Honda Accord - Cog (2003) - 2:00 (UK)

Takes: 606
Cost: est. £750,000

Voice: Garrison Keillor - "Isn't it nice when things just work?"
Trivia: "The full advert is divided in two - because the studio couldn't fit in all the kit at once. Just one second of computer generation is used to link the two halves - when an exhaust pipe rolls across the floor." - Michael Christie, Daily Record

Agency: Wieden+Kennedy UK
Director: Antoine Bardou-Jacquet, Partizan Midi Minuit
Post: Mill

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Anonymous Adgrunt's picture
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AnonymousCoward's picture

This is truly an amazing ad -- Mr. Goldberg would be proud. :) I gotta know though, how did they get the tires to roll up the ramp?

Dabitch's picture

there's 'contraweights' in them... Like little metal balls that also roll, this making the rolling effect... eh.. "Rollier". :) Seriously. Ballbearings... is that the word I'm looking for?

The sounds are great, and that window-opening bit is a great 'cliffhanger'. Can you imagine how sick of the line "isn't it nice how things just ..work" the team behind this must have gotten after 606 takes?

leeroychile's picture

Yes! Truly truly amazing.

AnonymousCoward's picture

I remember that a talk show did comment on this a while back. I thoght that it was funny when I saw it there. Now I can watch this marvel over and over! Nice Intermachineing work though!

AnonymousCoward's picture

Anyone growing up in England in the 1970's as I did will be troubled by the inescapeable similarity this spot has to an Open University programme about kinetic power and motion. This Honda commercial mimicked the idea in that programme, subsitituting the various components with automotive parts. I wonder how many people marvel at this film without realising it is not original but a blatant copy.

Dabitch's picture

We did a story on that as well, A wrench in the Cog as the creators of Der Lauf Der Dinge Peter Fischli and David Weiss were considering legal action against Honda.

AnonymousCoward's picture

I love that it's the same guy doing the voice over as the guy in the Honda "Hate" spot for diesel engines.

Isn't it one of the guys from the creative team?