For creepy eye tricks, there's MasterCard
Posted: Monday, February 25, 2008 8:03 AM by Allison Linn
Filed Under:
Financial services
By now, every bit comedian (and every slightly drunk guy who fancies himself a bit funny) has done a sendup of MasterCard’s “Priceless” ad campaign. (“There are some things money can’t buy. For everything else, there’s MasterCard.”) But chances are, no one has thought to introduce a creepy wandering eye into the act. For that, well, there’s MasterCard.
The credit company’s latest spot, which debuted during Sunday’s Academy Awards show, features a slightly retro, downtrodden guy whose “The Office”-ish life takes an unusual turn when one of his eyes starts wandering.
“Curious, how curious my right eye had become,” the spot’s hero reflects, as he goes about his life - bowling, flying a kite, flummoxing a waitress - with “not a lazy eye, but rather a more energetic, restless, altogether more interested eye, seeking, searching…”
Fittingly for the Oscars, the cinematography and script of the ad are above average, and it’s clever to see the creators come up with a truly fresh take on the now-shopworn “priceless” slogan. Also, the way the ad is created leaves you wondering until the very end what exactly it is selling, a trick that might be more likely to keep TiVo users’ eyes from wandering.
Still, while watching the ad it’s hard to do anything but stare at the creepy eye and wonder how exactly they made it move. One wonders whether that’s the kind of attention that is going to motivate people to pull out their credit card and start racking up some consumer debt.
Click here to watch the ad.
