Beer and patriotism go together - that's just the way it is. But to copy the famous Canadian "rant", except down in Oz? Now, don't be silly.
Adgrunts can view the commercials here: Molson Joe I am Canadian and Fosters I Believe
Otherwise, continue to the screenshots below.
Try as you might, you could not avoid the avalanche of popularity the Molson Canadian Beer ad "The Rant" got.
It was written up in the tradepress, gossiped about in the regular Canadian press, and it even had its own tail of urban myths. The Molsen Rant premiered around March 2000 on American airwaves, though press about it was not restricted to the US. Now there is a Fosters ad just like it. The basic premise of both ads is a rant, that deals with the stereotypes of each country, and as the character reads it, he goes from timid, to agitated.
Which ad came first?
This is what the Molson rants monologue said:
Hey. I'm not a lumberjack, or a fur trader. And I don't live in an igloo, or eat blubber, or own a dogsled. And I don't know Jimmy, Sally or Suzy from Canada, although
I'm certain they're really, really nice. I have a Prime
Minister, not a President. I speak English and French,
NOT American. and I pronounce it 'ABOUT', NOT 'A BOOT'.
I can proudly sew my country's flag on my backpack.
I believe in peace keeping, NOT policing. DIVERSITY,
NOT assimilation, AND THAT THE BEAVER IS A TRULY PROUD
AND NOBLE ANIMAL. A TOQUE IS A HAT, A CHESTERFIELD IS
A COUCH, AND IT IS PRONOUNCED 'ZED' NOT 'ZEE', 'ZED'!!!
CANADA IS THE SECOND LARGEST LANDMASS! THE FIRST NATION
OF HOCKEY! AND THE BEST PART OF NORTH AMERICA! MY NAME
IS JOE!! AND I AM CANADIAN!!!!!!!! Thank you.
Now thanks to a anonymous hawkeyed spy at the Canadian advertisings infamous rantroom teabaggers, founded by our friend "secret Wanda", we find that Fosters in Australia has made an almost identical ad. Its monologue goes a little something like this:
G'day.. uh, I don't have a kangaroo for a pet I don't
wrestle with crocodiles, and I don't wear a cork hat.
I fight wars, but never start wars. I would rather
like peace. I can wear my countries flag with pride.
I am a rock. I am the ocean. I am the island continent.
My brothers are the Smits, the Wilsons, The Santarillis,
The Vikoskys, The Wongs and the Jagamaroes. I play
football, without a helmet. I LIKE beetroot on my hamburger.
I ride in the FRONTSEAT of a taxi. I believe this is
a PRAWN not a SHRIMP. I belive the world is round and
DOWN UNDER is ON TOP. I believe Australia is the best
address on earth, and Australians, brew the BEST BEER
on EARTH. Cheers.
So what's your theory? Is the Fosters ad a homage to... or a plain rip-off? Or perhaps, it was just a meme that made creatives realize that beer and patriotism go hand in hand?
Which one do you prefer?
I'd prefer the grammar and spelling to be correct, for a start.
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