by Chris Ullrich, Jan 30 2012 // 10:30 AM
Recently, a video surfaced of an older Matthew Broderick playing what seemed, at least on the surface, to be his famous character Ferris Bueller. Of course, this set off a wave of speculation that a sequel to the seminal 80s film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is in the works.
Sadly (or not) it appears the rumors of a sequel were just that. Instead, now that the full video has been released, we can clearly see that it was, in fact, a commercial for the new Honda CR-V and not a new movie.
We don’t usually post commercials here at The Flickcast but because this one is highly referential to the original film, features a prominent film and stage actor basically reprising his role as one of his most famous characters and the commercial is directed by Hangover helmer Todd Phillips, we think it probably warrants a mention. So, we’re mentioning it.
We won’t, however, comment on the rather sad physical state Broderick looks to be in nor the relative creative mertis of the commercial itself. We’ll leave that for you.
Check out the full commercial after the jump.
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Posted in: Commercials · Movies · News · TV
Tagged: Commercials, Ferris Bueller Honda Commercial, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Honda, Matthew Broderick, Movies, Sequels
by John Carle, Dec 29 2011 // 9:00 AM

One thing we’ve learned is there are too many games and too little time to play them all. This also means there isn’t even enough time to give all of them awards, but we try our best. Today we take a look at both the most time consuming efforts of the past year as well as give some awards for games that deserve some notable mentions as well.
Game Most Likely to Consume Your Life: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Two Hundred and Fifty Hours. By most estimates, this is how long it’ll take an average player to explore MOST of the content of Skyrim. To give some perspective, if the average person works a 40 hour a week job, Skyrim would take six and a quarter full work weeks to complete. Now, we realize that most gamers work jobs outside of the gaming industry and cannot devote a full forty hours a week to a single game.
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Posted in: Best of 2011 · Comic Book Games · DC · Flickcast Presents · Game Trailers · Games · News · Nintendo · Nintendo 3DS · Nintendo DS · PC Games · Playstation 3 · PlayStationNetwork · Star Wars · The Bitcast · Video Games · Wii · XBLA · Xbox 360
Tagged: Batman, Batman: Arkham City, Best Of, Best of 2011, Commercials, DC, Dead Island, Gears of War 3, Homefront, Lego, LEGO Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Michael, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Wii, Orcs Must Die!, PC Games, Playstation 3, Robot Entertainment, Rocksteady, Skyrim, Star Wars: The Old Republic, The Bitcast, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, The Flickcast Presents, Video Game Trailers, Video Games, Xbox 360
by Joe Gillis, Nov 23 2011 // 2:36 PM
As owners and users of all sorts of Apple gear, we understand that others who don’t “get it” could misunderstand our love for all-things Apple. So, in the interest of presenting some counter-points to our Apple fanboy/girl nature, we’ve got this video from Samsung that sheds some light on those that don’t use Apple’s gear.
The video pokes fun at the Apple faithful and how we buy whatever Apple is selling, regardless of how good (or bad) it is. This video is actually an ad for the Samsung Galaxy S II, which is billed as the free thinker’s alternative to Apple’s iPhone “sheep.”
Of course, the add fails to mention that Apple’s most recent iPhone, the 4S, has pretty much flown off shelves and is the biggest selling smartphone of all time. I guess that point didn’t make it past the ad guys and gals at Samsung. Why mention the truth, right?
It’s always fun when those at the bottom pick on those at the top. Let the fun continue after the break.
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Posted in: Apple · Commercials · Mobile · News · Tech
Tagged: Ads, Advertising, Android, Apple, Commercials, iPhone, iPhone 4S, Samsung, Samsung Galaxy S II, Smartphones
by Joe Gillis, Feb 11 2011 // 7:30 AM
Even though this episode is a wee bit late that doesn’t mean it isn’t chock full of awesome. Okay, how about it has an abundance of mediocrity? Better?
Anyway, This week on The Flickcast brings more insight, innovation and innuendo from your favorite co-hosts. That’s right, Chris and Matt are back and discussing all sorts of new and returning topics.
Some of those topics include the Superbowl and its ever-present advertising, new trailers for Captain America, Super 8, Cowboys & Aliens, the future of the world and all-things Verizon iPhone.
Chris and Matt also made new picks this week including Matt’s pick of the TV series Saved by the Bell and Chris’ pick of the new Shawn Ryan TV series The Chicago Code.
As always, if you have comments, questions, critiques, offers of sponsorship or whatever, feel free to hit us up in the comments, on Twitter, at Facebook and MySpace or via email.
Posted in: News · Podcasts
Tagged: Captain America, Commercials, Cowboys & Aliens, Darth Vader, Episode 87, Super 8, Superbowl, The Chicago Code, Verizon iPhone
by Matt Raub, May 26 2010 // 10:00 AM
Back in 2006, Apple ran the first of many different variations of “friendly warfare” commercials, which pretty much portrayed the competition (Microsoft) as a nerdy, uncool, unorganized human (played by John Hodgman), while the “Mac” was a cool, casual, suave human (played by Justin Long).
