Super Bowl 2008 Ads

I didn't see the game but I certainly heard the screaming in the bars downstairs on Bleecker when the Giants scored the winning touchdown. That's the nice thing about living in NY. You don't have to watch the game to keep score. You know if NY won by the amazing unison roar of the fans in every bar. It's pretty cool. Of course, after 1 am I had already had it with the stupid celebrations and the honking. Really, how long can you keep it up? Isn't it enough to say "The Giants won! Yay!"?
I think you are forcing it after two minutes of hollering, and that goes to fans of every sport. Yay! is enough.
But today I saw the ads in You Tube. Once more, not too impressed. I think we suffer from computer graphics abuse in general.

My favorites:
• Surprisingly, the Coca Cola ad with the New York balloon parade. It is beautifully done and the punch line in the end is really surprising and touching. Go Charlie Brown! Go losers! I think it's the first Coke ad I like in years (except for the ones I directed myself in Venezuela - blatant tooting of my own horn here, why the hell not?).
However, the sameself company's ad with Bill Frist and Serpenthead I found utterly revolting. How much were these guys paid? I certainly hope the greenbacks are going to charity. The ad reeks of cynicism disguised as good nature. Despicable on all counts and shame on all involved. AS IF.

• The E Trade ads with the baby. Hilarious and downright unintentionally scary. Has the ad agency looked at the stock market lately? It does feel like a bunch of babies is at the helm right now. N'est pas?

• Will Ferrell for Bud Light. I think it is shameless to combine the shilling of a movie with the shilling of beer, but what do I know, it's the new paradigm, bla bla bla. All I can say is remember George Orwell. The Future is Now. Still, Will Ferrell always cracks me up and the jokes in this ad are very funny, even if the concept is as old as stale beer.

• The Bud Light ads that promise men they can breathe fire and fly would be excellent if it wasn't for the overkill of the little buttons at the end that cancel the really strong punchlines. That really ruins them. It destroys them . It neuters them. On the other hand, the Bud Light ad with the cavemen is a blatant ripoff of last year's Fedex caveman commercial which is one of my all time favorites. It is amazing to me that people can steal ideas with such impunity from Super Bowl to Super Bowl. But it really doesn't matter, 'cause it's only advertising.
I liked Carlos Mencia's controversial ad last year. This year it's just stupid.

• The Cars.com ad with the shrinking head guy is very funny. The other one is overkill.

• The Timberlake Pepsi ad. So much fire power for a promotion. Still Timberlake is very charming in it and the ad is very well done even if I am sick of CGI.

• The Audi Godfather ad is scary cool. But the coolest thing in it is the great Alex Rocco, (whom I just saw in this movie Find Me Guilty, which is so weird it deserves a whole other post), and who gives an outstanding performance as a prick mob guy.

The rest is silence.