You are now entering Ad Space, a realm of commercials, brought before us so we might examine how they work, and discuss why we both love and hate them so. So it is written …

The Product:
Motion picture The Jerk

The Promotion:

The Pitch:
We’re gonna take those movie-going rubes for every last cent they … Hey! What are those movie-going rubes doing in the audience!?

I love a movie trailer that does something different, especially when that includes filming new footage just for the trailer, and this is one of the finest examples I’ve ever seen.

Not only does it make for a great joke, giving us a supposed secret glimpse into how movie producers and theater owners fleece the public, but it also gives you a feel for what sort of movie The Jerk is gonna be. Oh, the cynical, money-grubbing Steve Martin on display here is a far-cry from the naive, guileless Navin Johnson that Martin plays in the movie. But in being an absurd divergence from what film trailers are supposed to do, it showcases the same sort of absurdist humor and blithe disregard for traditional story structure that makes The Jerk what it is.

Plus, all those things Steve Martin says are in the movie actually are in the movie. Chase scene, kung-fu fight, double entendres, disco song … even the thing about having a boring bit where people can leave to buy more popcorn. That’s based on the film’s premiere screening where a lot of people did exactly that, much to Martin’s distress – but that didn’t keep the ’em from, not just joking about it, but turning it into a device to sell the movie. No wonder the guy’s had such a long career in Hollywood.

If you’re curious about the movie The Jerk, they did also make a more traditional trailer to go along with this one: