Chanel No. 5: The smell of creative disaster?

Chanel No. 5 perfume recently unveiled Brad Pitt as its first male face in an existential video where Pitt is seen sprouting out a monologue about the "end of journeys" and "plans disappearing" and "fate taking over".The ad directed by Pride and Prejudice director Joe Wright, to date, has garnered 7,620 likes, 3,687 dislikes on its official Youtube page. While some netizens said it was "too cheesy" others expressed doubt over "loving any cologne this intensely."A comment on Chanel's YouTube page also read: "(Is it) just me or did that make no sense?"The sentiment was also echoed by experts Marketing spoke to who said the creative attempt, unfortunately, has no connection with the product.According to Farrokh Madon, chief creative officer, Y&R Advertising, the ad tries to get out of the "superficial glam model allure" of fashion ads to add a thinking slant to Chanel No. 5."Unfortunately, it comes across as a reflective muse by Brad Pitt with no apparent link to the brand," he added.Madon said the ad does nothing for the brand except for "coming across as a fashion brand trying unsuccessfully to be intellectual and esoteric.""We all died a little watching this," Robert Gaxiola, creative partner, ManghamGaxiola, said.Labelling the ad as "totally forgettable", he added it was a "shame" and a wasted opportunity to write an ad for the fashion giant using Brad Pitt nonetheless."Perhaps his read sounds better in French, everything sounds better in French. Sorry Coco, we're so sorry."Rayner Lim, creative partner, Contagious sums it up in a creative way of his own: "Brad Pitt. What a gorgeous human being in a black and white ad. As a grown man and father of two, I never thought I would ever say this, but Brad Pitt made me want to wear a Chanel. No not just a condescending dab on the wrist. I want to douse myself in it so that Pitt will catch me in the winds and come give his nod of approval.""That beautiful close-up. The perfectly trimmed facial hair," he continues, "it doesn't matter what he is mumbling about in the ad. I can watch him all day, selling me anything he wants. In the end, the world (my world at least) stops whenever Pitt is on to tell me something about the world that stops for nobody, except Brad Pitt"Brad Pitt is the latest addition to the Chanel's family which includes famous faces such as Marilyn Monroe, Nicole Kidman and Audrey Tautou amongst others.This is another campaign in recent months that has been widely labelled as a vague attempt at creativity. Recently Facebook's ad where it likened itself to a chair caused huge uproar among netizens and experts alike who slammed the ad as being irrelevant and distasteful.