Tommy Lee Jones :: The Boss (Coffee)

Remember that friend's episode where all the friends find Joey's Japanese men's lipstick commercial? Or the entire plot of Lost in Translation? ("For relaxing times, make it Suntory time") Celebrities really do make weird Japanese ads. Big stars that would NEVER be caught dead hawking cars and beer in America can be found on giant billboards across Tokyo and in prime time commercials. Right now, there is a big Hugh Jackman for Asahi Super Dry Beer campaign. On my first trip to Japan, Clooney was shilling for the Honda Odyssey. (The copy underneath George roughly translates to: "I like good cars. Because I'm a man.") These gigs pay a lot and most contracts include a clause that the commercials can't be use in Western markets, which is why you never see them. Thank goodness for YouTube!

Remember Tommy Lee Jones? I'm pretty sure he's the inspiration for Bob Harris in Lost in Translation. According to IMDB, TLJ's next big project is...sigh...Men in Black 3. In Japan, you can see Tommy's mug just about everywhere. He is and has been for some time, the face of Boss Coffee (owned by Suntory btw), a canned coffee company. He hardly speaks or smiles, but his presence is felt. This is acting at its best. He plays typical Japanese members of society and aside from TLJ, these are cool because you get a glimpse into daily life in Japan. If you've ever wanted to know what a maid cafe is like, check out the 2nd video.

Here he is as a bar host:


A TV show production guy in Akihabara:


A Hot Pepper (free restaurant guide) distributor:


And a Karaoke attendant:

Chip! Chop!

One of the worst and best things about being in a foreign country is not knowing what products are good and which are crap. You basically have to learn by trial and error. For example, I keep buying absolutely disgusting toothpaste. What exactly does "Extreme Cool" taste like and is it better than "Icy Fire"? Only one way to find out. (PS - both are gross.)

To make things easier on myself, I've decided to become a complete slave to marketing and advertising. Back home, I drowned out all the lame messages on the subway and on TV, but here I'm all ears. It's worked out pretty well thus far. I got an iPhone because of that schnazzy SMAP Softbank commercial, I drink BOSS Coffee because Tommy Lee Jones is on the can and generally stick to Suntory drink products because well, "For relaxing time, make it a Suntory time." One of my favorite finds thus far is a chocolate snack called Chip Chop. They're slightly salty like potato chips, but chocolate flavored. If you watch the current commercial below, you'll understand why I had to have them.

Bistro SMAP

I've been watching a lot of Japanese TV to help acclimate my brain to the Japanese language and a few things I've noticed so far are that they love watching people eat and that the same TV personalities and celebrities are seen in commercials. I'd say that 80% of the what is on TV involved food in some way and that is A-OK with me. SMAP is a Japanese boy band that has been popular for decades. They're like the Japanese Menudo except they don't replace any of the members and they are still popular. They're well into their 30's now but they're EVERYWHERE. They have a variety show on TV called SMAPxSMAP and one of the segments is called BISTRO SMAP. From what I can tell, members of the band cook a meal for a celebrity guest in teams of two, then the guest chooses a winner. Most of the time, I have no idea what is going on, but it's fun to see these guys cooking. Take that J-Timberlake!

The clip above is a BISTRO SMAP segment from a few years ago with Cameron Diaz and Jude Law. It's kind of boring but I thought I'd post it because I just watched Lost in Translation and was reminded of Anna Faris' character Kelly and how Sofia Coppola based her off of Cameron Diaz. The similarities are striking.

Lastly, here is the coolest commercial I've ever seen featuring SMAP. I am particularly fond of the guy second from the right with the longish hair. His name is KimuTaku and if things don't work out with my roommate, I'm going to marry him and live in the house where this commercial was taped. Watch the entire clip to understand why.