Posting daily at 1pm central about all kinds of things. One day it's dating, the next it's TV commercials. I hope you're entertained. Professional photos on SmugMug – https://benwilder.smugmug.com
The trailer for the continuation of the latest Mission: Impossible story went public today and it was then I remembered how annoyed I was after watching The Dead Reckoning. This new one is called The Final Reckoning and my guess is that I’ll be as annoyed as I was before. Before I tell you why, or if you read this post you might already know, here’s the new trailer…
Every hero has to have a setback. Every action movie has to have a low point. These two well-known film formulas are what irritates me about Mission: Impossible. At no point did I ever think Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise’s character) was in any real danger. When an obstacle arose, he and his team always had the right tool to overcome it. There was never a moment where I thought, “Uh oh, this is the end for Ethan.”
This is going to sound silly but it reminds me of something that happened in one of the Sharknado movies, as cheesy as those were. The crew was in real danger and it would’ve been their complete demise if April Wexler (played by Tara Reid) didn’t magically all of the sudden have the power to defy the laws of nature (by flying, I think, I can’t remember exactly). Something she hadn’t done ever up to that point. In other words, there’s no real setback for the characters. They can do anything.
If Ethan Hunt has the skills and tools to overcome every challenge, why are we even watching these movies? How are we supposed to root for the hero/underdog if they’re amazing at everything?
I’ll end up watching The Final Reckoning, but rest assured I’ll write about how frustrated I was and possibly even secretly rooting for the bad guys… they, in fact, have the biggest obstacles to overcome.
This is the 5th Dick’s commercial I’ve written about which means one of two things must be true: 1. Dick’s is putting together some great ads (see the list below) or 2. I’m posting a blog every day and will write about almost anything. You know there’s always a secret third option, right? And yes, that means both #1 and #2 are true! Dick’s had one of the best sports commercials I’ve ever seen with this one and now they’ve come up with a less serious– dare I call it funny– commercial with a great coupling of sports equipment AND classic holiday films. Check it out to see if you can name all the movies they pay homage to with an ad they call “A Watt Holiday Classic”…
The Movies. How did you do guessing which movies are spoofed in the commercial? They stuck to the classics to make it easy for us to catch on. Here’s the list and definitely let me know if I missed any…
Home Alone.
Elf.
A Christmas Story.
Love Actually.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.
I love that they included one of the best scenes in a movie ever. The scene stars the lovely Keira Knightley and “The Walking Dead” actor Andrew Lincoln. Three words (or is it two?) have never hit me this hard in a film. Enough… enough, now.
Something tells me it wouldn’t have gone over well if J.J. Watt kissed the security guard so a hug was enough… enough, now. The Dick’s commercial is a touchdown. It would’ve been a game-winning-overtime-touchdown if they had done one extra little scene as an homage to a controversial Christmas movie. This film’s inclusion on some Christmas movie lists is probably the reason kids have divorced parents. It’s THAT hot of a discussion. No, not Violent Night (great movie, by the way). I’m, of course, talking about Die Hard.
Yippee-ki-yay.
Otherwise this is a Christmas win for Dick’s Sporting Goods. I’m adding it to the list of other Dick’s ads I’ve written about, which are below:
We’re not overlooking Thanksgiving, right? Riiiiiight!? But in Zales’ defense, Thanksgiving isn’t a big jewelry swapping holiday so I guess they get a pass on their latest ad debuting in the second week of November. Also, it’s probably a good idea to give guys a lot of time to pick up something for their significant other. Aww who are we kidding, *stereotype forthcoming* they should just air the commercial December 24th so husbands and boyfriends can rush out last minute like every other year.
Men on Christmas Eve
Do you recognize the song from a commercial airing during the holidays last year? If you guessed the Amazon llama commercial you would be correct! Watch the Zales holiday ad then scroll down for more…
The Song. You might be surprised that this song isn’t called “Mamacita” …although that’s the part that’ll get stuck in your head all day. It’s by a young singer named Augie Rios and the title is “Dónde Está Santa Claus.” Here’s the full track from 1958.
Winner? Comment below with who used the song better, Amazon or Zales. I don’t want to influence your decision but dancing llamas, come on! I’m not sure anything beats groovy wildlife. But if you like beautiful people modeling expensive jewelry, go ahead and pick the Zales ad, it’s fine… you’re just dead to me.
