Mr. Boombastic
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TITLE “Mr. Boombastic” by Deiniol Morris* and Michael Mort*
STUDIO/SCHOOL Aaargh! Animation
A building is on fire, and a woman is in distress, but one guy keeps his cool and rescues her…
Mr. Boombastic was the first animated Levi’s spot, directed by Deiniol Morris and Michael Mort. Claymotion technology, a cinematographic technique using animated plasticine, was used to create it. The commercial starts off with a motorcycle riding by a burning building. A woman screams at the top, and the dashing hero steps into frame. He then rides his motorcycle up a fire ladder, and onto the roof. The woman at first isn't impressed, but when he whips off his belt and drops trou right in front of her, she swoons. The man's plan is to ride his Levi's jeans down a wire to the ground. They take off down the line, the woman screaming the whole way, and barely keep ahead of a flame traveling down the line. They crash into a window, and into some guy's bathroom. But that doesn't deter the hero and the damsel from sharing a passionate kiss.
The track used was Boombastic, written by Robert Livingstone and Orville Burrell for Shaggy’s third album, also entitled Boombastic. It would be reductive in this case to define the track as a mere soundtrack. The song actually adds to the humorous spirit of the spot, accompanying the hero ‘Mr. Lover Lover’ through every scene and exaggerating his coolness with irony. The single was a huge success, seizing the number one position in Australia, Italy, New Zealand, and the UK, and the US R&B chart.
