Thanks to friend Konchog Norbu for pointing out this Mercedes-Benz ad from a couple years back. I kinda thought I’d posted it here, but no.
As a Mac user, I have no need for Norton products. And now I feel especially glad about that, having just seen this current ad of theirs. Note the ending lines.
Sheesh. What a mad, mad, mad, mad worldview.
Sleeping Beauty actress Emily Browning has told CBS News Entertainment that she dealt with possible discomfort while filming nude scenes for that film via the practice of meditation. Her words:
“I taught myself to meditate in those scenes. I wasn’t present in those scenes at all, so they didn’t really have as much effect on me.”
That’s cool that she found a way to deal, but does that sound like meditation to you? She may not have been sleeping, but she doesn’t seem to have really been awake, either.
By now you’ve probably seen the Super Bowl ad that, perhaps more than any other ever, got people talking: Groupon’s ad featuring Timothy Hutton. (Click here to see it in previous coverage.) Yes, it got people talking, but not in a good way. Its convoluted pro-Tibet messaging, which then turned on a dime into selfish concerns, will be legendary for the way it turned viewers off. Part of a campaign called “Save the Money,” the ad, and its ilk have been discontinued. (more…)
C’mon, Groupon, — and, Timothy Hutton. Did you really think this was going to come off well?
You may very well have lost more customers than you could’ve gained with that one.
Really: The initial online chatter about this ad has been very strong — strongly opposed, that is, with many people proudly announcing on social media, via the “#Groupon” hashtag, that they find the ad exploitative and will no longer support the bulk-couponing/group discount service.
And yet: Groupon is actually trying to raise money for The Tibet Fund. See here. This is not backpedaling; the site you’ll see when you follow that link was live when the commercial aired. The question is: will it work?
Maybe. But not too long after the Super Bowl had ended, the Wall Street Journal had already published an online piece called “That Was Fast – Groupon’s Super Bowl Ad Draws Backlash” and an online Facebook group decrying the ad had been created. Clearly, if Groupon was interested in raising money for the Tibet Fund, that message did not come through.
(Do you want to help Tibet? The Shambhala Sun’s special “Helping Tibet” page, full of organizations you’ll be proud to support, is a fine place to start.)
Update: As New York’s Vulture entertainment blog now writes, Guess who directed this commercial?
…is found printed on a Domino’s pizza box, as discovered (and sent to the Horse) by none other than the mighty Thanissaro Bhikkhu, teacher, friend, and abbot of Metta Forest Monastery:
Much gratitude to him for sending it.
Those who’ve been following (for example) Osamu Tezuka’s Buddha graphic novel and its film adaptation, or Deepak Chopra’s “Buddha” comic book, know that it’s not so new to mix Buddhism and comics. But it does seem to work, and one Buddhist temple is getting in on the act. As Culture Clash Daily reports:
This month [Japan's Ryohoji] Temple unveiled its new “moe Buddhist [signboard],” [rendered in an animation-based style] combining modern and ancient art. [This development came about after the temple's chief priest, Shoko Nakazato] displayed a picture of “moe” outside the temple to welcome passers by. Moe is a traditional Japanese slang word often for a young girl, and associated with innocence, love and caring.
According to Shoko Nakazato, young people and the media have been flocking to the temple ever since. (The temple’s website takes a similar approach, also depicting and blending moe and Buddhist imagery.) But as one visitor told The Japan Times, “I’m afraid that the temple will end up being just a mecca for fans of manga and anime, which is probably not the temple’s intention.” As for the artist behind the sign? She says that while she “was initially worried she might be doing something ‘indiscreet,’” [she] concluded that even if the sign was controversial, it might lead people to visit the temple and think about religion.”
Toldja about this on The Worst Horse the other day. Here’s the actual video:
So. Thoughts?
Remember this ad?
Well, the Detroit News is now reporting that it has a sequel.
The Dalai Lama is in a hastily shot commercial for Fiat SpA, partner of Chrysler Group LLC in a follow-up to a controversial Chrysler ad from a year ago.
The commercial was shot in Hiroshima where the Buddhist leader is addressing the 11th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates this weekend.
It was quickly edited and is already airing, Olivier Francois, head of marketing for both Chrysler and Fiat, told The Detroit News at a Chrysler drive event in San Francisco Saturday.
The Horse hopes to have it to you soon. UPDATE: Here it is:
