The Burger King Super Bowl ad used footage from the 1982 film 66 Scenes of America from Danish filmmaker Jørgen Leth. The fact that the Heinz ketchup doesn't pour well lends authenticity since Heinz promoted the thickness of its ketchup throughout the 1970s. The Whopper is also very minimalist, so if there are other ingredients, they aren't visible.
We are invited in the ad to #EatLikeAndy, which would be inviting if we could consume the product from that time. The bun Warhol eats likely didn't have high-fructose corn syrup and the ketchup would have been free of high-fructose corn syrup. That burger would taste better than the current model.
Leth said in an interview that Warhol initially suggested they use McDonald's.
Unlike most companies who use dead celebrities, you could likely conclude that Warhol would appreciate the idea of using the footage in an ad.
The target audience of younger people may not be that familiar with Warhol. If people are going to #EatLikeAndy, they will eat a small bite of a Whopper and not eat any other Burger King food.
---
Kristin Chenoweth was in the latest Avocados from Mexico ad with a reverse play on dog shows where human performed the tricks. The guacamole was incorporated in the ad unlike a lot of food ads. This ad was closer to the best than the worst of the Avocados from Mexico ads. The hard part is that avocados haven't looked as good in the stores and have gone up in price. Then again, the avocados I saw in the Santa Monica farmers market last week looked gorgeous. I would pay more to get the avocados of old.
Chenoweth added sparkle to the ad and nice on the part to have a female lead in the series of ads.
---
Super Bowl ads can be good to publicize a little known company. Devour frozen foods from Kraft Heinz have been around for about 3 years. That was literally news to me. The ad features a couple where the husband has turned into the "3-minute man" — a double entendre that ties into the food porn mentality of the company. The entrees are more exotic than typical frozen food.
The ad was rather good to spark curiosity. However, frozen food doesn't inspire food porn IRL.
---
Chance The Rapper combined with the Backstreet Boys to remake I Want It That Way for the new Flamin' Hot flavor for Doritos. I remembered the song but had to look up which boy group did the song. Yes, I recognized Chance better than the Backstreet Boys. Flamin' hot snacks have a certain niche appeal and this ad will help out that flavor. That said: Cheetos (fellow Frito-Lay product) does it pretty well. A good ad for the target audience for the product.
Super Bowl ad analysis in recent years
2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2011
Corn syrup came up in a non-food ad for Bud Light. The Budweiser product noted that Miller Lite and Coors Light had corn syrup while Bud Light did not. Corn syrup is different from high-fructose corn syrup but having corn syrup in a beer does seem odd. Then again, there are beers outside of the 3 listed options that taste better and don't have corn syrup.
---
Pringles had another stackables ad. The concept hasn't changed, incorporating jalapeno, cheddar, as well as sour cream and onion. The problem is that people aren't going to buy 3 different canisters to produce these combinations. The ad hits the target audience but will get lost in the wave of Super Bowl ads that were more clever.
---
Planters had a really good ad, complete with a Planters peanut-shaped vehicle and a funny Charlie Sheen cameo. Mr. Peanut saves a guy from eating kale chips, giving him mixed nuts. The only drawback was having Alex Rodriguez in the ad. Planters promotes protein; Rodriguez is known for (allegedly) using steroids. He didn't get strong (allegedly) from eating nuts. Rodriguez doesn't add anything to the ad and is a detriment.
---
Drink and candy ads were:
- Michael Bublé for Bubly. This felt like a spin-off on the Bai Super Bowl commercial with Justin Timberlake and Christopher Walken. The latter ad will be better remembered than the 2019 spin-off.
- The Bon & Viv Spiked Seltzer ad was a bit muddled in the beginning and kept thinking this was a goof ad. If this ad keeps running, the ad may improve with more visiblity.
- The Pepsi ad with Steve Carell, Cardi B, and Lil Jon fell within the Pepsi ad spectrum where the ad is about visual distractions. I've never seen a Pepsi ad to this day that reflects on the quality of the actual product. The commercial also likely suffered being at the end of the first quarter when people are running for the bathrooms.
- Christina Applegate was in a cute spot for the M&Ms chocolate bar. This ad actually incorporated the product since the M&Ms were stuck together in the chocolate bar. Was fun watching the actress who played Kelly Bundy be the mom. A good ad that will need more exposure in the coming weeks.
photo credit: Burger King
Comments