The Oscars

I turned on the Oscars about 20 minutes ago, and the most interesting thing so far - oddly enough - was a J.C. Penney ad that had montage of ordinary people living out famous movie moments.

The moments I recognized included Gene Kelley's dancing in the street from Singin' in the Rain, Marilyn Monroe's upskirt, a giant flock of crows à la The Birds, two kids enacting the Jack and Rose railing pose from Titanic, two Easy Rider motorcycle riders, the boombox lift from Say Anything, and Mary Poppins floating away with her umbrella. The tagline: Today's the day to feel like a star. Then pops up: J.C. Penney. Every Day Matters.

I was impressed with the ad, which called to mind, though not exactly, a retailer like Target or a product like Diet Coke (an ad for which ran right after it, actually.) It was unexpected, as it was quirkier than I would expect from this brand, not necessarily "hip" but definitely different and intriguing. (The people at Saatchi & Saatchi are behind it.) For more about the company's new branding campaign, see here. I have no idea if the quality or coolness of the merchandise at the store has improved, but I do have a $25 gift card from my birthday, so maybe I'll check it out...

UPDATE: Like the commenters, I have also been wondering about the music in the ad. Apparently, it's a remake of "South American Getaway" composed by Burt Bachrach and originally written for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.