Copycat Palm

What you can’t see in this dreamy commercial still is the 1000+ kung fu artists surrounding that rock. They (and actress Tamara Hope) star in a new 60-second commercial Palm has released for its Pre. Appearing on the PalmInfocenter, “WebOShelp” also posted it to YouTube, calling it:

An impressive new ad for the webOS Palm Pre smartphone, directed by acclaimed film director Tarsem [Singh Dhandwar] and featuring over 1000 martial arts performers (orchestrated by Sun Yupeng), creating an artistic interpretation of unique features such as Synergy and Cards.

I call it a rip-off. While the mass-dancer idea has since appeared in a number of TV spots, the most original execution was the piece done for Turkey’s AKBank, part of a striking campaign that ran in 2006. At the time, this choreographic extravaganza was original and arresting.

Now, an Endgadget post seems to echo most online sentiments about the Palm Pre spot:

You want obsessive coverage eh, well here it is: the latest Palm Pre ad just unveiled on Facebook. No smack-talk, no smarmy reference to the competition, just an impassioned plea that approaches gently upon the pads of kittens, gazes in your direction, and then walks away. If we didn't know better, we'd guess that Pre was a new brand of feminine deodorant. Give it a whiff after the break.

Either somebody sold Palm a bill of goods, or Palm’s target audience has shifted big time.

PS: Palm Pre commercial director Tarsem showed his new feature film “The Fall,” at the 2008 International Istanbul Film Festival – which was sponsored by AKBank. I never found out who actually directed the AKBank commercial. I wonder..?