February 5, 2007
WHO WANTS TO BREAK IT TO THE POLES? (via The Other Brother):
Super Bowl Ads of Cartoonish Violence, Perhaps Reflecting Toll of War (STUART ELLIOTT, 4/06/07, NY Times)
More than a dozen spots celebrated violence in an exaggerated, cartoonlike vein that was intended to be humorous, but often came across as cruel or callous.For instance, in a commercial for Bud Light beer, sold by Anheuser-Busch, one man beat the other at a game of rock, paper, scissors by throwing a rock at his opponent's head.
In another Bud Light spot, face-slapping replaced fist-bumping as the cool way for people to show affection for one another. In a FedEx commercial, set on the moon, an astronaut was wiped out by a meteor. In a spot for Snickers candy, sold by Mars, two co-workers sought to prove their masculinity by tearing off patches of chest hair.
There was also a bank robbery (E*Trade Financial), fierce battles among office workers trapped in a jungle (CareerBuilder), menacing hitchhikers (Bud Light again) and a clash between a monster and a superhero reminiscent of a horror movie (Garmin).
It was as if Madison Avenue were channeling Doc in "West Side Story," the gentle owner of the candy store in the neighborhood that the two street gangs, the Jets and Sharks, fight over. "Why do you kids live like there's a war on?" Doc asks plaintively. (Well, Doc, this time, there is.)
There wasn't a war on during West Side Story's run? Posted by Orrin Judd at February 5, 2007 7:55 AM
We couldn't get over the TV ads shown during the football game last night. It'll be interesting to see if slapping which is, IMHO, more a female thing, becomes the new MO in macho male bonding. A big strapping guy slapping another such creature in the face is just plain crazy and a junior exec slapping the boss, well let's just say it's not a good career move.
Besides the violence, the ads were visually ugly, grey and dreary perfectly mimicking the grey dreary rain falling on the players in the field and on the fans in the stands.
What to make of these folks who could be watching the game on TV in a comfortable room, warm and dry, but who instead sit for many hours in a relentless downpour encased in plastic bags.
erp: Don't forget that the buffet table is in the dining room not 20 ft. away...
Posted by: Bartman at February 5, 2007 10:33 AMBartman, I'm not getting the reference to the dining room.
Posted by: erp at February 5, 2007 3:49 PM"There wasn't a war on during West Side Story's run?"
Not as far as the Times is concerned.
Posted by: Ed Driscoll at February 5, 2007 3:53 PM