11 August 2005

Voluntary Extinction?

Well, its better than calling a post 'Suicide'. Its hard to point out you found something funny, with a title like that.....

In the news today: The Council at a suicide hot spot in Hong Kong have voted to capitalise on their area's reputation by setting up a suicide theme park. Honestly. According to the report, there have been twenty five successful and attempted suicides in a single holiday home on Cheung Chau island. Now they propose to bill it as a haunted house type experience - a ghost town attraction.

However, perhaps somebody needs to have words with the advertising manager at the South African Mail & Guardian online - the article, above, has the title, in bold, "Suicide Theme Park Proposed For Hong Kong Island". Fair enough. Directly under it, however, is a picture of a school swimming team, with one kid outlined in red and the caption "What happened to your old friends?"
It turns out to be an advert for the SA version of Friends Reunited, but I don't think we were really meant to follow the link whilst wondering how many old classmates might have topped themselves.

Just as bizarre but resulting in a very naughty yet, very pleasing thought, is the Viral ad with the tagline Polo, Small, but Tough. Brilliant!

The link is to the google search, because its getting to be a bit of a game to find a working version, hence the precis, even though its much more fun to see it happening without knowing the plot.

A meditteranean looking fella walks down the step from his impressive house and enters his VW Polo. He pulls up outside a cafe on a sunny day, with lots of people at the kerbside tables. He switches off the engine. You see the explosives around his waist, you see him reach for the little push button. He pushes it.
The car rocks ever so slightly, goves off a mufled 'pop' sound and fills up with glowing smoke inside the windows, while the cafe customers take no notice at all.

Sadly its been around since January, before it was so pertinent.
Proudly, it was created by two guys in England
Sadly a couple of bloggers admitted they contacted VW immediately, to see if it was real
Sadly this led to VW starting court proceedings
Happily the end result, officially, was that the lads simply had to issue an apology (but I bet costs were involved)
Annoyingly it is becoming increasingly hard to find a working copy - either the soundtrack works with a blacked out screen, or you hit a total brick wall. There was perhaps more to the court deliberations than we are being told.

Never mind - its doing the rounds by email now, and I've got a copy, hehehehe! Want one?

3 comments:

Doris said...

Ha-ha! What a great ad but I reckon it takes the British sense of humour to appreciate it?

Using your Google link I had no trouble finding a couple of places to watch it - notably the Snopes link was OK. Tip: It might help to let it load and sort of play - don't watch it! - and then when it has finished to hit the play button.

Arc said...

I saw this ad a few months ago and found it to be quite funny!

However I showed it to a friend and they failed to find the humour....lol

Doris said...

Should I say that I have tagged you Cheryl....