Ubisoft "Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon" (2017) 1:32 (USA)

This is the life action spot for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon, deftly shot with a touch of wry humor to boot. As a doo-wop song plays, a sniper sets his sights on three baddies. The baddies in question are playing cards, oblivious. Meanwhile, an inquisitive white cat spots a red laser on the floor and playfully chases it. It jumps up on the table to explore, but what the head honcho badass knocks the cat off the table. Suddenly karma rears its ugly head, as the red dot is coming from the sniper. Boom boom boom in rapid succession and the baddies go bye bye. Nice spot all around.
But here's the interesting part. This spot was directed by none other than John McTiernan who helmed Die Hard, Predator The Hunt For Red October and more. He also spent a nearly a year in prison for his role in hiring Anthony Pellicano to wiretap the producer of Rollerball and then lying about it in court. Proving there's always a second act in Hollywood, this is McTiernan's first stint as director in fourteen years. And as far as live action video game trailers go, this is a pretty great one. Streamlined storytelling, built around a simple premise. If reports are correct, McTiernan is signed on to direct a World War Two film set in China so it seems as if things are on the up and up. I'm surprised Ubisoft didn't want to capitalize on this from a PR standpoint. Regardless it's nice to see McTiernan's gift is still there.

Client: Ubisoft
Director: John McTiernan