Tuesday, October 25, 2011

The Johnnie Walker Guy—the man your man could taste like.


(via)
Sure, it's shamelessly derivative (Old Spice Guy + World's Most Interesting Man = this jackass). But what ad "idea" isn't? I was (somewhat) entertained and I actually wanted the video to go a little longer—which never happens. Don Johnson, though, felt added on and pathetic. Ad agency: Leo Burnett, Sydney.
Three older Johnnie Walker ads here.

13 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Keep Walking" is completely stupid. Gives me the image of someone in a liquor store walking right past their bottle to something with less forced commercials.

2:53 PM  
Blogger copyranter said...

Yes it is.

2:57 PM  
Anonymous cath said...

The Old Spice guy and the most interesting man in the world were charismatic and funny. This guy makes me feel annoyed and a little nauseous. It also seems like terrible timing for this ad right now, what with the Occupy movement ongoing.

5:13 PM  
Blogger copyranter said...

The Old Spice Guy was/is drastically overrated, IMHO. Not saying this guy is better, just that I was somewhat entertained...just like with the Old Spice Guy. But yes, OWS did cross my mind, too.

5:21 PM  
Anonymous Matt said...

Please make it stop. The Most Interesting Man in the World. The Old Spice Guy. Heinekin spots featuring that idiotically scruffy young guy. Now this?!? Good god, we get it already.

Derivation is one thing, but beating the crap out a genre/style/creative approach is another beast entirely. After XX and Old Spice, they should’ve just stopped. I guess when creatives grow up in a world of remakes and reboots, there is little value placed on originality.

It was well executed though; I will give it a nod for production values. Same with the other hacky knock-offs mentioned above. Great executions, but conceptually barren.

5:23 PM  
Blogger copyranter said...

Yes. But what more can you expect from today's slick, young buck creatives who don't an idea from a hole in the ground?

5:40 PM  
Anonymous Matt said...

Sad but true, Copyranter. We all used to be young buck creatives. But we also had crusty old creative directors that had no problem reminding us that our shit does, in fact, stink.

6:06 PM  
Anonymous melanie griffith said...

desvergonzada derivado???

Puss In Boots - "The Cat Haz Swagger"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JsbSolUF5c&feature=related

7:14 PM  
Blogger Vinnie said...

Matt, you need to chill out. I agree the spot is derivative. But is it the worst or the most annoying spot recently produced? Absolutely not. I also found it entertaining. Excellent production values too.

That said, I cannot stand the Old Spice guy. I didn't care for the black guy (whatever his name was). Nor did I care for Fabio. One of the most overrated campaigns in the history of advertising. And the slogan, The man your man could smell like, is one big meh. Don't get me started on the "jokes".

8:08 PM  
Anonymous jimh said...

I was also mildly entertained, but as soon as he said "the people who run the world" I thought "1% market share".

9:14 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Making fun of the Eastern Bloc is equally derivative, but I sort of see DirecTV's "Opulence, I has it" guy as a middle finger to the other "interesting men" who, while cheeky, are still meant to be taken seriously (or else why would they be so attractive, well dressed, etc)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkB9OT2XVvA

Ehh, maybe it's just me.

11:21 PM  
Anonymous Matt said...

Easy, Vinnie. I never said it was the worst or most annoying spot produced recently. It is highly derivative and quite obvious about it. That's my point.

I gave it the only nod it deserves, production values.

Outside of that, it is an entirely forgettable execution with little-to-no originality. Do you hanestly think that spot will move the needle on sales or awareness for JW? I think not.

11:09 AM  
Anonymous Dan said...

As a "young buck creative" I can tell you with certainty that, while I thought the spot was well-made, maybe even well-written, the whole time the voice in my head was scowling and going "Rip-off, rip-off, rip-off rip-off..." the whole time. I would certainly never try to sell this idea if I was at the agency, because it just reeks of unoriginality. Besides, if they're gonna steal, fuck doing the snarky self-assured character yet again. At least steal from BBH; they're doing way better, much more on-point stuff for the brand here.

10:58 AM  

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