Saturday, April 23, 2011

Sometimes they are actually worth watching, Part II

Back in this post, I waxed rhapsodic about my DVR and the power of the pause button to morph watching TV into an interactive activity for the husband and me.  More importantly, the power of the fast forward button virtually eliminates the torture of inane and asinine commercials.  "We don't watch no stinkin' adverts!" we intone in our best Clint Eastwood impression, as we indulge in the heady power of our very own time machine.  You know - the one that gives you back 20 minutes of your life when you've reached the end of an "hour long" TV program?

That's why it is so satisfying to come across the kind of advertisement that sucks you in and makes you want to watch it again and again.

This week I stumbled across an intriguing and cinematic ad for Heineken created by the Dutch office of powerhouse firm Weiden + Kennedy (a little hometown love here, since the firm is founded and headquartered in Portland).  The catchy soundtrack is by Danish band Asteroids Galaxy Tour.  There is so much going on between the characters and our hero that I would love to know the backstories.  In a genius bit of leveraging the power of "The Facebook," W+K actually did create short films about some of the characters seen in the ad, which can only be viewed if you "like" a certain tab on Heineken's fanpage.  The films are non sequiturs, but entertaining none-the-less.

Without further ado, I present my new favorite commercial, "The Entrance" for Heineken (or linked here):



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So tell me - do you have any favorite advertisements (either in current rotation or a golden oldie blast from the past?)

7 comments:

  1. From the 2010 World Cup. Love this. I never get tired of seeing it. I think my favorite part is Rooney making spaghetti in the trailer. I also think it's clever that they show Ronaldo getting taken down for real because he's known as such a diver! I know he's a fellow Portuguese and all, but he's definitely a prima donna. :)

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSggaxXUS8k

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  2. Limr - That is a fantastic ad. As it happens, it's another Weiden + Kennedy effort. (Thanks for linking it, too.) My favorite part was Rooney hugging the Queen.

    Watching Ronaldo play football, one does get a sense that he's gunning for an Oscar. But I could watch that man take off his shirt for days and days.

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  3. Oh yeah, diver or no, the man is definitely a bit of all right! (one of my favorite English phrases). A bit too much of a pretty boy for my tastes (I like 'em scruffy or Stiggy) but his face is just a blur anyway when he's running around, so who cares?

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  4. Ahh. It says "An error occurred. Please try again later." I think the video is anti-Canadian.

    Sigh.

    Happy Easter, eh?

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  5. Leanne - Oh, shame. it's worth a watch so here's a link to another posting of it that I'm hoping is more Canadian friendly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocx9MenJG7c&feature=fvsr

    Happy Easter to you, too.

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  6. I love that commercial...even if it did spawn an argument. Can you believe he thought the chick singing was Avril Levigne? Seriously.

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  7. Nicki - I noticed the resemblance to Avril, too. Fortunately nowadays such arguments can be easily quashed by a quick trip the The Google.

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