In a terrible and ridiculously smut-filled year for Superbowl commercials, this was the one bright spot.
I love the way baby Darth reacts at the end. Awesome.
A commenter sent in a link telling us that the child who plays Baby Darth has a history of heart issues and thanks to some great work by doctors at the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles his prognosis is excellent.
At the tender age of 6, Max Page has already made a name for himself as an actor. The young man is a member of the cast of “The Young and the Restless,” and has become an overnight YouTube sensation as the little “man behind the Darth Vader mask” in a Volkswagen ad that will air during the NFL’s Super Bowl XLV. In 24 hours, the number of hits to the TV commercial went from 1.5 million on Thursday to more than 7 million on Friday.
“Now, I make a point to look them all in the eye and say, ‘Hello.’”
It’s hard to imagine that at 4-months of age, Max was diagnosed with Tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect in children. At that time, Buck and Jennifer Page brought their infant son to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where he received a pacemaker.
You can check out the rest of the story here. It’s kind of press release-y but it’s still wonderful.
February 7, 2011 at 1:51 pm
This one was good.
I have to admit, though, that the Snickers ad made me laugh out loud – there's just something viscerally funny about Roseanne Barr getting smacked with a log, y'know?
February 7, 2011 at 2:17 pm
This is a very special ad, and it kind of hits home. My son Sam (2 years old) was born with a congenital heart defect, and his future is uncertain. A little boy in Los Angeles has a very similar defect, and he was chosen to be "Darth" for this video. Here is a link for the story: http://eon.businesswire.com/news/eon/20110205005011/en
Little children like this boy Max and my son Sam are living, walking miracles.
February 7, 2011 at 2:38 pm
Why does nobody remember the Chevy Truck that pulls up and beeps and flashes and the owner says "What? Tommy has fallen in the well?" and so on and so on. Hilarious.
I also liked the Dorito ad where the roommate sprinkles crushed Doritos into the fish tank, the dying house plant and…. well, check the rerun.
There were some vulagar ones ("I want to sleep with her, I want to sleep with her….") but lots of wit.
February 7, 2011 at 2:40 pm
Therese –agreed. Like I needed a REASON to never drink Pepsi Max….now I have one.
February 7, 2011 at 2:58 pm
Agree–definitely the best ad, but like all the other ads, don't think it will lead to increased sales.
February 7, 2011 at 3:02 pm
Pepsi max is very offensive. Hitting a white blonde woman in the head with a can of soda by a black couple? Sick.
February 7, 2011 at 3:18 pm
The "Imported from Detroit" Chrysler commercial with Eminem was excellent.
The voiceover, his "Lose Your" beat, the photography/art/architecture of Detroit, the gorgeous Fox Theater and the wonderful Gospel choir culminating with Em's intense and accented delivery of the Tag-line – very striking and memorable. He’s the perfect choice and the perfect champion for that city/industry.
Made me emotional and proud and I’m a 49 year old women who doesn’t like rap music.
February 7, 2011 at 4:11 pm
A cute commercial was the one where the guy swerved to miss the beaver. Then 6 months later the guy's life is saved when a beaver fells a tree in order to warn the guy away from the bridge collapse.
Least favorite: definitely the Go Daddy. And Pepsi is crap anyway.
February 7, 2011 at 4:25 pm
There were quite a few distasteful commercials that had me very uncomfortable watching them with my 80+ year old grandparents. The Kim Kardashian Sketchers ad was nothing short of soft core porn and TOTALLY inappropriate. Don't even get me started on the Doritos finger sucking ad…
The Darth Vader ad was easily the best, though. I like the Careerbuilder ad as well.
February 7, 2011 at 5:08 pm
Yep, I gotta disagree with you on this one, Patrick–respectfully, of course! I submit that there was more than one bright spot, my personal fave being the kid-in-a-candy-store CarMax commercial.
For several of them, we just clicked away. We had already established this habit during the regular season, particularly during the ads for the TV14 programs.
February 7, 2011 at 5:37 pm
Anon who like the Chrysler ad – yeah, that ad made me feel something too – but not the same as you. Being a metro Detroit resident, I found it insulting that a company who begged for US tax payer funds to avoid bankruptcy (still hasn't paid all of them back, either, and never will), allowed the US gov't to screw the bond holders while giving the union greater and undeserved control of the company, and then used my tax money to pay an overhyped rapper money to promote a crappy car, for an extended ad that reportedly cost around $9 million – suffice it to say I found that ad offensive. What was it that Eminem said in the ad – "This is how we do it Detroit"? Yeah – rely on the feds, cater to the unions and expect other people to solve your problems. Sorry – that just didn't wash for me.
And Detroit has a long looooooong way to go before it digs itself out of the hole of its own making. That ad, while 'hopeful', qualifies as false advertising, in my opinion.
February 7, 2011 at 6:07 pm
LarryD-
I'm the Anon with the post and I understand your point. I too am from a rustbelt city in PA that gave up the industrial ghost a long time ago. I have a brother who went to GMI and worked for GM in Flint/Detroit for many years. Though we've only ever owned American cars, before or after the commercial I was not likely to buy a Chrysler. That having been said, I still feel the intended message of the Eminem spot was conveyed brilliantly.
February 7, 2011 at 6:27 pm
I also liked the other VW ad with the real beetle painted with white racing stripes scurrying along the forest floor, fading to a silhouette of the new beetle automobile.
The Pepsi ad was pathetic.
February 7, 2011 at 6:33 pm
Hilarious. I like the scene with the baby the way he bring his second hand into play for extra "force"
February 7, 2011 at 7:01 pm
I'm with Anon – I had actually stopped watching the game and was playing the piano with headphones on, and somehow the beginning of that ad grabbed my attention. I stopped what I was doing, watched – mesmerized – and when it was over, just said "Wow". It was a terrific ad.
February 7, 2011 at 8:04 pm
I like the Beaver ad too.
February 8, 2011 at 5:46 am
The Chrysler ad is bad on so many levels: first of all, Eminem wouldn't be caught dead driving a Chrysler 200 (just a warmed-over Sebring); he probably drives an Escalade, if he drives American at all. And so Chrysler believes the best person to represent Motown is a tattooed, foul-mouthed street-thug from 8 Mile? And given their dire financial straits–why are they wasting several million dollars to make and broadcast this commercial? Hmmmm… it's deja-vu all over again: remember when the geniuses at Chrysler employed another foul-mouthed street thug–Snoop Dog–to tout their cars on TV? With Lee Iacocca, no less!
February 8, 2011 at 7:02 pm
LOL and ditto to Larry D's first comment! I didn't even know that was Rosanne! She lost some weight, but she's still obnoxious…
February 9, 2011 at 1:32 pm
Ludovico-
I think you missed the point of the Chrysler spot. This commercial was not created to sell the "Chrysler 200" (it just happens to be their new car at the moment). This commercial was created to revive a brand and motivate the buying public to believe in an ideal of American determination and quality. The beat of "Lose Yourself" exudes this feeling to a younger generation the way the theme from Rocky did for us older folk (It won an Oscar for this very reason). As for his owning the product, Eminem owns many new and vintage American made cars – he grew up in Detroit! I can think of no better person to sell the concept of the American car than the most famous resident son of that city Eminem has gone well beyond a "street thug from 8 mile”; he is the best selling artist of the past 10 years and the best selling artist of 2010. OK – I don’t like the language he sometimes uses, but I know enough about rhyme and meter to understand that he is an exceptional talent comparable to the best poets of the past century. Since this is a religious blog concerned with values, let’s remember that Mr. Mathers is a very devoted father who has desperately tried to retain his relationship with his one and only wife and keep his family intact while protecting his children (one adopted) and keeping them out of the public eye. Chrysler is comparing themselves to the ruggedness and reality of Detroit/Eminem and hoping to achieve the accolades in the car world that Eminem has received in the music world. This commercial was all about authenticity and sincerity. The Snoop Dog commercial, though featuring a rapper was aimed at humor.