In between executive producing his new series Ash Vs. Evil Dead, Sam Raimi recently managed to find the time to direct a car commercial so clever, Don Draper would have approved. Unfortunately, it’s not for the Oldsmobile Delta 88, but for Chevy’s new Malibu and Cruze.
The minute-long spot riffs on the old cliché of ominous warnings presented to new homeowners in horror movies. “We approached the development of the Chevrolet trailer in the same way we would an actual movie – by thinking through the plot, characters and eventual outcome,” Raimi says. “I’ve been in plenty of theaters where the audience is so concerned for the safety of the main characters that they call out warnings to save them. That’s what this is based on.”
Featuring such Raimi signatures as blustery winds, quick zooms, and flickering lights, the commercial builds to a punchline where a horror movie character actually listens to the warnings. (To be fair, the DeFeos and the Freelings did not move into houses with active safety features.)
The ad is currently playing on TV and in movie theaters nationwide, and Raimi’s Ash Vs. Evil Dead will return to Starz in 2016.
[h/t Broke Horror Fan]