FOT Forum
FOT Community => General Discussion => Topic started by: KickTheBobo on December 10, 2009, 10:16:29 PM
-
Hi. I've seen this commerical 3 times. It was on again tonight during 30 Rock, and it just enraged me. I would like (hopefully, with your help) to figure out why the F I might feel so negatively towards this particular piece of media.
Is it:
A) The Obvious reason: Hey, here is a commercial full of attractive young people doing things that are so free and enjoying nature and living a seemingly artful and rich life. You are just jealous of this sitting there with your workaday job and meaningless existence.
or (what I have been leaning towards)
B) This commercial is obviously the work of a 2009 Don Draper. Substitute the Cadillac and brylcream for the L train and an ipod synced to a Pitchfork RSS feed. Whomever is behind it is probably someone within the same age bracket and knows how to push buttons (music, visual aesthetic - in this case the Artsy Flicker Etsy Twee deal). This threatens you on some level because now 'we' have become 'them' (underground> mainstream, rebellion>establishment, art>pop culture).
You decide:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HG8tqEUTlvs[/youtube]
either way, it illicits a response from me. The last commercial to have done this was this commercial. It is the only time within memory where I (consciously) sought out a product via a commercial. It took around 15 plays of it before I went and bought the sandwich. it was shitty and I never bought one again.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBNMjpDmrFc[/youtube]
any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
-
Because it's incredibly self important, but ultimately just about jeans.
Levi's has a long history of weird, weird commercials. Like this one.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BajEfI7g5A0&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Or this one.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3gFCSKMo70&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
-
I know what you mean. It's the latest advertising progression from "writing a cute jingle," to "'Lust for Life' on a cruise ship," to now some cynical art director trying to place Levis in the pantheon of American Masters. The similar b&w one is even worse and plays before every quasi-indie movie I've been seeing lately at the Landmark. Some guy behind me half-heartedly booed it last time.
Funny, you should mention Don Draper (I think they're more 2009 Paul Kinseys) because the other ad shows a guy who looks just like him glowering at the camera. You can hear the gears turning as these pretentious wannabes storyboard their panoramic view of American society while making sure the Loose Fit 501's get the requisite screen time.
-
It's a good ad, and I have purchased Levi's jeans as a result.
-
I know what you mean. It's the latest advertising progression from "writing a cute jingle," to "'Lust for Life' on a cruise ship," to now some cynical art director trying to place Levis in the pantheon of American Masters.
Yes - I think this is what happens when a brand becomes so huge (see also: Nike, Coke) that advertising is no longer about specific products, or a new product; it's solely about implanting or reinforcing emotions and self image.
You can hear the gears turning as these pretentious wannabes storyboard their panoramic view of American society while making sure the Loose Fit 501's get the requisite screen time.
Well, the Loose Fits are what we (the plebes) are actually wearing, the Skinny Scrawny Fit is what you see in the ads and also what we're supposed to believe we're wearing, no matter what number is stamped on the waistband.
-
A) The Obvious reason: Hey, here is a commercial full of attractive young people doing things that are so free and enjoying nature and living a seemingly artful and rich life. You are just jealous of this sitting there with your workaday job and meaningless existence.
I think the older you get, the more irritating (or easy to ignore, depending on your temprament) it is when carefree youth is used to sell anything. So I think this is certainly part of it. Wouldn't it be nice if we could all sit around doing whatever, & it's very irritating when ads try and make workaday jobs seem small. That always makes me reach for my revolver. I hate the "we're all rock stars" gambit. That's the same kind of horseshit that has made the youth of today soft serve - it's the grown up version of getting a trophy just for participating in something.
B) This commercial is obviously the work of a 2009 Don Draper. Substitute the Cadillac and brylcream for the L train and an ipod synced to a Pitchfork RSS feed. Whomever is behind it is probably someone within the same age bracket and knows how to push buttons (music, visual aesthetic - in this case the Artsy Flicker Etsy Twee deal). This threatens you on some level because now 'we' have become 'them' (underground> mainstream, rebellion>establishment, art>pop culture).
I have no idea if this is the work of a modern day Draper or whatever but yeah, any time you see something you care about used as currency it's sort of weird. I don't feel bummed out about it anymore really, in an ad, it's just glib and easily dismissible ... I mean, should we dismiss Walt Whitman now 'cause they used his poem in this dumb ad? Nah.
