Truly Shameless Product Placements in Film

[SkullCap]

It's understandable that movies need help from countless sources and often times film-makers and studios find themselves on their knees to please corporations for the financial backing necessary to complete the films. This of course is called Product Placement.

Of course there's nothing inherently "wrong" with product placement, its understandable and it will never go away; even when the Earth rips open and a value-pack of Apocalyptic abominations from its depths claw forth up to the surface to turn our skeletons into stylish furniture movies will tell them they can find the best bargains at Pier One.

Anyway when watching a film if there's one game people love to play it's Spot-the-Product-Placement. The name of the game is simply to spot the moments of a film where a product is obviously shoved into a movie to indicate which companies financed the production in return for their products appearing in the film. Whether its a brief on-screen moment, a throwaway line, or in the background product placement is present and sometimes people don't even notice it (or care). And as I typed earlier film-makers/studios often find themselves on their knees to please corporations.

However, there are no doubt many, many, MANY examples of product placement in movies where it shows that not only were film-makers on their knees, but so eager that they brought their own knee pads and mouth wash. The result of course are product placements that make no attempt at subtlety and are simply shameful results of studio mouth hugs.

Thread: Give some examples of truly shameless product placement in films, whether cinematic releases or made-for-TV that stand-out to you?

 

[SkullCap]

My entry: Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)

Now alot of people like to mention this film for the product placements of Coca-Cola and Tiger Electronics' Talkboy (the giant recorder Macaulay Culkin's character uses), which was non-working prop until they made a retail version coinciding the VHS release where sales skyrocketed. However, despite being a diabolically clever FUTURE tie-in product the most shameful product is in roughly 80% of the film: The Plaza Hotel
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Plaza_hotel.jpg/250px-Plaza_hotel.jpg
You filthy whore.

The first mention of the Plaza Hotel is how it's described by a game show as "New York's finest hotel experience" and proceeds to give the ACTUAL number to call for reservations. Further in the film when Culkin's character becomes "lost in New York" he stops in front of the hotel to quote the previous line giving a pause and a smile; entering the lobby to listen to his Talkboy which plays the line from the game show a THIRD time. The movie then proceeds to show us how easy it is to reserve a room and when Culkin is taken to "one of our finest suites" Culkin at first acts like a kid, "Wow, a huge bed just for me!" But then...

He peeks into the bathroom and describes it as "luxurious and spacious." Then opens a little snack bar with a key, "How convenient!" Throughout the rest of the film we're shown the pool area, room service, dry cleaning services, and the concierge services where Culkin is given a complimentary limo ride, cheese pizza, and of course Coca-Colas (all that was missing was a hollowed out Talkboy to drink from). Of course that's not the last time we see the Plaza Hotel. The movie ends with Culkin's and his entire extended family staying in one of the Plaza's finest luxury suites which had hosted international royalty.

Do you think the Plaza Hotel people gave director Chris Columbus cab fare afterwards?

Anyway that's my entry what are yours?

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

All of the Michael Bay Transformers films.
Those movies are nothing but giant product placements.

-------
Edit: Also probably the complete existence of this film.

Spoiler

Based on this game here...

Spoiler

Which resulted in the creation of this game here...

Spoiler

We've come full circle, we're now making games based on movies based on games.

 

[Tayh]

Anytime you see a laptop in a movie, it will be an apple laptop. I've seen a Dell once or twice.
They only make me boycott the company in question even more.
Bloody advertisements, I just can't stand them.

 

[Lilani]

Anytime you see a laptop in a movie, it will be an apple laptop. I've seen a Dell once or twice.
They only make me boycott the company in question even more.
Bloody advertisements, I just can't stand them.

Well, actually the Apple thing is because Apple is a LOT less demanding when it comes to copyrights in film as Microsoft and PC makers. Basically, it's a lot cheaper and a lot easier to have a Mac on film than a PC or the Windows OS.

 

[Tayh]

Well, actually the Apple thing is because Apple is a LOT less demanding when it comes to copyrights in film as Microsoft and PC makers. Basically, it's a lot cheaper and a lot easier to have a Mac on film than a PC or the Windows OS.

I don't care if it's an apple or Microsoft laptop; it's an advertisement, ergo I hate it.

 

[Fappy]

Funny story. My dad worked at the Plaza hotel for nearly a decade. Even managed to stay after Donald Trump bought it and started firing everyone. According to the story my dad kept his job because he bumped into Trump while he was with his mistress before the media caught onto the story. Black mail damage control!

 

[Hazy992]

We've come full circle, we're now making games based on movies based on games.

Oh that happened years ago. Remember Street Fighter?

OT: Little Nicky and that goddamn Popeye's Chicken. I mean Christ it was just blatant! Not to mention the whole turning a can of Coke into Pepsi thing.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Funny story. My dad worked at the Plaza hotel for nearly a decade. Even managed to stay after Donald Trump bought it and started firing everyone. According to the story my dad kept his job because he bumped into Trump while he was with his mistress before the media caught onto the story. Black mail damage control!

.
That's a great story which made me laugh, kudos to you and your dad!

 

[Fappy]

Funny story. My dad worked at the Plaza hotel for nearly a decade. Even managed to stay after Donald Trump bought it and started firing everyone. According to the story my dad kept his job because he bumped into Trump while he was with his mistress before the media caught onto the story. Black mail damage control!

.
That's a great story which made me laugh, kudos to you and your dad!

