Is there any other product as invested in its own awesomeness as Doritos?
I sure hope not, because that would probably result in some kind of world war. The brand's latest spot (from Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, not an amateur Super Bowl crasher) is quite good, with the same attitude that fueled Chuck Norris's surprisingly watchable political ads—which is to say, over-the-top toughness leavened with enough smarts to self-identify as ridiculous.
Seriously, though, I remember when Doritos were capital-X eXtreme and its promotional materials were bold enough to suggest you might not be able to handle the mounds of tangy orange cheezoid powder substance with which they had been electroplated. In strict medical terms, that might not have been a totally unreasonable assertion.
Now, in honor of new, extra-large Doritos Jacked chip (they're 40 percent larger and 40 percent thicker than regular Doritos), we have … let's call it a touch of Evel, with a monster truck piloted by a guy in a flame-stenciled helmet leaping two and a half more school buses than Mr. Knievel to demonstrate the extremity of this tortilla chip's wattage. This is funny, but it's the look of terror on the faces of the customers in the china shop as the truck bears down on its plate-glass windows that really makes this ad work for me. The rest is gravy. Also fireworks. The direction is solid, as is the casting, and of course the copywriting is great, with the narrator providing the hyperbole as the director breaks the china plates. (The tagline is "Tastes like awesome feels.")
The only question is: Where can Doritos go from here, after getting eXtreme and then Jacked and 3-D and even tasting like quest? I'm guessing we'll see Doritos Badass, Doritos Too Cool Even for You, and Doritos Go to Hell, Old Man.
CREDITS
Client – Frito-Lay
Ann Mukherjee – Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
Ram Krishnan – Vice President of Marketing, Global Brands
Jeff Klein – Brand Team Senior Director
Jared Drinkwater – Brand Team Director
Carol Pock – Production Supervisor
Agency – Goodby, Silverstein & Partners
ECD/Associate Partner – Rick Condos
Associate Creative Director – Erik Fahrenkopf
Associate Creative Director – Anthony DeCarolis
Writer – Jon Kallus
Art Director – Nicolas Randall
Director of Production/ Associate Partner – Cindy Fluitt
Executive Producer – Hilary Coate
Producer – Sara Krider
Account Director – Michael Crain
Assistant Account Manager – Sharon Byer
Assistant Account Manager – Kyle Walsh
Operations Director – Neil Maciejewski
Business Affairs Manager – Ken Rongey/Karen Keoleian
Production Company – Biscuit Filmworks
Director – Tim Godsall
Managing Director – Shawn Lacy
Executive Producer – Holly Vega
Line Producer – Kathy Rhodes
Director of Photography: Jeff Cutter
Production Designer: Brock Houghton
Editorial Company – Arcade
Editor – Stewart Reeves
Executive Producer – Deanne Mehling
Producer – Kirsten Thon– Webb
Assistant Editor – Luke McIntosh
Telecine – Company 3
Colorist – Sean Coleman
Executive Producer – Rhubie Jonanov
Producer – Matt Moran
Music License – Extreme Production Music
Post Production/VFX Company – Method Studios
VP of Production – Gabby Gourrier
EP – Stephanie Gilgar
VFX Producer – Darcie Muangman/ Pip Malone
VFX Coordinator – Anastasia von Rahl
VFX Supervisor – Sean Faden
Compositor – Toby Brockhurst, Noah Caddis, Jay Hawkins
CG – Todd Herman, Alejandro De La Garza, David Lo, Luis Rodriguez
Matte Painting – Amy Paskow and Zach Christian
Paint – Jay Shindell
Roto – Mark Duckworth, Frida Sahono– Joswik
Sound Design Company – Henryboy
Sound Designer – Bill Chesley
Producer – Kate Gibson
Recording Studio – Lime Studios
Mixer – Loren Silber