The Sly Oyster | culture & entertainment on the sly

Well maybe you should just stick with your deodorant of choice.  And yes, we’re turning into the NPH superduperfanclub around here.  But c’mon!  I don’t think we’re alone.

Anyway, NPH shot an Old Spice commercial goofing on his turn as Doogie Howser.  Hilarity ensures.  Well a mild case of hilarity.  So a chuckle?

The Massachusetts government has never really shed the label of “Taxachusetts” or the bifurcating image of steely-eyed blue collar workers living side by side to smarmy academics.  In truth, that’s probably a fair description of my home state.  And it’s charming and wonderful in every possible way.

To further that end, the state is now subsidizing commercials to be shot locally.

In its high-profile bid to compete with Hollywood and New York as a film production hub, the state is doing more than subsidizing TV series and feature movies through tax credits and sales tax exemptions. It is also underwriting the cost of producing TV commercials in Massachusetts. The Department of Revenue said it has issued more than $2.1 million of tax credits for 37 ad-related productions - with eight more applications pending - since the state started offering incentives two years ago.

Though the state would not reveal recipients’ names, local ad production companies say they have received or will seek funding for commercials promoting Intel computer chips, Head and Shoulders shampoo, and other major corporate brands.

Some public policy watchdogs say the incentives go too far.

“We certainly should not be subsidizing large corporations whose advertising dollars and budgets stretch into the millions,” said Liam Day, a spokesman for the Pioneer Institute for Public Policy Research in Boston, which generally opposes aid to specific companies or industries.

But supporters say tax credits could help Massachusetts become a prime locale for advertising productions, creating jobs and pumping millions of dollars into the economy. “We’re building a whole new industry,” said William Earon, managing director of Coastal Capital Advisors LLC, a Boston private equity and consulting firm that serves the film industry.

Seems like more corporate welfare, but what do I know.  It probably will help boost the economy, but I find it hard to believe that this is the type of boost to the economy that is long lasting or an actual boost.  Boston and the state should be pumping money into science and technology research, bioengineering and taking advantage of all the freaking colleges.

It would lead to more commercials, like below, filmed in actual locales around the Boston area.  The spot for Ocean Spray was filmed in a Carver cranberry bog.

Director Guy Ritchie hasn’t had his mojo since marrying Madonna.  The last movie he directed that anyone cared about was Snatch way back in 2000.  Eight years ago!  Since then he’s been making movies and his audience has yawned.

We think he’s still got something left in the tank, but it’s almost unnerving to see a director just lose it after dropping two very good movies right from the get go.  The reason we think he’s got something left is because of his new commercial he directed for Nike titled, “Take It To the NEXT Level.”

It’s a soccer football commercial and it burns with an energy and unique point of view.  It’s got Guy Ritchie written all over it.  Which is something you can’t say about his last few movies.

Hugh Grant’s peripheral holiday movie, About a Boy is just about one of my favorite movies.  I adore it in the same way that you want to pinch you little niece’s cheeks or curl up in a blanket on a snowy day with a cup of spiked hot chocolate.  It might not necessarily be considered a “holiday” movie, per say, but more than any movie in recent past it fills you with the same feeling you’re supposed to have during the holidays.

A lot of that has to do with the story, but an even larger portion of that has to do with the soundtrack from the wildly eclectic British songwriter Badly Drawn Boy, aka Damon Gough.  So what happens when Starbucks decides to use a snippet of his song “I love NYE?”  Well, let’s just say that the result are full of cheer right up until you realize that the cute and coy animation is nothing more than a Starbucks advertisement.

I feel so let down and maybe the worst part is the slight feeling of elation about the holidays just as the coffe giant kicks you in the shins.

The animals are kinda cute though, so maaaybe we can give them a pass and stop being a scroogy scrooge.

The awesome Michel Gondry ad we just posted got us thinking about Wes Anderson’s ads for AT&T and AMEX.  And that got us thinking about when his new short film will finally be available to watch.  C’mon iTunes get with the program.  We want us some Natalie Portman.