According to him my SEGA genesis was also previously owned by Eddie Murphy's bodyguard. They had bought it to play while in New York for some gig and the bodyguard told my dad to give it to his kids. So at one time Eddie Murphy played my Genesis

 

[Lilani]

I don't care if it's an apple or Microsoft laptop; it's an advertisement, ergo I hate it.

So you'd rather the price of making films and thus the price of seeing films skyrocket even more just so the studios can spend even more money and waste even more time building ACME brand props, for the sole purpose of being faceless on screen? When it would be much easier just to use something that already exists and either credit or cut a deal with the maker?

I mean I understand the whole wrapping the film around the product thing, but seriously? You hate ALL product placement? It's just a matter of making the film cheaper and easier to make.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Funny story. My dad worked at the Plaza hotel for nearly a decade. Even managed to stay after Donald Trump bought it and started firing everyone. According to the story my dad kept his job because he bumped into Trump while he was with his mistress before the media caught onto the story. Black mail damage control!

.
That's a great story which made me laugh, kudos to you and your dad!

According to him my SEGA genesis was also previously owned by Eddie Murphy's bodyguard. They had bought it to play while in New York for some gig and the bodyguard told my dad to give it to his kids. So at one time Eddie Murphy played my Genesis

.
You're. So. Awesome.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

We've come full circle, we're now making games based on movies based on games.

Oh that happened years ago. Remember Street Fighter?

I knew the Street Fighter movie was based on the game, I didn't know there was a game based on the movie...

Oh...
It's funny how they say "Digitized Graphics from the Hit Movie!" as if that's a good thing.

 

[Fappy]

Funny story. My dad worked at the Plaza hotel for nearly a decade. Even managed to stay after Donald Trump bought it and started firing everyone. According to the story my dad kept his job because he bumped into Trump while he was with his mistress before the media caught onto the story. Black mail damage control!

.
That's a great story which made me laugh, kudos to you and your dad!

According to him my SEGA genesis was also previously owned by Eddie Murphy's bodyguard. They had bought it to play while in New York for some gig and the bodyguard told my dad to give it to his kids. So at one time Eddie Murphy played my Genesis

.
You're. So. Awesome.

Yeah, it's kind of sad though because my dad doesn't do anything cool like this anymore. Drug problems make people crazy >.>

Still appreciate all the weird connections I have had with famous people by proxy though. To elaborate on the Trump story. He wanted to get my dad out of his hair for awhile during trump's divorce so he sent him and my mom to Phoenix, AZ for a year. I was born during that time. Trump's to thank for my birth in the desert. Jerk!

 

[Hazy992]

snip

Obviously they forgot to put the 's' in front of 'hit'. I'm still waiting for a movie based on that game

 

[Aris Khandr]

I just saw K-PAX for the first time last night. During one of the earlier scenes, Spacey's character compliments one of the techs at the psychiatric facility on her outfit. She turns (to another tech, but also right toward the camera) and says "Macy's". Even in movies where advertisement is pretty blatant, it isn't usually THAT blatant.

 

[Tayh]

I mean I understand the whole wrapping the film around the product thing, but seriously? You hate ALL product placement? It's just a matter of making the film cheaper and easier to make.

If there's anything I hate more than advertising, it's subliminal advertising.
- And that's what this is.
A sponsorship doesn't make or break a movie.
I'm going to call you Naive if you belive that apple laptop advert is what's keeping the price down; mo movie studio is going to sell their product cheaper than the established baseline price just because they got a sponsorship.

 

[Nielas]

Well, actually the Apple thing is because Apple is a LOT less demanding when it comes to copyrights in film as Microsoft and PC makers. Basically, it's a lot cheaper and a lot easier to have a Mac on film than a PC or the Windows OS.

I don't care if it's an apple or Microsoft laptop; it's an advertisement, ergo I hate it.

I was actually told that Apple does not pay filmmakers for product placement. Anyone know if that is true? If true, would it still count as advertisement?

 

[Lilani]

I mean I understand the whole wrapping the film around the product thing, but seriously? You hate ALL product placement? It's just a matter of making the film cheaper and easier to make.

If there's anything I hate more than advertising, it's subliminal advertising.
- And that's what this is.
A sponsorship doesn't make or break a movie.
I'm going to call you Naive if you belive that apple laptop advert is what's keeping the price down; mo movie studio is going to sell their product cheaper than the established baseline price just because they got a sponsorship.

I'm not saying anybody is lowering prices, but I think it can help slow down the rate at which ticket prices are climbing. Movie theaters aren't raising ticket prices for fun, they're raising prices just so they can clear the expenses of buying and showing the films. That's why snacks at theaters are so expensive, and they have such strict rules about bringing in your own--that's about the only place they truly make money.

And if a sponsorship or using products that already exist in the real world help get an indie film off the ground? Hell yes, I'd welcome product placement in that case.

 

[Tayh]

And if a sponsorship or using products that already exist in the real world help get an indie film off the ground? Hell yes, I'd welcome product placement in that case.

Don't forget that sponsoring is also a form of cencoring.
What do you do, as an indie developer, if you want to create something that your sponsors don't approve of?
You either go ahead and do it, and lose the sponsorship, or you rewrite your script until your sponsor(s) are happy with it.
I'd much prefer indie developers getting funded via kickstarter, indiegogo and similar sources, though I understand if it's not a viable solution for everyone.
Annnd... We're getting pretty off topic here.