H5’s Logorama is an R-rated short featuring what it might look like if Michael Bay directed an action film in which all of Los Angeles was made of and inhabited by corporate branding… you know, sort of like The Island except this one is out to make a point with its message, and not just add a few million to its budget.
Logorama‘s main storyline involves a foul-mouthed Ronald McDonald with a lisp serving as a gun-toting, psycho-path fugitive on the run from the police, who just happen to be played by Michelin Men. Mr. Peanut gets his head blown off as you can see in the screen capture above, the Esso girl has to deal with a couple of horny Mr. Pringles (Original and Hot & Spicy) and Mr. Clean is a flamboyant guide at the zoo. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what makes up Logorama as the entire screen is filled with the logos for products you have a hard time turning your head and not seeing during your regular daily life. However, what is the film trying to say? Is it trying to say anything? It’s an obvious piece of satire, but is it more of a statement or a criticism? One thing is for certain, when one of the Michelin Men goes in to buy a small salad and a bottle of water only to come out with a bucket of KFC and jo-jos it’s not hard to see the commentary there.
The best way to answer any questions is to go to the source, which Steve Pond at The Wrap did when he asked, “Do you look at the film as a criticism of corporate branding, a tribute, or both?” To which co-director Ludovic Houplain said:
[The] film is not merely a critique of brands or an anti-capitalist statement, it also highlights the importance of fighting for complete freedom in the creative process.
In the modern world, where everything adheres to rules, and obeys laws about intellectual property (copyright, trademarks etc.), let’s at least keep this freedom, the freedom of speech, that should be above all the laws. It should be one of the Human Rights. How can a brand hypothetically forbid or attack this film?
It’s fascinating how the film itself became the source of its own meaning. Read the rest of the article and watch the whole short directly below:
What is there really to say? It’s Aardman. It’s Wallace and Gromit. Isn’t that enough? This time around Wallace has started up a baking business and all around him other bakers are being knocked off one-by-one and as he puts it, “Looking on the bright side, I suppose it means more business for us. Eh Gromit?” A statement that, of course, earns a scowl and a wide-eyed look of bewilderment from the faithful pooch.
The film is as entertaining as any Wallace and Gromit feature I’ve seen and you can check it out for yourself directly below or give it a rent from Netflix.
PREDICTIONS:
I want to say Logorama is the winner, but Aardman is tough competition with their Wallace and Gromit features. The studio previously won for the shorts The Wrong Trousers (1993) and A Close Shave (1995) and received a nomination for A Grand Day Out with Wallace and Gromit in 1991. On top of that, in 2006, their first feature film, Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit won Best Animated Feature topping Corpse Bride and Hayao Miyazaki’s Howl’s Moving Castle. History tells us Wallace and Gromit is the safe bet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Logorama gets the nod come March 7.
Weigh in with your thoughts on the shorts and which one you think will win the Oscar in the comments below.
