Kaitlin’s Pick: “The Force”

If you’ve ever dressed up as your favorite character and tore around the house, hoping that somehow, your costume would give you powers, then you understand the magic of this 2011 Super Bowl commercial.

I know that doesn’t explain what Star Wars has to do with Volkswagen, but it certainly demonstrates why this Game Day commercial is so popular. It’s nostalgic, creative, feel-good, funny — all of the above. And it stands out from the ever-popular Bud Light and Doritos commercials, offering a softer, family-friendly tone (because men aren’t the only people watching the Super Bowl). I get tired of seeing beer and chips, anyway.

When it comes to automobile advertisements, we’re used to sexy, shiny vehicles speeding through city streets or over dusty terrain or some other badass landscape, but that’s not the case in this commercial. The product itself is only shown for a third of the time, but from the moment the commercial began, I was itching to know what it was all about and, as strange as it seems, taking the focus off of the product made me remember it more. Oh, and the use of The Imperial March helped, too (which Volkswagen is using again this year in their 2012 teaser, a huge viral hit):