But from time to time, absolutely--shit like this can get under your skin. Take a good deep breath, KtB! It's how you know your synapses are all still firing at 100% !!
-
Hi. I've seen this commerical 3 times. It was on again tonight during 30 Rock, and it just enraged me. I would like (hopefully, with your help) to figure out why the F I might feel so negatively towards this particular piece of media.
Is it:
A) The Obvious reason: Hey, here is a commercial full of attractive young people doing things that are so free and enjoying nature and living a seemingly artful and rich life. You are just jealous of this sitting there with your workaday job and meaningless existence.
or (what I have been leaning towards)
B) This commercial is obviously the work of a 2009 Don Draper. Substitute the Cadillac and brylcream for the L train and an ipod synced to a Pitchfork RSS feed. Whomever is behind it is probably someone within the same age bracket and knows how to push buttons (music, visual aesthetic - in this case the Artsy Flicker Etsy Twee deal). This threatens you on some level because now 'we' have become 'them' (underground> mainstream, rebellion>establishment, art>pop culture).
You decide:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HG8tqEUTlvs[/youtube]
either way, it illicits a response from me. The last commercial to have done this was this commercial. It is the only time within memory where I (consciously) sought out a product via a commercial. It took around 15 plays of it before I went and bought the sandwich. it was shitty and I never bought one again.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBNMjpDmrFc[/youtube]
any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
I always thought that was a Nike commercial. Doesn't Nike also have some commercial with poetry in it? This is actually not a bad commercial compared to all the other crap commercials out there.
-
AC: I don't like the ad and I also don't really appreciate it when people talk about the 'youth of today' being 'soft serve.' Every generation has jerks/creeps/lazy people who feel they're more important than everyone else and should have everything handed to them on a silver platter. I know plenty of people like that of every possible age. The ad sucks because it does two shitty things at once; it corrupts a piece of art and makes whoever's watching it feel unglamorous and unadventurous and insecure. And then it uses that feeling to get you to buy jeans. I think it's the opposite of that 'everyone's a rockstar' thing. The point is that you are not nearly as gorgeous and exciting as these people but don't you wish you could be? Nothing to do with kids today thinking they're special.
Ps: first person to make a Youth Of Today reference/joke gets a prize.
-
It's the jeans version of the Miracle Whip commercials. "We will not be quiet. We will not try to blend it, disappear in the background, play second fiddle. When we're in a sandwich, a salad, a panini or crustini, you'll know it. We're not like t others. We won't ever try to be. We are our own mixed up blend of one of a kind spices. We are Miracle Whip, and we will not tone it down."
The mayovolution will not be televised.
-
Who you calling soft serve, Christina? Bring it on.
-
Walt Whitman is such a sellout. I can't believe he'd let Levi's corrupt his art like that.
Maybe he can reinvest some of the jeans money in Camden, the place has gone to shit.
-
I've noticed lately that the Levi's brand seems to be on an upswing in popularity with the young hip folks. However I think it has zero to do with this ad campaign and a lot to do with the fact that they've finally gotten around to making skinny jeans (too bad they'll be out of fashion again soon). Also there's a general disgust at the $200 price tag on your other popular brands like Nudie.
I thought that Burger Kind guy was Darius Rucker for the first 15 seconds.
-
The youth of today, so sensitive.
One of today's youth who got uppity about what I said has no problem constantly insulting me for being 39. (not you emma, the other one.)
-
I think the older you get, the more irritating (or easy to ignore, depending on your temprament) it is when carefree youth is used to sell anything.
I'm older than any of youse, and it's not the use of youth to sell that bothers me about these commercials; it's the astounding pretentiousness/presumptuousness of using that text. Not that I have any particular attachment to Leaves of Grass; it just annoys me when superior/more serious works are pressed--cynically and with no sense of humor--into service in support of lesser/more trivial/more mundane ones.
Now get off my lawn.
-
Don't worry, in about 5-10 years we will all exit the key demographic for marketing and suddenly find ourselves staring at anything produced on TV or similar outlets in a state of utter bewilderment. Who and what is that? Why is everything so loud? KIDS THESE DAYS!
-
You get deafer as you get older, senorcorazon; the loudness is appreciated.
-
You get deffer as you get older, senorcorazon; the loudness is appreciated.
