MovieChat Forums > The Gauntlet (1977) Discussion > Shameless product placement

Shameless product placement

posted 16 years ago by Diss
6 replies | jump to latest

I hate it. I don't mind casual product placement that enhances the realism of a movie. But a can of Tab on the dashboard? Who would put the can up there? It would fall off as soon as you accelerate.

Tell me it ain't so Clint. Actually Clint has a lot more than that to answer for. If that many bullets are going to be fired in a movie, I expect a body count up there with Commando. And how many normal beat cops (they weren't swat team) carry that much ammunition.

Good thing he became a much more accomplished director. :)

[–] joekiddlouischama 16 years ago

***SPOILERS*** for The Gauntlet

Actually Clint has a lot more than that to answer for. If that many bullets are going to be fired in a movie, I expect a body count up there with Commando. And how many normal beat cops (they weren't swat team) carry that much ammunition.

To quote myself:

I'm not sure why so many people complain about a lack of "realism" in The Gauntlet when many of the action sequences are clearly orchestrated for symbolic, thematic, and aesthetic value, as opposed to pure realism. First, part of the sequence's point is to offer a symbolic spectacle (running "the gauntlet"), with cops firing on both sides of the oddly forlorn bus. Second, if the police officers killed each other, that would defeat the film's thematic purpose, in which the cops learn a lesson about mind-numbing conformity, mechanized compliance, and nihilistic indulgence. At the end of The Gauntlet, hundreds of cops mill around aimlessly, their consciousness about their own myopia and inhumanity having been newly awakened. They also now realize that corrupt authority (the police commissioner and his top assistant) had duped them into monstrous behavior. Essentially, The Gauntlet is an urban-domestic parable about the soldierly fallacy of the Vietnam War.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076070/board/thread/44159739?d=latest&amp ; ; ;t=20060616200024#latest

As for the can of Tab, I suppose that it's a product of product placement, but it's also intriguing how The Gauntlet features several "signs" over the course of the film. The soda can may fit into that literate scheme somehow.

[–] WarpedRecord 14 years ago

You really think Clint's fans are likely to run out and buy Tab after seeing it on the dashboard? They're more likely to hit the Jack Daniels.

[–] princesstinymeat 10 years ago

I think the can of Tab is a great little touch.

[–] darryl-tahirali 10 years ago

Shameless product placement - Diss

You want product placement? Take away the bus and the motorcycles, and most every motor vehicle you see is a Ford-Lincoln-Mercury product. Is there only one dealership in both the Las Vegas and Phoenix areas that dominates the market, even in selling to their respective police departments?

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"We hear very little, and we understand even less." - Refugee in Casablanca

[–] pinbackwiggly 8 years ago

Loved the Tab scene. I haven't seen a can of it in years.

[–] Times_Up 8 years ago

I thought it was funny how prominently it was placed in that scene. He probably got a lot of money that he was able to put towards the budget for that too. Clint became known for his efficient productions.

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