The purpose of Chrysler's "Imported from Detroit" commercial was to say never judge a book by it's cover. There are very negative connotations about the city of Detroit, including that it is a very poor city that was abandoned by the auto industry, however a lot of beautiful and great things have come from the city of Detroit. One of the most notable people from Detroit is rapper Eminem who is very vocal about being from the city of Detroit. Having him in the commercial served as an additional reminder of the great things that the city of Detroit has produced.
The target audience of this commercial are people who are likely familiar with Eminem's music so people who are above the age of 18 and below 60. This is also the audience who is likely seeing this commercial because it ran during the Super Bowl. It is also the age of people who are likely going to need to buy a new car at some point in the future. This is conveyed by the use of Eminem's hit song "Lose Yourself"which was popular over a decade ago.
At first, the city of Detroit is shown how many who have never been to the city of Detroit would perceive it. As the commercial progresses, however, the people of Detroit are portrayed as strong, talented, and capable of anything. The narrator goes on to compare "The Motor City", Detroit's nickname, with New York City and the "Windy City", Chicago's nickname to show it can compete with the biggest cities in the country. With Chrysler being made in Detroit it is aligning its brand with that message that it is can compete with other luxury car brands. The video tries to incorporate all of the different people who currently inhabit the city of Detroit.
Overall, this commercial is very appealing to the eye. In the beginning, while discussing the negative connotations associated with the city, the camera appears shaky and of low quality. As the commercial progresses and starts talking positively about the city, the video quality improved and brightened. This was done on purpose to help fit the storyline that Detroit is better than what you might have heard about it. This was the correct medium for this commercial because the audience watching the Super Bowl is the target audience for Chrysler. People who know Eminem and remember the song "Lose Yourself" will remember this commercial when thinking about what car to buy.
Photo Credit: Muller, J. (2011, August 11). Eminem's Super Bowl Ad For Chrysler Had CEO Worried. Retrieved January, 2017, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/joannmuller/2011/02/07/eminems-super-bowl-ad-for-chrysler-had-ceo-worried/#53db834910ba
Hi Ashleigh...I like your analogy to never judge a book by its cover. Chrysler, like Detroit, has had to recover from a bad reputation over the years, and has done a great job. I also like the diversity of individuals and groups highlighted throughout the commercial, as well as the most rundown areas juxtaposed with the glitter of downtown. When I watched the commercial, I did not key on the improvement in video quality as the views of the city improved. Nice catch! Thanks for your insights...
ReplyDeleteHi Ashleigh,
ReplyDeleteAs I watched the commercial I noticed that it started off showing factories and dilapidated buildings to depict the negative examples of Detroit and then moved to beautiful architectural designs and statues as well as the people to demonstrate that they understand what it takes to make a luxury vehicle. I did not initially see that the picture quality/coloring changed, but when I watched it again, I did note that the picture became more vibrant/shiny as it showed the more positive images of Detroit. You also used a good analogy of “don’t judge a book by it’s cover” to capture the overall message of the commercial.
American cars over the years have been criticized as being less than comparable to the luxurious foreign imported cars like Mercedes, Lexus, Audi and BMW. Import signifies that a product comes from outside of the country, yet the commercial ends with “imported from Detroit” to signify that they are just as good as foreign imports. I also thought it was interesting that they left the rap lyrics out of the commercial, leaving only the music with a choir singing almost operatically over it, perhaps to appeal to a wider demographic.
Very informative interpretation, Ashleigh.
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