-
I guess as a consumer of their products, I feel that they don't even need advertising. the fact is that I have pretty much only worn Levi's during jeans phases, going all the way back to my teenage years. I'm one of those American Classics bozos: I like converse, levi's, budweiser, etc. (even though they are all now produced by/ owned by foreign entities) because it connects me somehow with this time when the USA was (seemingly) on an upswing, rather than on the decent. Might have something to do with my first memories being of the bicentennial.
Watching that Alien commercial that scratchbomb posted, definitely hit me emotionally. I haven't seen that commercial in close to 30 years, yet it hit me as being so familiar and nostalgic and comforting (I could almost feel myself in the family room watching it during saturday morning cartoons). It's crazy how this stuff stays with you.
Don't get me wrong, I am not Mr. Adbusters here. Advertising has it's place in our economy. It was just that this commercial seemed to hit a few key notes that resonated with me. It's more that I hate the fact that I like it.
-
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3gFCSKMo70&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Is that Ken Nordine's voice I hear?
-
The youth of today, so sensitive.
One of today's youth who got uppity about what I said has no problem constantly insulting me for being 39. (not you emma, the other one.)
I have never once insulted you for your age. I may have pointed it out once or twice, but that's totally different....
-
I thought that Burger Kind guy was Darius Rucker for the first 15 seconds.
I'm almost certain that it is.
Hi. I've seen this commerical 3 times. It was on again tonight during 30 Rock, and it just enraged me. I would like (hopefully, with your help) to figure out why the F I might feel so negatively towards this particular piece of media.
Is it:
A) The Obvious reason: Hey, here is a commercial full of attractive young people doing things that are so free and enjoying nature and living a seemingly artful and rich life. You are just jealous of this sitting there with your workaday job and meaningless existence.
or (what I have been leaning towards)
B)This threatens you on some level because now 'we' have become 'them' (underground> mainstream, rebellion>establishment, art>pop culture).
You decide:
Can I choose both?
This stuff drives me nuts (the pseudo-"Indie" nature of EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE, ALL THE TIME right now, and of course, it's nothing new) . And I get mad at myself, because Emma's right, I feel insecure and unattractive, and then mad and full of resent, and I like skinny jeans and Converse because the Ramones wore them (that 15 year old part of me is taking a mighty long time to grow up) - and they were the biggest bunch of mutant-looking mutherfuckers ever, and that was also part of why they were appealing to me. It's just another case of "Snobs vs Slobs." And also why I want to punch Vampire Weekend in their Ivy League faces.
They're fucking jeans and maybe that's why it's so infuriating.
First World problems.
-
I have never once insulted you for your age. I may have pointed it out once or twice, but that's totally different....
riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. Once or twice.
-
[youtube]sXwrCQIB0o0[/youtube]
I don't think they were soft serve.
-
You get deffer as you get older, senorcorazon; the loudness is appreciated.
It's true; I am pretty hep. Goldangit.
-
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3gFCSKMo70&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Is that Ken Nordine's voice I hear?
Yup. He narrated a bunch of Levi's ads in the 70s; YouTube it and you'll find a slew of them.
-
Thanks, but nah.
-
I hate everything.
-
Copycat.
-
I hate everything.
My other self.
-
Copycat.
My other other self.
-
Hi. I've seen this commerical 3 times. It was on again tonight during 30 Rock, and it just enraged me. I would like (hopefully, with your help) to figure out why the F I might feel so negatively towards this particular piece of media.
Is it:
A) The Obvious reason: Hey, here is a commercial full of attractive young people doing things that are so free and enjoying nature and living a seemingly artful and rich life. You are just jealous of this sitting there with your workaday job and meaningless existence.
or (what I have been leaning towards)
B) This commercial is obviously the work of a 2009 Don Draper. Substitute the Cadillac and brylcream for the L train and an ipod synced to a Pitchfork RSS feed. Whomever is behind it is probably someone within the same age bracket and knows how to push buttons (music, visual aesthetic - in this case the Artsy Flicker Etsy Twee deal). This threatens you on some level because now 'we' have become 'them' (underground> mainstream, rebellion>establishment, art>pop culture).
You decide:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HG8tqEUTlvs[/youtube]
either way, it illicits a response from me. The last commercial to have done this was this commercial. It is the only time within memory where I (consciously) sought out a product via a commercial. It took around 15 plays of it before I went and bought the sandwich. it was shitty and I never bought one again.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBNMjpDmrFc[/youtube]
any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
Ew, that commercial is brutal.
