From a small acorn grows the mighty oak. And in this Tylenol :30 for the Canadian market, a whopper of a headache springs forth from a tiny pistachio. Indeed, it’s the little things that collectively can have a major impact, both literally and figuratively speaking.
In a chain reaction tour de force that would make Rube Goldberg proud, we open on a woman enjoying a quiet evening at home–or so we thought. She’s watching a Tylenol Ultra Relief commercial on TV–talk about your mundane slice of life. But she makes the mistake of tossing a pistachio nutshell into a nearby bowl already full of shells. The final shell proves to be the final straw, tipping the bowl over. It falls off the table and scares the cat that had been purring below.
The suddenly frantic feline leaps up into a chair and then scurries up a window curtain, with claws clenched in the drapery. This in turn brings down the curtain rod. Ah, but the fun has just begun. The falling rod knocks one knick knack into another along a mantle, creating a domino effect which flips a metal shovel for fireplace ashes across the room where it shatters a fish aquarium, unleashing a torrent of water that shorts out the surge protector. The suddenly erratic AC/DC current results in every electrical appliance in the house going on the brink, including the TV set, followed by a rapid fire succession of blown out light bulbs. Then the air conditioning unit starts to malfunction, vibrating and sending forth electrical sparks. This nudges the air conditioner’s electrical plug out of its socket, causing the unit to sail out the window. The air conditioner then crash lands on a parked car, which presumably belongs to the woman.
At the tail end of this unbelievable, comedy-tinged nightmare, a voiceover warns us, “your next headache might be a big one.” This observation is a prelude to a parting product shot of a bottle of Tylenol Ultra Relief caplets. The voiceover goes on to inform us that this particular variety of Tylenol carries “a pain relief enhancer” to tackle “tough headaches and migraine pain.”
Steve Chase directed the spot, which is titled “Pistachio,” via The Partners’ Film Company, Toronto, for agency MacLaren McCann Canada, Vancouver. (Chase directs spots in the U.S. through Santa Monica-headquartered Reactor Films, a company in which he is partnered with veteran production executive Michael Romersa.)
Don McLean executive produced for Partners’, with Link York serving as producer. The DP on this Toronto shoot was Barry Peterson.
The creative team at MacLaren McCann Canada consisted of creative directors Andy Manson and Kerry Reynolds, art director Robert Kingston, copywriter Wade Hesson and producer Sarah Michener.
David Baxter of Panic & Bob, Toronto, edited “Pistachio.” Colorist was Billy Ferwerda of Notch, Toronto. Audio mixing was done at Pirate Radio and Television, Toronto.