What's The Crime In Product Placement?

[3 Dev Adam]

Dude, it's not if there will be a 5-minute break with Johnny Storm playing the host a ShopTime. Or HULK SELLS CARS!

 

[DOG LIPS]

About 85% of product placement I don't even notice until someone points it out. I hate to let seeing a Pontiac logo on a Transformer's chest ruin the movie experience for me.

 

[TripleF]

I find product placement insulting to the viewer and demeaning to the subject of the movie.

I pay good money to go to the movies. If I wanted to watch commercials, I'd stay home and watch TV for free.

But, don't real people, eat real food (McDonalds), drink real drinks, (Dr. Pepper)? Don't we buy real products? Aren't people in movies portraying, "real people"? What do you want? Generic brands? To me that takes away from a large portion of realism in the movie. If they are filming in New York, I better damn well see a Victoria Secret HUGE poster in Time Square.

Had they had the X-games scene in the first movie, with all of these stupid generic products, sorry, but that would have been a distraction with me. I loved the little bit of humor with Flame boy slamming up against a BK flame broiled burger.


What was Johnny supposed to use for popcorn? Zippy Pop popcorn, just so there would not be product placement for Jiffy Pop Popcorn?

 

[Antonello Blueberry]

One of the movies where the product placement was nearly offensive was "The Saint".
And there's a problem with brands in the movie, they date it. How many of the companies shown in the future of Blade Runner are dead now?

 

[DOG LIPS]

One of the movies where the product placement was nearly offensive was "The Saint".
And there's a problem with brands in the movie, they date it. How many of the companies shown in the future of Blade Runner are dead now?

But it's the future, maybe between now and then they come back.

 

[TripleF]

One of the movies where the product placement was nearly offensive was "The Saint".
And there's a problem with brands in the movie, they date it. How many of the companies shown in the future of Blade Runner are dead now?

I don't think Coke, Dr. Pepper, Pepsi, McDonald's, BK, etc leaving town anytime soon.

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

What was Johnny supposed to use for popcorn? Zippy Pop popcorn, just so there would not be product placement for Jiffy Pop Popcorn?

That's a great example, because that scene was clearly artistically driven. Someone thought it would be cool to see Johnny do that.

Oh, and by the way, the scene will probably increase sales of Jiffy-Pop, so why not get a few bucks from them?

Does everybody remember the E. T. Reeses Pieces story? Steven Spielberg wanted and intended to use the natural choice . . . M & M's to create a trail for E.T.

Mars didn't want them to use M & M's, so Spielberg used Reeses Pieces . . . and Reeses Pieces sales jumped.

http://www.snopes.com/business/market/mandms.asp

Recognizable products are a fact of life. Writers and directors create scenes that NEED to have recognizable products for the integrity of the film, so if they and the companies can both profit from an artistically conceived scene, it's a no-brainer.

 

[Pickle-El]

Why is it everytime I read a Lightnin thread, I feel like I'm about to start my next English class assignment?

 

[Carp Man]

Product placement is a fact of life. It is, and it will not change, it can only get worse. If it is subtle, non intrusive then ok. I do not like the in your face advertising, it is offensive to me. At least when you watch a tv program, you can change to another channel till the commerical is finished, or I just record it, and ff thru the commercials, but in a movie, you can't switch the channel. I think they should get all the commericals done with at the beggining of the film, like they do the trailers, so you can enjoy the film without being assulted with endless, mindless, logos.

 

[TripleF]

Product placement is a fact of life. It is, and it will not change, it can only get worse. If it is subtle, non intrusive then ok. I do not like the in your face advertising, it is offensive to me. At least when you watch a tv program, you can change to another channel till the commerical is finished, or I just record it, and ff thru the commercials, but in a movie, you can't switch the channel. I think they should get all the commericals done with at the beggining of the film, like they do the trailers, so you can enjoy the film without being assulted with endless, mindless, logos.

I'm sorry, at my theatre we don't have commercials during the film. Man, your theatre sucks.

With your thinking they should have shown all the logos of the X-games at the beginning of the film, and then just had white walls in the stadium, and outside? Yeah, that would have been authentic. And then have Johnny just pretending that he was holding Jiffy Pop popcorn because the commercial for Jiffy Pop would have been with the trailers at the beginning. ok

 

[terry78]

There wasn't product placement in other superhero films? Iceman clearly provides Wolverine with a Coke while at the mansion, and when he's at Iceman's parent's place, the beer is clearly an MGD.

 

[TripleF]

There wasn't product placement in other superhero films? Iceman clearly provides Wolverine with a Coke while at the mansion, and when he's at Iceman's parent's place, the beer is clearly an MGD.

