This is a brilliant commercial from Bacardi. The man cuts across the club in search of a drink. And as he does, he cuts through time as well, going through the 60s, the 50s, 30, 20s, etc. until he ends up with a bartender who looks like he is from the 19th century.
What struck me was three couples: at the beginning, the main character leaves what appears to be a mixed race couple who are almost easy to overlook (they are only in the shot for 3 seconds). They are together in a very casual way. Midway through the ad, there is a black man dancing with a white woman in around the 1950s: they are very close. (Though interestingly, she wears gloves.) This is in contrast to the black and whilte couple towards the end of the commercial: a black piano player with a white flapper from the 1920s, where there is a greater separation of the pair.
It’s a highly impressionistic commercial, and it is an advertisement, not a history lesson. But it does flash moments of history in the spot, and I was struck by these three couples. It could be happenstance, but the strong historical sense in the ad got me thinking otherwise.
Anyway, watch the ad and see what you think.
Smart People I Know 
This commercial also has wonderful art direction. It’s mostly black and white and infused with green — hey, we’re talking mojitos! 🙂 — with alot of pinks/reds/fuschias carefully accenting and spread throughout the ad. Especially look for the accents in skirts, shoes, etc.
Well done!
Thanks for this post – this is indeed very interesting… I was thinking of writing a short piece, “Mommy where do mixed raced children come from?” … you see so many beautiful children yet very few intact families with the ‘original’ mothers and fathers. If you have some free time over the summer, try to check out “A Taste of Honey,” a classic, early 60s brit film that was groundbreaking for its time in dealing with issues of miscegenation and homosexuality in a sensitive and thought-provoking manner.