Be Kind, Please Rewind

He’s an Empower Tool. He’s the…

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Week of August 26, 2011

Therapists don’t want you to get better. First up…

The Beaver

The upside to depression is that your all-black attire hides stains so well you won’t have to do laundry.

Case in point, the despondent dad in this dramedy, who is wearing something so dark, he’ll never need fabric softener again.

Depressed, ever since taking over his family’s toy company, Walter (Mel Gibson) barely speaks to his workaholic wife (Jodie Foster) and troubled sons (Anton Yelchin, Thomas Stewart).

In fact, it’s not until a failed suicide, does he find his voice – unfortunately, it's coming out of a hand puppet.

Surrendering himself to an overbearing beaver, Walter begins to mend fences at home and work with its help.

But what does the googly-eyed rodent want in return?

While its dark, quirkiness works to a degree, The Beaver’s erratic plotline grows less grounded over time. 

And while I’ve never worn a beaver on my own hand, my fingers have smelt like one before.  0

POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold

The best thing about corporations controlling the film industry is that audiences can now get a version of Romeo and Juliet, starring Aunt Jemima and the Michelin Man.

Unfortunately, there are no performances from trademarked spokes-characters in this documentary.

Fed up with product placement in movies, filmmaker Morgan Spurlock attempts to produce a documentary solely funded by advertising dollars.

While approaching every possible product representative he can find, Spurlock supplements his story with factoids from ad firms, consumer advocates (Ralph Nader) and filmmakers (J.J. Abrams, Brett Ratner, Quentin Tarantino).

A lighthearted look at the over saturation of ads in our culture, The Greatest Movie Ever Sold does prove a point – albeit an obvious one.

What’s more, the most prominent product in this documentary is Spurlock himself, whose omnipresence in front of the camera is completely unethical.

Besides, if corporations are so evil: Why did Exxonmobil accept my Facebook friend request?  0

***Commercial Breakdown***

How to Get Ahead in Advertising

The best way to get ahead in advertising is to know the devil.

Unfortunately, since the frazzled ad man in this comedy isn’t acquitted with Lucifer, he will have to get a head literally.

With a growing concern over the ethical nature of his profession, ad executive Bagley (Richard E. Grant) becomes mentally unhinged.

While struggling to come up with a slogan for a zit cream, his mania is compounded by the appearance of a pustule on his shoulder that has begun to speak to him.

In addition to the power of verbalization, over time, the abnormal abscess develops a mouth, eyes and a face, which is strikingly similar to his own, save for the moustache.

A stimulating and surreal British satire, How To Get Ahead in Advertising is a paradigm of the psychological mindset needed to survive in marketing.

Furthermore, having two heads means there’s always someone to make-out with.

He's a Re-branding Iron. He's the...

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