Have you ever seen someone trying to look and sound relaxed? Well, that is Ryan Reynolds in one of the B.C. tourism commercials, sounding like he could not be trying any harder to not be trying at all.
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Reynolds tries a little too hard in B.C. commercial
- February 27, 2010 3:56 PM |
- By Erin Valois
Story provided by
By Eric Koreen, National Post
On Friday, Brian Hutchinson took a quick look at the British Columbia Tourism commercials that have been dominating the air during the Olympics. You know the ones: celebrities, lots of green screen, one-word slogans that sell British Colombia's natural beauty.
And those ads were responsible for the most indelible non-sports-related memory that will stick with me from these Games -- even more than the banal and indestructible "I Believe."
One of those commercials features actor Ryan Reynolds, the Vancouver-born thespian known mostly for providing quips in either comedies or action movies. The slogan he gets, unsurprisingly, is "laid back." This is often Reynolds' on-screen persona, a relaxed slacker pleased with his lot in life. (Although he has stretched to bland romantic comedy love interest recently.)
Only, he does not pull it off in the commercial as well as he does in the movies. One of the keys of being laid back is actually being laid back, and Reynolds' voice aches with effort.
Have you ever seen someone trying to look and sound relaxed? Well, that is Reynolds in the commercial, sounding like he could not be trying any harder to not be trying at all.
And every time I hear Reynolds say, "laid back", I cannot help but laugh. It is instant and automatic entertainment.
Alas, all good things must end, and the commercials will likely disappear after these Olympics end. And that means the royalties cheques will stop coming in for Reynolds. He is undoubtedly taking it all in stride, though: he knows of no other way.
About the Author
- Bruce Arthur Bruce Arthur is the National Post's national sports columnist. A Vancouver native, he has been with the Post since 2001, and a columnist since 2005. He is covering his second Olympics, after the 2008 Games in Beijing. He expects these Games to be slightly less propagandistic, and for China to win slightly fewer medals.
- Joe O'Connor Joe O'Connor is a roving sports feature writer with an open-ended beat. He joined the National Post in 2002, and has spent the past seven years bouncing from sport to sport, offering fresh perspectives and delivering unique stories wherever he goes. Whether it has been getting Don Cherry to open up about his love life; George Chuvalo to talk about heartbreaking loss; or racing down the side of a mountain with former Crazy Canuck, Dave Irwin, the veteran Postie chases a story wherever it leads. Before joining the newspaper he was a two-time silver medalist at the National Magazine Awards. Vancouver will be his first Olympics.
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