Hasta La Creative!

Back in October, we brought you news of David&Goliath’s new campaign for Kia Optima starring L.A. Clippers power forward Blake Griffin and Jack McBrayer (an actor best known for his work on 30 Rock) as a superhero team saving people from non-Kia purchases. We were a bit disappointed with the initial spot, but hoped that the spot’s title “Trailer” indicated it was just a teaser for things to come. Now, David&Goliath have released two new spots for the campaign, “Zipline” (featured above) and “Apologize to You.” Unfortunately, both fail to live up to the potential of the premise.

“Zipline” features Blake Griffin and sidekick Jack McBrayer crashing in on a lame Internet shopping session. They present the Optima as a better option, to a man who is understandably freaked out by this series of events. Griffin and McBrayer have good chemistry together, but the spot fails to capitalize on it and ultimately falls flat. It might help if the two interacted more, instead of seemingly splitting screen time in separate shots.

That “Zipline” is actually the better of the two spots should tell you something about “Apologize to You.” The spot features Griffin and a fire extinguisher-wielding McBrayer demanding a passerby apologize for not selecting the Optima. It’s repetitive to say the least, lacking any real substance in exchange for a failed attempt at cheap laughs. Hopefully, the folks over at David&Goliath can rebound from these efforts, as we still think this campaign has the potential to be funny. Credits and “Apologize to You” after the jump. continued…

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From Sid Lee NY comes this spot for Dewar’s Whiskey, featuring a hulk of a man who greatly resembles U.K. murderer and mass criminal Charles Bronson, even sporting Bronson’s trademark mustache. Perhaps it’s no coincidence then that director Isaiah Seret seems to borrow a lot of filming technique for this ad from the 2008 biopic Bronson, which starred actor Tom Hardy as the deranged but lovable psychopath.

Of course, it’s hard to advertise your brand of scotch as the choice of crazy violent people, so Sid Lee aims to give their “Drinking Man” character an incongruous tender side. Nothing drives the ladies crazy like a man who routinely pets doves between beating people to death in bare-knuckle boxing matches. While the spot goes very out of its way to portray the character’s tender side, it also discredits his believability. What, the man I’m supposed to admire chases people on bicycles and has a peace tattoo on his chest? It’s this sort of hypocritical hyperbole that made the  peace sign/”Born to kill” helmet-wearing protagonist of Full Metal Jacket a walking punchline.

As the sexy lady at the end argues, it’s “the most interesting blends that make for the strongest character.” So remember, if you want to appeal to your local tavern’s supermodel clientele, say one thing but do the other. Credits after the jump.

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Continuing their back-to-school Techfitter campaign, Best Buy and CP+B are providing Tim Kong, an aspiring games designer, with the tech he needs to design and code his next action-packed adventures. Previously, Best Buy “techfitted” a marine biology major and an aerospace engineer with a set of Windows 8 gadgets.

This new spot is comparatively less exciting, maybe because stars and oceans are grander than grungy cars and code. Consequently, I wish we had more of a storyline. Is Tim Kong really just going to make a new Grand Theft Auto, or do his interests lie somewhere specific? And in that case, can we hear what he has to say? At this point, he’s a Stock Student who knows how to make a good surprised/awesome face.

But maybe it’s better that he’s a basic video games enthusiast. Many current college kids must relate, and it’s a good thing Best Buy has a spot specifically geared towards forward-thinking, technology-centered students, hence the girl scientist, a guy scientist, and a gamer. If only the campaign lasted longer and their next subject is a fashion girl, conveniently coinciding with Fashion Week. Ah, what could’ve been.

Credits after the jump

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Let me begin by stating the obvious: If you find yourself downing more than 3 Jager-bombs in one sitting, odds are your bro doesn’t have your back. Your bro is not a good bro, and you should consider bro-ing out with a new bro who won’t let such a terrible thing happen to you. Sorry, bro.

Now that’s out of the way, let’s take a look at the latest campaign for Jagermeister and LA-based indie shop Mistress titled “A Brother in Your Corner.” The concept of celebrating male companionship in alcohol ads is nothing new, especially in the beer category where things like “Man Law” are done time and time again. Instead of playing the concept for comedic effect, however, Jagermeister has decided to showcase legendary boxing trainer Freddie Roach, whose long resume includes times spent in the corner of boxing champs like Oscar de la Hoya, Manny Pacquiao, and Julio Caesar Chavez. As the video illustrates, Roach has gained a reputation within the boxing community for taking extra special care of his fighters, both within the ring and outside of it. This devotion to his athletes, Roach says, was instilled in him by his own trainer, Eddie Futch, who himself gained fame for training legends like Joe Fraizer, Ken Norton, and Larry Holmes.

The campaign’s tone and focus seems targeted to an older, likely middle-aged bro, one who has actually heard of these fighters and knows anything about professional boxing as none of the fighters associated with Roach our Futch are named in the spot. Also, it’s hard to find many people under that age of 30 who know much about boxing, as MMA continues its climb upwards as boxing fades into irrelevance. The campaign also features a digital extension in which those young males who prove they live by the “Jager Code” compete for a chance to win a trip to Las Vegas for a private training session with Roach as well as tickets to an upcoming boxing match. For more info visit the Jager Code website and Jagermeister’s Facebook page. Credits after the jump.
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