July 2008 - Posts
In a new commercial for Duracell batteries, a mom is at the park, unbuckling one child from a stroller, when suddenly she realizes that her other child has gone missing.
As she looks around, the camera cuts to a white van pulling away. Has the child been kidnapped? Run over?
No, it turns out he’s just walked away. But Mom, instead of doing the usual parent thing -- yelling for your kid in that voice that says, "I love you but I’m really mad at you" -- pulls out an electronic tracking device and uses it to locate her son.
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| Duracell |
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The makers of Snickers are pulling an ad after it failed to get laughs among gay rights activists who called it homophobic, according to an Associated Press report.
In the commercial, a man is speed-walking down the street when 1980s icon Mr. T comes barreling around the corner, firing candy bars at him and calling him a "disgrace to the man race."
The ad, which aired in the United Kingdom, ends with the tagline "get some nuts."
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| snickers.com |
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Say the name Dr. Scholl’s and most people think of sensible shoes, somewhat embarrassing foot ailments and other not-so-sexy connotations. That’s a hard reputation to beat, but evoking table dancing may be taking things too far.
A recent ad for the foot comfort company shows model Yaya DaCosta, a contestant from "America’s Next Top Model," doing what appears to be some sort of sexy dance (although it may be the chicken dance gone awry) on something that looks like a cross between a desk and a stage.
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| Dr. Scholl’s |
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When it comes to selling cars and trucks, most people are familiar with usual bag of tricks: beautiful scenery, beautiful women and brawny vehicles. A recent commercial for Honda’s Pilot takes things in the exact opposite direction, and it’s a refreshing change.
In "Ballooning," a middle-aged man and his teenage son are driving down the road when they come across an older man peeking out of a grounded hot air balloon, apparently in need of a ride.
Only after inviting the balloonist to hop in does the driver realize that there are actually a group of men in the balloon’s basket -- and they’re all nudists. While the ad is remarkably tasteful, it’s safe to say this is a group most people aren’t interested in seeing naked.
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| Honda |
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Here’s the thing about people living in the age of the DVR, the Internet and the cell phone: They don’t have much patience.
Why take two minutes to make a phone call when you can text in about 10 seconds, and save yourself some pleasantries? A 30-second TV commercial? Sorry, many people would rather pay extra to fast-forward through it. This article? We’ll try to keep it short and snappy, because we know that, at this moment, you are being distracted by all manner of other bright and shiny technology.
The makers of BMW apparently think that we have time for them, and lots of it. A promotion for the company’s BMW 1 Series takes the form of a meandering “mockumentary” about the German town of Oberpfaffelbachen’s attempt to help promote the new car.
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The video circulating the Internet these days looks at first like any other snippet of a minor league baseball game, right down to the announcer’s play-by-play banter.
Then comes a hit to left field and, out of nowhere, the ball girl executes an amazing, Spiderman-like move up the wall to catch the foul ball, tossing it nonchalantly back to a flabbergasted player before taking her seat again.
At this point, the 39-second video seems more like one of those outtakes you might see replayed endlessly on the big screen between innings. In fact, the video in question is an ad for Gatorade, although your only hint that that’s the case is a bottle of the sports drink that the ball girl sips upon taking her seat again.
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