Car "Dude" Alan

Issue 152 - 9 November 2006

When you own a market share and have the "best car" in the field for years, plus have the most recognizable tag line of any car made -- "The unbeatable driving machine" -- how do you advertise? For the most part, BMW's print ads and TV ads have been pretty average. They have been always in good taste, and occasionally aggressive, but for years, mostly it has been "we're here, come buy our great cars" and little more.

Before going on, I should mention the campaign for the MINI when BMW introduced -- or make that reintroduced -- that icon. That was recognized everywhere as a tour de force. It set new high standards in being very clever for a very clever car. This is one case where I am very sure that the ads really did sell many cars. Of course having great product, getting great reviews, and having very happy owners helped a lot too.

Leave it to BMW to invent a new approach to "advertising", if I can use that crass word in this instance. It is important to note, as BMW's marketing people did, that many master movie directors have a characteristic style. Sometimes they work very hard to cultivate it. Think John Ford westerns or Alfred Hitchcock mysteries. Other directors just have it regardless of the subject matter of the movie. I hate to think what this cost BMW, but in 2001 they gathered five directors to "show off" in a series of short movies. They were called "The Hire" and the rules were just three: make it short, use Clive Owen as the star, and use a current model BMW. They were shown only online at bmwfilms.com which isn't in use anymore. The films were available a bit later on DVDs in limited quantities at a few auto shows.

The results really were sensational. And they were mostly filmed in Los Angeles. In no special order, the films were:

  • Ambush, by John Frankenheimer, starring a BMW 740i
    • On a dark freeway, a van swerves close to The Driver. From its open side door, masked gunman threaten to fire unless The Driver stops and surrenders his passenger, a man they accuse of smuggling diamonds. It's a simple choice: do or die. Legendary John Frankenheimer and star Clive Lee domgine talents to create a dramatic chase with some unexpected twists.
    • Oh, this is just so John Frankenheimer! You can see him in every second of the film. Isn't the late John Frankenheimer the one who really created car chases?
  • Chosen, by Ang Lee, starring a BMW 540i
    • The Driver meets a ship carrying an eight-year-old Tibgetan boy at a dark, deserted New York shipyard. But he's not the only one waiting. The result is a thrilling, yet beautiful, tale filled with mystery.
    • Again, look at this one and you can clearly see Ang Lee's fingerprints on every frame of the film. The "dance" of cars could only be done by Mr. Lee.
  • The Follow, by Wong Kar-Wai, starring a BMW 530i and Z3, plus Cuba Gooding and Mickey Rourke
    • The cunning and tactics of trailing another car quickly evolve into a mystery rife with deceit, as The Driver is hired to follow a woman accused of cheating on her famous husband. You'll relish every turn in this drama of mistrust.
    • I'm not really familiar with Wong Kar-Wai's style of films, so I have no real comment other than that this is fascinating from beginning to end.
  • Star, by Guy Ritchie, starring a BMW M5, plus Guy's wife
    • The Driver faces perhaps his most perplexing challenge: a hugely talented and beautiful rock star who always has what she wants. See The Driver and a surprise guest star in a battle of power against power.
    • This one is the comedy of the group. I'm not sure if Guy Ritchie really has a characteristic of the films he makes, but in this one he brings along his wife as the "superstar". Hmmm. She really is, and one wonders just how close to character she plays in this film.
  • Power Keg, by Alejandro González-Iñárritu, starring a BMW X5
    • Soldiers patrol fields surrounding a rural village in search of a photojournalist who has snapped a picture certain to unite the world against their leader. The Driver is sent in as the photographer's only hope of escape.
    • Again, I'm not familiar with Alejandro González-Iñárritu's film style, but this is another riveting short film that just happens to have a BMW in it.

I watched these films again for this article and was again surprised at just how really good they are. The cars are certainly there a lot in the films, but the action all happens around them with good acting and fantastic stories as well as the director's particular characteristics.

These films even got "reviewed". Richard Corliss, of Time Magazine, said "It surely deserves the attention of discerning movie watchers."

BMW followed up the initial five with three more in 2003. These all featured the then new BMW Z4:

  • Hostage, by John Woo
    • The Driver races to locate a kidnapped victim locked in the trunk of an abandoned car somewhere on the water's edge. Linked to her only by cell phone, the Driver narrows in on her location in a desperate race against time and tide.
    • This may be getting to sound like a recording, but again this is very typical Ang Lee. As with all the films here, the directors have direct input into the script and production.
  • Ticker, by Joe Carnahan
    • The Driver rescues a mysterious passenger carrying an even more mysterious briecase on a rural highway (Angeles Crest Highway!). As a helicopter gunman relentlessly pursues them, a game of political intrigue plays out, with an unforeseen ending.
    • I'm not familiar with Joe Carnahan, but this really is one of the big action movies of the set. It really wasn't cheap to film this one.
  • Beat the Devil, by Tony Scott, also starring Tony's friends Gary Oldman and James Brown
    • Decades ago, the legendary James Brown sold his soul to the devil for fame and fortune. Now he wishes to renegotiate. Hired to take Mr. Brown to a rendezvous with the devil (Gary Oldman), the Driver soon finds himself entangled in fiendish plans.
    • Ha! I'm not really sure what the "typical" Tony Scott film is, but this one is really different from the others, and most interesting as a result.

While the initial surprise of how clever these films had past, these three fit right in with the original ones.

I'm sorry to have taken so long to describe these films, particularly since they now seem to be unavailable on the BMW website, but of course, you can buy copies on eBay.. Next week I'm going to tell you about the next step in BMW's unusual marketing efforts. It is going to be difficult to follow up on such fantastic -- and critically acclaimed -- films.

Have an opinion? Click here to write us!