There are three days left before Super Bowl LI, and while many will be tuning in to see the New England Patriots take on the Atlanta Falcons, some might be looking to tune in only for the halftime show or the slew of special and often one-off commercials crafted by major companies and brands for airing during the big game’s commercial breaks. The significantly greater art and level of showmanship for these TV ads during the Super Bowl has become a sort of tradition, with some of the most eye-popping and sometimes strange-sounding commercials ever to grace the small screen on any occasion.
You can bet that this year’s super bowl commercials will try to impress. In fact you can judge for yourself now with a sampling of these ads having advance previews online before their television debut.
Celebrity endorsements aplenty
One thing about the trend in Super Bowl commercials lately: they draw on celebrity power. And there are plenty of stars showing up in the ads, often to the point that they crowd the actual product or service out. One needs only to look at the spot for Buffalo Wild Wings; not a piece of buffalo-style chicken wings anywhere, due to a vignette about retired NFL superstar Brett Favre obsessing over his all-time interception record leading to a trippy dream sequence.
Going off on that pattern, a two-part commercial for the Wix cloud-based website builder, featuring a hapless restaurateur making his own site on his laptop only to find his establishment being wrecked in a brawl involving action stars Jason Statham and Gal Gadot (fitting as she's from Israel, like the Wix company). He barely had time to assemble one page there. There's also a T-Mobile ad with a bespectacled Justin Bieber like in the pic. And then there's the Honda CR-V ad with several Celebrities lending their voice to have their actual yearbook pictures animated via CGI for an inspiring collective pep talk, that doesn't show the car it's advertising until the end.
Finally there are some Super Bowl ads that have a little political undercurrent to their brief stories.
Melissa McCarthy getting into trouble chasing her advocacies on a commercial for the Kia Nero. But one that takes the cake perhaps is Budweiser's contribution this year, trading out the Clydesdale horses for a short tale of the company founder Adolphus Busch and his journey to America to brew beer, after enduring a perilous sea journey, anti-immigrant protesters and a sinking riverboat, he arrives at St. Louis to meet his future partner Eberhard Anheuser.
Movie trailer
It's not all commercials for products and services in the Super Bowl though. One upcoming film has got its own spot there, the live-action "Ghost in the Shell" from Paramount and Dreamworks Pictures starring Scarlett Johansson.
It's mostly footage cobbled from previous teasers and trailers, but it's still breathtaking.
Having gotten a sample of what's coming, hopefully you'll enjoy Super Bowl LI this February 5, and the commercials and celebrities that come with it.