Another video from Japan. Utterly perplexing.
As a person likely to suffer from dangerously high blood pressure at some point- both parents and various members of the family have been afflicted in the past- I'm often looking out for handy applications for it in order to ensure that I put it to good use. As increasing the chance of strokes or heart attacks isn't really classified as a handy application, it would appear that I'm some way off finding a practical use for the condition that will likely affect me in the future. So step forward Japan, again thinking outside the box.
Watching this advert, I had absolutely no idea what they were selling, it had more twists and turns than the Cambridge one-way system. First of all I thought it was a PSA about forest fires, then I thought it was a PSA about workplace accidents (I have seen some workplace accident videos that are as convoluted and complex as the Final Destination films when it comes to dispatching employees). Eventually it transpired that it was for tea.
Showing posts with label Japan is odd. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Japan is odd. Show all posts
Friday, 9 July 2010
Sunday, 11 April 2010
Calbee- A Japanese Brand of Crisp, apparently
Usually when I look at adverts, I can see the ideas that underpin them. Even with the Mercedes adverts a couple of weeks ago, where they didn’t relate to the car, it was obviously building a brand more than anything else. However, there is an entire genre of adverts (adverts can have genres right?) that I can’t begin to understand. In what is going to no doubt become a regular part of this blog, here is a post about an advert from Japan:
If for some reason, you cannot see what is going on in the advert, I’ll attempt to explain what is going on:
0:01-0:05 Ah ok, I see a child walking home from school, judging from the comic book-esque thought bubble, he’s unhappy about something. And there’s a dog too. Although there’s something not right about it.
0:06-0:07 Apparently the dog has stopped the child. By putting his paw on his shoulder. From a standing position.
0:08-0:09 What the hell is going on? Why does that dog have a disembodied ear? He appears to have a message written on some paper, my ability to read Japanese is a little shaky, but I can’t see any way that couldn’t be a threat. Judging by the kid’s grave expression, I think its safe to assume that that ear has been taken from one of his parents. We could well have a hostage situation here.
0:10-0:12 Ok, I didn’t think it was possible, but this advert has got even more odd. The dog now has the head of a doll. Still holding the message, in addition to some sort of racket? The kid has taken this remarkably in his stride, still stoically mourning the loss of his parents.
0:13-0:16 Jesus Christ the dog is mobile: Doing some sort of curious dance, then walking on its hands, mysteriously donning a pair of shorts to do a handstand in (I think by this point its safe to accept that it is in fact a man in a fairly unconvincing dog suit).
0:17-0:20 Er, a doggy fan dance, and not a particularly good one, as it’s doing a very poor job of covering up its pubic region. Thank god it’s been neutered.
0:21 I see the kid has obviously forgotten the sorry matter of this dog taking his parents hostage (probably), choosing instead to chase a bit of tail.
0:22-0:23 Oh no, the dog’s back in an intense shot that lingers a little uncomfortably. He looks mad. I think those poor children are next. Is nothing sacred?
0:24-0:30 My mistake, apparently he has a peace offering. Something in a packet (damn my poor grasp of Japanese), apparently crisps. Yeah, that’ll bring back his parents. And canine star jumps. Nothing about this advert makes any sense.
As far as I can tell, the message behind this advert is “Hi kids, eat Calbee potato chips or a guy dressed as dog will take your parents hostage and perform clumsy burlesque in your garden”. Perhaps this is a cultural in-joke that I don’t understand.
If for some reason, you cannot see what is going on in the advert, I’ll attempt to explain what is going on:
0:01-0:05 Ah ok, I see a child walking home from school, judging from the comic book-esque thought bubble, he’s unhappy about something. And there’s a dog too. Although there’s something not right about it.
0:06-0:07 Apparently the dog has stopped the child. By putting his paw on his shoulder. From a standing position.
0:08-0:09 What the hell is going on? Why does that dog have a disembodied ear? He appears to have a message written on some paper, my ability to read Japanese is a little shaky, but I can’t see any way that couldn’t be a threat. Judging by the kid’s grave expression, I think its safe to assume that that ear has been taken from one of his parents. We could well have a hostage situation here.
0:10-0:12 Ok, I didn’t think it was possible, but this advert has got even more odd. The dog now has the head of a doll. Still holding the message, in addition to some sort of racket? The kid has taken this remarkably in his stride, still stoically mourning the loss of his parents.
0:13-0:16 Jesus Christ the dog is mobile: Doing some sort of curious dance, then walking on its hands, mysteriously donning a pair of shorts to do a handstand in (I think by this point its safe to accept that it is in fact a man in a fairly unconvincing dog suit).
0:17-0:20 Er, a doggy fan dance, and not a particularly good one, as it’s doing a very poor job of covering up its pubic region. Thank god it’s been neutered.
0:21 I see the kid has obviously forgotten the sorry matter of this dog taking his parents hostage (probably), choosing instead to chase a bit of tail.
0:22-0:23 Oh no, the dog’s back in an intense shot that lingers a little uncomfortably. He looks mad. I think those poor children are next. Is nothing sacred?
0:24-0:30 My mistake, apparently he has a peace offering. Something in a packet (damn my poor grasp of Japanese), apparently crisps. Yeah, that’ll bring back his parents. And canine star jumps. Nothing about this advert makes any sense.
As far as I can tell, the message behind this advert is “Hi kids, eat Calbee potato chips or a guy dressed as dog will take your parents hostage and perform clumsy burlesque in your garden”. Perhaps this is a cultural in-joke that I don’t understand.
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