I Want Morgan Freeman to Narrate My Life

So in my last post I mentioned that I watched the Olympics. That may be an understatement. For two weeks, my life sort of revolved around the Olympics.

I would wake up, turn on the television to find a soccer match between Nigeria and the Netherlands. Later, I would eat lunch with the 'Redeem Team' playing in the background. In the afternoons I would suffer through the tragedy that is Olympic boxing. During prime-time I had even memorized the order of events NBC went by: beach volleyball, then something at the ~Water Cube~ (swimming during the first week, then diving during the second), then perhaps some cycling or rowing, and lastly they would finish up with gymnastics or track.

Some nights I would even stay up late at night to watch fencing, badminton, or my new favorite Olympic sport - racewalking.

I was so into the Olympics that I would rather stay in than go out with friends. I would be hesitant to go online so as not to be spoiled of the results before I saw them on TV. The day Shawn Johnson won her gold medal, my father had already told me the outcome and I resented him that whole day.

There is something about the Olympics that makes you need to watch. Skipping the coverage is like being unpatriotic. On the other hand, seeing your country win an event is oddly fulfilling. When I saw Jason Lezak chase down the French team during that 400 Freestyle relay, I swear I felt like I had just won too.

Anyway, enough about me and my Olympics experience. This blog is about commercials remember?

Visa's series of 'Go World' ads were on almost every commercial break during the Olympics. There were many variations of this ad, but I will focus on my two favorites.



Let me begin by saying Nastia Liukin was my favorite gymnast during the Olympics. I don't know if that makes me a bad Iowan (ShawnJohn is from West Des Moines and on every Hy-Vee commercial in the state), but something about Nastia made me root for her. Maybe it was because I cheer for the overlooked (SJ got all the NBC love) or if I just wanted Nastia to live up to her parents' gold medal legacy.

This commercial pairs ballerina/baby music box music with stills of Nastia in perfect gymnast poses. The combination of the slow camera movement, golden color scheme, and the little rays of light make Nastia seem like a statue you would win for making a really good movie or TV show.

Now practically, I can't really relate to this ad. I don't have gold medal winning parents. I would probably break something if I tried to pose like that. I didn't actually go to Beijing, so I don't care if Visa is the only credit card accepted there. But if I ever have a daughter, it did inspire me to enroll her in gymnastics class the day she turns four.



Now isn't that commercial the most heartbreaking/inspiring thing you've ever seen? Okay, probably not. But still.

The thing that makes this commercial so heartfelt and touching is Morgan Freeman. When I hear his voice, I imagine that he's my grandfather telling me stories of his life experiences so that I may become as wise as him. You cannot feel sad when Batman's business partner is narrating your life.

If I had just played the worst game of golf of my life and Morgan Freeman went, "Nathan did not shoot five over par. He didn't shoot 10 over par. Nathan shot 30 over par today. But at least...Nathan finished." Freeman's commentary probably would soothe the pain my of failure.

Verdict: If you want dramatic and touching commercials, you can't go wrong if you have the voice of God (in Bruce Almighty) narrate your commercials...