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Greatest. Commercial. Ever.

I know, old news, it came out in 2003, but something reminded me of it today and I wanted to see it again. Sure enough, I found it online here (I love the Internet), as well as info about the making of it.



I first saw this spot when it ran before a movie at the Metreon. Usually commercials before movies just annoy me, but seeing this on the big screen was deeply moving. It is a truly spectacular piece of short film. It is technically and artistically impressive, but more importantly it captures perfectly the feeling of ennui, of mindless routine, and of desperate loneliness that sometimes pervades the life of a single 20-something man in his first office job out of college.

It says something very interesting about our culture that such a seemingly counter cultural message can be embedded in a car commercial. Is it subversive, did the Volkswagon corporation not fully understand what they subsidized here? Or rather, does it subtly redirect our instinct to rebel against the soulless corporations that run our lives with the seductive message that the only feasible escape is through consumerism? "Is your life empty and meaningless? Then you need a new Volkswagon convertible!"



Also, I always wondered which city this was filmed in. After studying this still, I’m pretty sure this shot was filmed here in downtown San Francisco, not far from where I work. I think it was filmed right about here. Note the angled red roof in the lower left and the Transbay Bus Terminal in the upper right are both visible in the shot, and you can see the Bay Bridge in the background.

posted by The Jabberwock @ 1:04 AM