A friend of mine asked me if I knew of any Thanksgiving movies. He brought up Planes, Trains, and Automobiles but neither of us could think of any others. Thanksgiving is often overshadowed by Christmas– just go to your local Walmart and I betcha there are Christmas decorations up already. Soon enough there will be Boy Scouts selling Christmas trees, Hallmark Channel movies every night, and lights up on your neighbor’s house (if they ever even took them down???). Thankfully, brands don’t skip past Thanksgiving when they’re putting commercials together, though. This season Hobby Lobby is airing a really sweet commercial featuring a daughter mimicking her father in the kitchen. Take a look…
People are noticing the wholesomeness of the ad. There’s a dad. There’s a mom. There’s a daughter. All three are the same race. It’s so old-fashioned and traditional especially when a lot of what we see is every race, gender, and age packed into a 30 second commercial.
I’m just a childless dog guy but I’ve noticed with my nieces and nephews (and kids, in general) that children like to imitate their parents doing chores and tasks adults do– like my nephew with his toy lawn mower as my brother mowed their yard. Or growing up, my sister had a calculator with a printer and she’d pretend to be a cashier at a grocery store. This Hobby Lobby commercial shines a spotlight on that innocent joy. Great commercial and I hope you’re able to be with people you love this holiday (Thanksgiving) season!
Amazon’s done it again. In 2023 they had a heartwarming commercial featuring adventurous grandmothers. This year they went with one of my secret dreams… to be a good singer. The short story is this: A theater janitor has a past where he performed as a singer. But that was a lifetime ago. We catch up with him now cleaning a beautiful theater, still softly singing as he does his duties. A few coworkers hear his unexpected talent and decide to put the spotlight on him as a surprise… with the help of Amazon, of course. Take a look then scroll down for more about the ad and those who appear in it.
The Singing Janitor. The actor’s name is Dimiter Marinov (Instagram @dimiter_d_marinov). Check out his website where the first line of his bio is already impressive… Dimiter Marinov is a Bulgarian-American actor, acting coach and a classical violinist. He resides in the US since 1990. So Amazon shows a great singer getting his next moment AND the actor is a talented violinist? They’re just kicking dirt in my face, aren’t they? How did they know I was almost a world-renowned classical violinist but in 4th grade, I decided to play the trumpet instead? Toot toot.
But seriously, congrats to Mr. Marinov for the starring role and kudos on an impressive job acting where the only words spoken were through body language and song. That can’t be easy. His credits on IMDb are too long to list so obviously he’s got a good thing going.
The Cast. Dimiter’s not the only one to make this ad a success, though. Appearing in an Amazon commercial is an admirable achievement because of the quality of the ads, the viewer engagement, and to just say it simply, the ads are almost always great cinema and storytelling. This one included a handful of talented actors playing key roles, one of which was performed by actor Jamal Akakpo (@JamalAkakpo). He played the part of theater staffer overlooking the janitor in the stairwell and then the climactic moment which began when he and his coworker lifted the tuxedo coat out of the Amazon box.
Jamal had this to say about his experience:
…it was a great set to be a part of. Amazon was great, they had a phenomenal creative idea and we were just lucky to help them bring it to life. I thought the message was amazing. It’s what we need right now in the world.
Amen, brother!
Haven’t we all had that sweet coworker who just seems to know what to do at the right time? In this case it’s a clever woman who ordered the tuxedo jacket and put together the private performance for theater staff. That employee (pictured above, on the right) was played by actress Terry Dexter (@TerryDexter). She describes herself as a singer/songwriter, actor/story teller, and an animal loving cat rescuer. Check her out on Spotify below. Apparently she had a great time on set working with cast and crew, this from her Instagram: I’m super honored to be a part. My heart is overflowing with love and gratitude.
She goes on to thank the folks she worked with so click here for a list of the other talented people who helped make this commercial so memorable. And give them all a follow on Instagram while you’re at it!
But Wait, There’s More! It all starts with a song and this one is from the mid-1960s. “What The World Needs Now Is Love” was originally performed by Jackie DeShannon with lyrics by Hal David and music composed by Burt Bacharach.
The ad was directed by Wayne McClammy (who’s also the genius behind this GEICO horror/comedy commercial). Companies put a lot of effort into holiday commercials, Christmas especially, and I think this commercial is airing at the right time in world, and American, history.
Can’t we all use a little more love, kindness, and free returns?
Out of the Wilderness 