ADVERTS IN MOVIES

Commercial appeal

GOODFELLAS

‘Morrie’s Wigs’ is the epitome of 70s no-budget local TV commercials. The toupee magnate leaps into a swimming pool proudly promising ‘Morrie’s wigs don’t come off!’ only for Jimmy Conway (Robert De Niro) to prove him wrong when menacing him with a phone cord.

ROBOCOP 2

Worried about your car being stolen in dystopian Detroit? Just install this state-of-the-art Magnavolt security system that traps and lethally electrocutes any would-be car thieves, leaving them a smoking cinder. And the best part? ‘It won’t even run down your battery.’

DODGEBALL

‘Tired of the same old you?’ Globo Gym will bully you into shape, courtesy of creepy owner White Goodman (Ben Stiller). Complete with ‘competitively priced on-site cosmetic surgery’, it represents everything toxic (and hilarious) about the fitness industry.

TROPIC THUNDER

Tropic Thunder nailed Hollywood tropes, clichéd trailers and this gloriously OTT plug for energy drink Booty Sweat. Rap star Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson) invites viewers to ‘Pop an ass open!’ as he grinds with bootylicious dancers and also hypes ‘Bust a Nut’ bars.

THE TRUMAN SHOW

It takes a dedicated thespian to convincingly sell aproduct, doubly so to weave Mococoa into amarital spat for the benefit of hidden cameras. Laura Linney’s role-within-a-role doesn’t convince ‘husband’ Truman (Jim Carrey) as his suspicions about the world around him grow.

PADDINGTON 2

Atrained actor reduced to dog status, skint former West End star Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant) is forced to don a costume to flog pet food -Harley’s Gourmet Dindins - swallowing a forkful before ‘Not to be consumed by humans’ appears with delicious timing.

KINGPIN

Roy Munson’s (Woody Harrelson) misery deepens as he sees ‘Big Ern’ McCracken (Bill Murray) presenting himself as all heart for Unified Fund, sponsoring fatherless families across the country with absolutely no ulterior motives towards their grateful single mothers.

ONCE UPON A TIME… IN HOLLYWOOD

QT’s go-to fictional brand, Red Apple cigarettes, takes centre stage with a mid-end credits commercial. Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) isn’t a fan, declaring, ‘This cigarette tastes like fucking shit!’ once cut is called.

GHOSTBUSTERS

Asuitably amateur promo for a debt-ridden new business. During the film’s release, director Ivan Reitman ran the same ad on late-night TV with a free phone number that played a message from Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd telling people to go see the movie.

COMING TO AMERICA

Selling Jheri curls and confidence while depositing oily residue on the furniture, Soul Glo oozes sex appeal and Western vanity. The music was by legendary producer Nile Rodgers, who, in 2016, tweeted that it might be ‘my single proudest moment’.