How the Armageddon advertising campaign of Michael Bay caused panic throughout the city

1998 was the year of the murderous space rocks that came to annihilate the Earth. The “deep impact” was more melancholic and inverted in complex human emotions and slow preparation for the inevitable. The filmmakers consulted several scientists to be as scientifically as possible. It was the opposite of the “Armageddon” of the American flag, director Michael Bay, who is not exactly known for his subtlety.

Both films are splashes in Rotten Tomatoes and did not receive the best critical response. Even the “Armageddon” star Ben Affleck destroyed the absurd plot of his own film in the famous Hilarious DVD comment: “I asked Michael why it was easier to train oil drills to become astronauts than to train astronauts to become oil perforators, and told me to shut up to shit,” he said. The film focuses on civilian oil perforators that embark on a convoluted mission to pierce a hole and drop a bomb in an asteroid that is directed towards the earth. Affleck also made fun of the unpleasant romantizing film of the conservative blue neck values:

“Bruce will tell the boys who did a bad job when building the drilling tank. Look, it is a salt of the type of the earth, and NASA’s nerd monity do not understand their salt from the earth.

Bruce Willis also had problems with “Armageddon”, mainly the lack of character’s development and cervical whistle. Despite these criticisms, “Armageddon” became the number one success at the box office that summer, raising more than $ 500 million worldwide compared to the “deep impact”, which won just over $ 300 million (through Box office mojo). Part of that success has to do with an excellent outdoor marketing campaign that caused panic throughout the city.

Before the explosive summer of 1998, the giant posters that promote “Armageddon” hung on the sides of the buildings in Los Angeles, Chicago and Las Vegas. The posters coincided with the architecture of the building itself. There was an illustration of a huge hole in the middle, as if an asteroid had torn. Behind the hole was a bright blue sky, allowing you to “see” through the remains. If he drove down the street, he would have to make a double take because he looked very realistic.

The Hollywood Reporter He points out that this giant replica of a destroyed building would never have been approved after September 11, but before that, it was apparently “the city’s talk.” It is a strong, striking and striking announcement, exactly like what turned out to be the “Armageddon” by Michael Bay. But above all, “it was very intelligent and shows an excellent way to use outdoor campaigns,” says Russell Schwartz, former New Line theatrical marketing president. “Most outdoor (marketing) are wasted because they are basically taking the poster and simply exploiting it,” he continues. The “Armageddon” marketing team leaned into the disaster genre show by making the poster as 3D and shocking as possible. Allow the public to imagine what an apocalypse triggered by the asteroid would really be.

In Facebook group dedicated to the past architecture of Los AngelesFans remembered the ads, claiming that “many cars stopped on the road” or that caused traffic, especially in the interest 405 in Los Angeles. It was a sure way to ensure that the future public was not lost at the next summer launch.