Who are you quoting?

 

[Malus]

I have no problem with actual products being seen in any film, unless it's really in your face and featured repeatedly (i.e. Dr. Pepper featured in practically every American-filmed scene in Godzilla 1985).

Generic or satirical products actually bug me; they take me out of the experience. I'd rather see a Pepsi than a "Dr. Cola" any day.

And yeah, I bet the folks at M&Ms were kicking themselves for years after E.T. came out and made Reese's Pieces a household name.

 

[Carp Man]

There wasn't product placement in other superhero films? Iceman clearly provides Wolverine with a Coke while at the mansion, and when he's at Iceman's parent's place, the beer is clearly an MGD.

That I have no problem with. Johnny holding Jiffy Pop in his hand and you can clearly see it's Jiffy Pop , or someone drinking a Coke, or Pepsi, someone eating a Whopper, or whatever. That kind of product placement is fine. That's not what I am talking about. It is the mindless placing of logos all over a scene. It's too much when it is done like that.

 

[Carp Man]

I have no problem with actual products being seen in any film, unless it's really in your face and featured repeatedly (i.e. Dr. Pepper featured in practically every American-filmed scene in Godzilla 1985).

BINGO. Give that man a prize. t:

 

[Kirk Langstrom]

What's The Crime In Product Placement?
By Lightning Strikez!

*****​

When the above news story broke here today I noticed a few fans grumbling about the Dodge connection. It reminded me of similar complaints about the X-Games scene in the first film.

I don't know about you, but personally I scratch my head whenever fans speak against product placement in Marvel films. I don't get what their gripe is about. Is it such a far stretch to believe that Reed Richards would not purchase items from third-party vendors for his creations? Is it unreasonable to believe that said parties would not want their patent removed from their products illegally? Or....do we honestly expect him to kill animals to make the leather seats for the Fantasticar himself? Is his scientific mind supposed to make him so arrogant that he insists on forging hood ornaments from the gold in his privately owned mine instead of just buying one from Dodge?

These heroes may live in the CBM universe, but their world is essentially the same as ours. Seeing ads for various commercialized resources only adds to the relatability of the film in my opinion. So let me ask you SHH members: what exactly is so wrong about it?

Questions For Discussion:
1.) What is your opinion of Product Placement in CBMs?
2.) How much is "too much" product placement in a movie?


.​

Product placement doesnt faze me in the least.

I have no idea why anyone would be bothered by it.

 

[highguard]

I don't think that product placement is a problem if they are eating at a fastfood restaurant and we see KFC then that is cool. Once it does not seem contrived but fits in the natural flow of the movie there should be no problem.

I really doubt that the dodge text is there. I think that reed has created this vehicle with very little imput from say a sponsor who in the flow of the story may have provided the materials.

Putting dodge on the car takes away from the 4 brand, in marketing this would not be good.

However its a movie and so inconspicuous even the nitpickers (which I am somedays should be happy)

 

[Carp Man]

Product placement doesnt faze me in the least.

I have no idea why anyone would be bothered by it.

Because some of us want to watch a movie without all the distractions.

 

[3 Dev Adam]

If you want to see real, in-your-face product placement, go watch the hindi superhero movie KRRISH.

 

[Majik1387]

1.) What is your opinion of Product Placement in CBMs?

I don't care much as long as it doesn't affect the quality of the movie.

2.) How much is "too much" product placement in a movie?

Batman Forever credit card.
But seriously, when the movie becomes more commercial than a movie when it's not supposed to.

 

[TripleF]

Most obvious product placement movie. "Josie and the Pussycats" done on purpose of course, but if you want an example of when its too much. Rent that movie if you can stomach it for an hour and a half.

 

[Majik1387]

I actually love that movie. It's supposed to have so much product placement, that was the entire storyline if you paid attention.

 

[TripleF]

I actually love that movie. It's supposed to have so much product placement, that was the entire storyline if you paid attention.

And if you had read my post you would have read "done on purpose".

 

[3 Dev Adam]

Product placement don't bother me at all. If those stories are in "real life", then PP makes it really real-life-y.

But a guy in flames flying around, THAT scares the piss out of me.

 

[Willie Lumpkin]

Because some of us want to watch a movie without all the distractions.

I think it's only a distraction if you make a point of noticing.

For example: If you go to work and someone's drinking a Coke, you don't give it a second thought. If you see a movie and someone's drinking a coke, you think (and I know I've done this): "Hmmm, I wonder how much Coke paid for that."

However, consider the alternative. You're watching a film and a character is drinking "Burble Soda" or some other fictional brand, THAT would be distracting. That would take you out of the film and remind you that you're seeing something that isn't real.