"Ain't no vitamins in that..."

Ahh, my last one for the semester.

Dave Chappelle is a genius. He picks up on those little details in life people often overlook, then makes them into hilarious jokes. First, watch this Sunny D commercial that is so eighties.



Pretty standard. Kids want to quench their thirst with some juice... Now watch Chappelle's stand up act. *caution, language*



I think he's right. The boy's eyes do look like they're attracted to the purple stuff. It's amazing how Chappelle picked up on that.

I bought grape drink the other day. It was really cheap incidentally. Like a dollar for half a gallon or something. By comparison, the superhealthy Naked juice I'm drinking at the moment is only 15.2 ounces yet totals $3.65. I haven't tried the grape drink yet. It sounds terrible. Sugar, water, purple.

Does Chappelle make fun of stereotypes? Yes. That's part of the reason he disappeared to Africa instead of making a third season of his show. But I don't think he should be ashamed. He doesn't further stereotypes, people do. When he talked about studying white people he made fun of both sides. "Get away from my cart, these are vegetables," he said. He mocked black people for not eating enough vegetables, but then he said it in an exaggerated annunciated tone that made fun of white people. So lose/lose? No. Latinos win that one.

Anyway, we don't see many commercials like this anymore. Advertising vitamins is not a priority. Now we want funny, shocking, out-there ads that make the product stick out. What will happen when nothing shocks us anymore? Psychology calls it desensitization. It's up to the ad gurus to stop it.

Supermarket Shocker

I described the following ad to someone last week and she responded, "That's awful!" I thought it was pretty clever, but hey, art (of TV commercials) is subjective.



Children. If I every have any, I hope they're not the loud, obnoxious type. I want my kids to be quiet, private and grow up to be creative geniuses who think up the new Google or YouTube and make a bajillion dollars at age 20 and buy my nice things.

Yeahhhhhhh. So, uhm condoms?

I thought this spot was smart. You go, "What are they advertising?" or "This is awkward." Then you get it. It's the consequence of not using a rubber! Of course!

I can see how this can be offensive though. Especially to those parents who have children like that. I mean, if you want to have kids, but then they turn out like that, it doesn't mean that you should have used contraceptives. No wonder it was a banned commercial.

Oh Camera Phones

Remember the world before camera phones? It was a much more private place then. Nowadays picture texts cause drama in high schools throughout the world. I guess without camera phones, we wouldn't have the show "Gossip Girl." Hmm dilemma.



The concept was good, but this one took a little long. A minute thirty for that? The set-up could have been shorter. If this were a news story, the lead would be way too long. Get to what people want to know, a teacher once told me...

I think it's odd that the girl gets ashamed and not outraged. If you woke up to a complete stranger about to kiss you, wouldn't you get mad? It was smooth how he turned the situation on her, but really is that realistic? I don't think so.

In conclusion, Vodafone had a good idea. It was amusing, it told a story (though not quick enough) and it incorporated their new technology (the commercial was in 2005) - the camera phone, setting up the start of a new generation of creepers everywhere.

Indeed!

Is this funny or not? I can't tell.



During my Spanish studying, I had this weird urge to watch a funny Indian commercial. Of course, YouTube comes to the rescue.

For some odd reason, the "She's hot!", "Indeed!" part is making me smile uncontrollably here in the library. I have to cover my mouth so people don't think I'm crazy. Just the thought of it makes me smile. Maybe I am going crazy.

I think it's my stereotype of the Indian accent being so proper and formal. When I hear that voice saying something so unprofessional and in a very loud voice, I think it's funny.

I mostly posted the ad for that one exchange. The other parts were OK and couldn't even understand some of it. Apparently the part with the families is before an arranged marriage, and the groom is saying, "I like the younger one better."

The next time I'm in an elevator, I will probably think of this commercial and laugh.

Another Nike Spot

Okay, regarding my last post - my intro was supposed to be sarcastic, which was a bad idea because sarcasm is hard to detect over the Internet. Elizabeth is seriously pretty cool. Her family has a county in Ireland named after them. She bakes good cookies. She gave me a spot to study for finals in the library. I'm actually sitting across from her right now. She's focused studying Animal Phys while I just gave up on Gen Bio to write another blog.

This one is also from the Swoosh company. It puts you in the point of view as if you're rising up in the European football (soccer) ranks. Guy Ritchie, Madonna's ex, directed.



Nike creates an adrenaline rush with this one. The camera work is amazing; it feels as if you're really playing soccer. It's like you get the experience without doing all the training.

There are some really high profile cameos in this commercial too. You get called up by Wegner, Arsenal's coach and then you're scored on by Christiano Ronaldo, the 'World's Best Footballer. My favorite cameo is from Zlatan Ibrahimović, star striker for Inter Milan - my favorite soccer team. He's in the blue and black striped uniform around 1:03. He scores.

I love the attention to detail Ritchie paid. You start at a division two soccer club, where you make the penalty kick to win the game. You're team is overjoyed, but there are only people standing on the sidelines to witness the shot. After being promoted to a better club, running up stairs and getting the girl, you're in the European championships. You throw up because you're so nervous. Confetti greets your entrance to the ginormous stadium. You're presented with another free kick to win the game. Do you make it? Only Nike knows.

Animated Water Boy

My non-blogger friend Elizabeth describes herself as a "commercial junkie." She diligently checks the Epica Awards' (the best of commercials in Europe) website to see which ads received the latest prestige. I personally think that's a little too much, and sort of lame, but whatever. That's Elizabeth for you.

Anyway, she gave me my latest tip on a commercial. So if you think this one is kind of dull, remember - I didn't choose it. It was Elizabeth.



Yeah. Apparently that won an award. An 'Epica' as they call it. I guess it was cute. They let a kid or some guy with a high voice sing over "We Will Rock You." They made an animation of this water "boy" who walks around and stomps out fires.

I'm pretty apathetic towards this one. There was nothing too groundbreaking about this commercial. The water boy finds a water girl and they have water babies. What's the point Evian? That's why more people drink Dasani and Aquafina. That's also why Fiji water is cooler than you.

The ad was pretty long too. 2:39 of him walking around and eradicating fires? We get it. That's what water does.

The animation was cute. But it wasn't near as good as the Thai lizard animation. Aquafina needs to take a lesson from Shera Flexiboard if they want to step their game up.

Nike's Lifelong Journey

I like commercials that tell stories. This next fantastic one by Nike tells the story of how two NFL players, LaDainian Tomlinson and Troy Polamalu, got to where they're at today.



This is really a brilliant spot. The vision had a really good concept. It showed their lives from conception to the game where they ultimately collide. This was definitely one of the year's best.

I especially like one scene. The one where young Polamalu jumps on the coffee table and it breaks is one that sticks out to me. I remember being that age, jumping around the living room. I would try to make it across the whole room without touching the carpet. I never broke a coffee table with my weight, but then again, I'm no NFL defensive safety.

The music is appropriate. Most athletic commercials have some sort of inspiring, dramatic music making the game more important than it really is. This song is a sample of The Ecstacy of Gold from the soundtrack of "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly"

The commercial has a good feeling of suspense and culmination. We are shown these toddlers not knowing exactly what to think, but it all comes to fruition when we see the hit.