Doesn't it also maybe vaguely tie in with that New weird American pioneer aesthetic/freak folk scene that was happening there for awhile. You know, it was all over Arthur Magazine. Maybe it was the poem, or the gun shot. Anything?
-
Copycat.
You think you invented this?
-
Hell, no. I just think I got there before you did, kid. An accident of birth.
-
I just found out that a recording of Walt Whitman's actual voice is used in the black & white America ad. That's pretty cool. He sounds a little like William Burroughs. Weird.
-
The Beats were really into Whitman, especially Kerouac.
-
What?!
-
Ginsberg definitely owed a lot to him.
-
I am already 40.
Why is this forum so loud?
-
I am already 40.
Why is this forum so loud?
Take it outside, gramps. This is a place for cooling off after kickball and blow, not icing your knees and listening to Bill Moyers. Young people are full of life and ready to buy stuff!
-
I never saw that Burger King commercial. I kinda love it. Another Crispin Porter & Bogusky classic.
The levi's spot was directed by Cary Fukunaga, writer director of Sin Nombre, this year's City of God.
And Grote, I appreciated the YOT reference immensely.
-
Thanks, but Emma got there first. I am but a vessel!
-
I am already 40.
Why is this forum so loud?
Take it outside, gramps. This is a place for cooling off after kickball and blow, not icing your knees and listening to Bill Moyers. Young people are full of life and ready to buy stuff!
That's it. I'm going inside and calling the police.
But back to the topic of this thread: The thing about the Levi's ad that bothers me is that it is full of people who put a higher value on looks rather than brains. Yet the audio is Walt Whitman. Sorry if I am pre-judging these young models, but I feel relatively confident that the vast majority of them have no idea who Whitman was. If the audio was a mindless dance track, I would not have a problem with the ad at all. That disconnect, and the weak attempt at intellectualism is what makes me want to never stop throwing up.
I am not saying that I am any kind of English professor; I don't even know much about Whitman. But I am also not running around on TV with a Whitman poem playing. If I were running around on TV, I would have the writings of Dan Dennett or the music of King Crimson playing.
Aaaaaand that is why no one is asking me to sell their jeans.
-
Although, I think it is just a tad bit pretentious, I will say that it is probably the most aesthetically pleasing commercial I have seen in a while. But will it compel an individual to go out and buy a pair of Levi's? I don't know.
EDIT: Here is a link to Slate's review of the "America (Go Forth)" ad. I think it's a pretty interesting read.
http://www.slate.com/toolbar.aspx?action=print&id=2233597 (http://www.slate.com/toolbar.aspx?action=print&id=2233597)
-
Wow, that wax cylinder recording for the first spot sounds pretty damn amazing, I'd like to see that ad. Thanks, nec13.
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/20157
-
If memory serves, that Burger King commercial was directed by David LaChapelle:
(http://images.artnet.com/artwork_images_425324282_369633_david-lachapelle.jpg)
Also, this douchebag is responsible for all of those awful Burger King commercials, especially the creepy Wake Up with the King series:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWzGB3QBRUk
-
If memory serves, that Burger King commercial was directed by David LaChapelle:
(http://images.artnet.com/artwork_images_425324282_369633_david-lachapelle.jpg)
Also, this douchebag is responsible for all of those awful Burger King commercials, especially the creepy Wake Up with the King series:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWzGB3QBRUk
I find that video pretty funny. Love or hate or don't give a shit about Crispin Porter Bogusky, their story is a cool one and they've had absolutely brilliant ideas, especially when they were small and working with little money. I own their book, Hoopla, which is really fascinating. (They also basically launched the career of Joel McHale with those Burger King ads.) A good friend of mine worked for them a few years ago, and according to him, the days of them making great stuff are well behind them.
-
Regarding those Whitman audio clips, I remember reading that Daniel Day-Lewis used them as a template for Bill the Butcher's accent in Gangs of New York.
Now I always think about how Walt Whitman is gonna throw garbage at immigrants and murder me.
-
Now I always think about how Walt Whitman is gonna throw garbage at immigrants and murder me.
He may be known for writing Leaves of Grass, but he'd rather make you eat a lawnmower.
-
I think that we all hate this commercial because we know these people. And while usually we try our best to avoid them, THEY'RE HERE!, and they've got Whitman on backing vocals.
I always just laugh at commercials like this when I imagine the subjects acting the same way in total silence, no music or words. Just how boring and uninterested they'd get after 5 seconds of running around aimlessly.