Matthew Broderick's Day Off: Honda's New Super Bowl Ad

Tonight was like Christmas in January.  I must have been good these past few weeks because Super Bowl Santa has brought exactly what I always wanted, 6 days early! Honda has posted its Ferris Bueller themed Super Bowl commercial on YouTube.  To build the excitement better than any drum roll, read my preview and watch the teaser here.

Without further ado, here it is:



Knee-jerk first reaction: not exactly what I expected. I thought it would be a two minute and thirty second mini-movie of Ferris Bueller 2. But it isn't.  And I'm okay with that.

Instead we get Matthew Broderick playing Matthew Broderick, which works because the entire world thinks Matthew Broderick is really Ferris Bueller and always has been. Effective.

We also get a two minute and thirty second mini-movie chock full of Ferris Bueller references.  "Bueller, Bueller" reference?  Check. Cough that reminds us of Bueller's electric keyboard of illness noises? Check. Nearly getting caught while stopped in traffic? Check. Thoughtful pondering at work of art while camera gets closer and closer? Check.  And yes, I'm considering that walrus to be a work of art. Major sporting event? Singing in a street parade?  Check. Check. The valet jumping the CR-V is perfectly executed, and Broderick talking to the viewers after the commercial is officially over were both right in tune with the movie.  It's a fun spot that fans of the film will love, and will make everyone else will at least smile.  Honestly, who doesn't love Matthew Broderick?

Even better for Honda, it works as a commercial.  The CR-V is integrated nicely into the plot of the ad, without being too obnoxious AND without fading into the background.  Damn, that's a nice shiny new car as it drives Broderick between his adventures. I mentioned in the last post that the goal is to get the Ferris Bueller cool to rub off on the car, and I think they did a pretty good job at it.

There are three tiny, little details that I absolutely love from this ad.

1. What's the name of the lady that Matthew is speaking to through the car phone?  Grace. Just like Mr. Rooney's secretary. Who can forget him screaming, "GRACE!" while he's on the phone with Ferris pretending to be Sloane's father. For half a second I thought the lady on the car phone was supposed to be SJP (ahem, that's Sarah Jessica Parker, otherwise known as Mrs. Broderick).  But I was not disappointed to see the name Grace appear on the dashboard.

2. Broderick replicates Ferris' goofy little grin after he tricks Grace with that disgusting cough.  What a charming little schemer!

3. I bet you didn't catch this, but I was looking for it.  Check out the license plate:

SOCHOIC! It's the one thing that I needed to see in this spot.  That car is SO CHOICE! I don't know why that phrase fell out of style, but I totally want to bring it back.  I'm thrilled to see they found a way to fit it in. Seriously, thrilled.

Let me interject a small note here about that walrus.  At first, I thought it was just a random image for Matthew Broderick to stare at to replicate the scene with Cameron in the art museum.  But upon further reflection, I realize there's more to it.  You may recall Ferris Bueller quoting John Lennon in the movie, and resolving that he too could be the walrus, but he would still have to bum rides.  I'd like to think Matthew Broderick, all grown up, is staring into that walrus and thinking to himself "I am the walrus." It's a beautiful thing.  

Finally, I must report that I just Shazam'ed this commercial for the sole purpose of learning the details of that famous "Oooh yeah, bow bow, chick, chicka chicka" music. This doesn't go against my philosophies as reported in my Shazam post--the app was meant to help you identify music. I was happy to do it at the comfort of my own computer, rather than on game day after they might have slapped a stupid "Shazam for more content" icon in the corner of my screen. That song made famous by Ferris Bueller and Twix alike is "Oh Yeah" by Yello.  And I just downloaded it. 

The Ratings
Appeal: A+
Effectiveness: A-
Longevity: A

OVERALL: A

So, we've had a first glimpse of some pretty special Super Bowl commercials.  Alright then, other advertisers, the gauntlet has been thrown.  Don't let us down with any lame ads that waste our time and your $3.5 million.

For more Super Bowl related news, check out these posts:
Super Bowl XLVI- Honorable Mention For M&M's Ms. Brown 
Super Bowl XLVI: The Top Ten Best Commercials of 2012
Super Bowl XLVI: The Commercials Live Blog
Budweiser- King of Super Bowl Commercials 
Volkswagen's Fat Dog New Beetle Star Wars Cantina
Volkswagen's Star Wars Dog Choir- Super Bowl Preview
Pet Peeve: Shazam