By now everyone has probably seen the VW "Bark Side" teaser commercial and thought to themselves this is frickin awesome. What most people aren't thinking is, "What does VW have to do with Star Wars?" or "I don't get how barking dogs has anything to do with German engineering?" The point is that IT DOESN'T MATTER. A good commercial or campaign idea that engages an audience doesn't always have to make sense for a brand, in some ways like VW, it's better.
This reminds me of two advertising lessons I learned at BU:
1. Make the ordinary feel strange and the strange feel ordinary
2. When in doubt, babies and puppies
Deutsch LA must have taken the same course because last year's 'The Force' commercial with mini Darth Vader was an instant hit and gained a ton of earned media mentions--morning show interviews, news articles, shares--and was one of the more memorable/talked about Super Bowl TV spots. This year, the 'Bark Side' teaser uses the "force" of dogs put us under a viral video spell.
The only similarity between 'The Bark Side' and last year's commercial is: 1) Imperial March theme song 2) Star Wars costume, and again ≠to VW, Cars or German engineering but still absolutely brilliant. I hope advertisers see that a strong campaign idea doesn't always need to stem from a theme or topic that is highly relevant to a brand. I mean, the only similarity I see between VW and Star Wars is the Passat is the color of the Death Star.
While the Star Wars theme feel a bit "forced" (haha) onto the VW brand--see the Intergalactic Invite at vw.com/star-wars-invite below--I'm eating it all up. Can't wait to send out Star Wars invites to my possibly Star Wars themed Super Bowl party.
With over 2 million views (I'll take credit for 20 of them) in one day on YouTube, VW's "The Force" commercial starring a mini Darth Vader and the new 2012 Passat is already generating buzz even before airing in this Sunday's Super Bowl. Created by VW's US agency of record Deutsch LA, the one-minute spot is as epic as Star Wars itself--it's a tall tale of a tiny and determined boy who attempts and fails to use "the force" to defeat large and innocent household objects (those laundry machines are HUGE), but when faced against his largest opponent (a sleek looking Passat), mini Darth Vader and his really expressive hands are victorious.
The rewatch value on this spot is ridiculous (I'm probably up to 30 views by now). Maybe it's because I love Star Wars and I REALLY love kids... but probably has more to do with the fact that me and the rest of America BELIEVE THE FORCE IS REAL. Great consumer discovery Deutsch, now how did you get around using Star Wars without crediting George Lucas... poor Droid ads.
You can watch the full spot here, OR...
Enjoy a special scene-by-scene commentary:
Opening scene--John Williams' The Imperial March is playing, Commerical is already awesome but wait it gets better... DARTH VADER!
First Mission, Destroy Stupid Pointless Stationary Bike... Huuhtsszzzzzz (force sounds)
HHUUHHTZZZZZZ...the new Life Fitness heart monitoring ability is too powerful...
Onto Cody, my stupid lazy dog who broke my Nintendo DS! Huhhtsszzzzzzz (wide open fingers force!)
Cody is paralyzed by the force so I will destroy other innocent things in the meantime, HUUHHTSZZZ TAKE THAT LARGE CLEANING MACHINES (time out, who the hell has washing machines this large in their homes)
I will suck your stupid brains out baby Leia if the pinkness of this room hasn't done so already, Huhhtsszzzzz...
HHUHHTSZZZZ(DOUBLE PALM)ZZZZZZZZ
Ahhh your innocent glare is too strong for my force... don't. look. into. the. eyes.
CODY!
If I squeeze my fingers really carefully and hold very still maybe I can force my mom to buy me Lunchables
NOO MOM, not PB&J again!... What is that I hear? My evil arch nemesis Skywalker, now a more powerful 170 horsepower V6 engine car?
NO DAD, get out of my WAY!
"We meet again, Young Skywalker." (Great Interior Product Shot, touche)
HHHUHHHTTSSZZZZZZ(DOUBLE PALM)ZZZZZZ
(Darth Vader's force pierces through Skywalker. Skywalker lets out one last moan)
HUH? Did I defeat the Young Skywalker?
No, actually push button start is a a new feature of the 2012 Passat that allows you to heat up the car from the outside of the vehicle (taken directly from VW's website)
This is me (Zeny) still speaking now: The dad is kind of hot, he has a cute Creative Director vibe
Darth Vader discovers how truly powerful he is and realizes he needs a nap. End Scene.
