, there's a section of the site where you can "suggest a spill."
This is one of those sites that perfectly delivers it message and does so in an interesting and amusing manner. Props to Erwin-Penland on this one.
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