After four years the aptly titled “Get a Mac” ad campaign is coming to an end. Apple’s site has changed over to the “Why You’ll Love a Mac” page, and Justin Long even suggested a few months back that the ads were starting to dry up and he didn’t see them continuing much longer.
Losing their edge or not, it was always a treat for Apple fans to get these ads sandwiched into spot breaks between our favorite shows. Hodgman, who was also a regular contributor to The Daily Show, garnered certain fame from the campaign and has even been invited to give commencement speeches at several universities.
We’ll always remember the epic promotional campaign, and some of our favorites as well. After the jump, check out one of those personal favorites, guest starring the amazing Rowan Atkinson as Mr. Bean.
R.I.P. “Get a Mac” Ads.
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Posted in: Apple · Comedy · Gear · Geek · Marketing · Microsoft · News · Video
Tagged: Advertising, Apple, Commercials, Get a Mac, John Hodgman, Justin Long, Mac, Microsoft, Mr. Bean, OS X, PC, Phil Morrison, Rowan Atkinson, Windows
by Chris Ullrich, May 13 2010 // 1:00 PM
As you probably know, especially if you’re a regular reader of this site, Apple recently released a tablet computer called the iPad. The device, a touch screen wonder that’s sold over a million units since its introduction, is an amazing piece of technology. But given that, what is it exactly?
Well, if you’re someone who’s asked that question, Apple’s now got you covered with a new commercial. The “What is iPad” spot debuted today and tries to answer that question by emphasizing the iPad’s usability, huge and diverse selection of applications, multimedia capabilities, web-related features and what Apple really does best, the iPad’s intuitive user interface.
Of course, the commercial also shows the iPad being put through its paces by a number of cool people, which only serves to make the device look even sexier and more “magical.” Oddly, even with all those people using the iPad, nary a fingerprint can be seen on its glossy screen. Maybe Apple should share the “magic” of that little iPad secret with the rest of us?
Check out the new commercial after the jump. The iPad is available now.
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Posted in: Apple · News · Software · Tech · Video
Tagged: Advertising, Apple, Commercials, Gadgets, Gear, iPad, Tech, Video, What is iPad?
by John Carle, Feb 2 2010 // 9:00 AM
Geeks don’t watch football. It’s a fact of life. But this may change for at least one night in the near future as fans of the upcoming title Dante’s Inferno will be tuning in Sunday for the big game when EA puts out its most expensive television ad ever.
Expected to be viewed by roughly 100 million fans, the Super Bowl has developed a reputation for some of the best, and worst, commercial debuts of the year. With the ever climbing price tag for commercial time during the Super Bowl, it is estimated that EA will be paying close to three million dollars for Dante’s Inferno to be shown amongst the center of the marketing universe for a mere thirty seconds.
Dante’s Inferno’s Super Bowl commercial, entitled “Hell Awaits…” will appear during the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLIV as a final push in the game’s already extensive marketing campaign. In preparation for the game’s February 9th release date, just two days after the Super Bowl, “Hell Awaits…” concludes a campaign that included Facebook apps, action figures, comic books and an animated DVD feature.
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Posted in: Electronic Arts · Games · Marketing · Playstation 3 · TV · Video Games · Xbox 360
Tagged: Commercials, Dante's Inferno, Divine Comedy, EA, Electronic Arts, Super Bowl Commercials, Super Bowl XLIV
by Cortney Zamm, Jul 16 2009 // 12:57 PM
Looks like Apple can’t handle a little taste of their own medicine. After years of enduring Apple’s “I’m a Mac” commercials, Microsoft released an ad campaign of their own a few months back, in which customers were given free money to shop for laptops and always chose PCs over Macs.
Most notable was “Lauren”, a customer who after realizing Macs were far too expensive, bought a $699 Windows PC. “I’m just not cool enough to be a Mac person,” she said. Apple’s response? They announced lower prices and more economical models of their MacBook Pro line at Macworld 2009. But that’s not all.
Information Week reports that Microsoft received a phone call from Apple’s legal department, asking that the ads be pulled. “‘Hey, you need to stop running those ads, we lowered our prices,’” Microsoft COO Kevin Turner quoted. “It was the single greatest phone call in history that I’ve ever taken in business.”
What’s next in the eternal struggle between Apple and Microsoft? According to PC World, Microsoft announced plans to open Microsoft stores, similar to the Apple stores already seen in malls. Where in the malls? “Right next door to Apple,” says Turner.
Click through to watch “Lauren’s” add after the break.
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Posted in: Apple · Gear · Geek · News · Tech · Video
Tagged: Apple, Commercials, Get a Mac, Lauren, Microsoft