A while back, BMW put together a series of short films dubbed The Hire. In essence, they were really long, generously-budgeted commercials. They also attracted the likes of Clive Owen, John Woo, Gary Oldman, Clint Mansell (sidenote: I was not planning on doing Moon this week – total coincidence), David Fincher and Tony Scott, amongst others. Our Saturday Short comes from this series. I present to you Star:

My first reaction when I saw this was, “Holy crap, Guy Ritchie actually got his wife to go along with this?” (Mind you, this was years ago, when they were newlyweds and this first came out.) That Madonna played a deliciously bitchy diva that gets her comeuppance was great casting because this plays on her persona and the implication that yes, she is that big of a bitch (regardless of how true or not the assumption happens to be). Yes, the acting was overwrought and the delivery of lines wasn’t exactly spot-on (sometimes, singers should stick to singing. Just saying.), but you have to admit that there’s a certain schadenfreude to watching this. Deep down, we all want to see someone that treats others that poorly get run over by the karma bus.

I am also the first person to admit that slapstick comedy makes me very, very happy. The Three Stooges, Marx Brothers, Buster Keaton and Looney Tunes were staples of my childhood that I still indulge in to this day. A joke among my friends and I runs along the lines of, “It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt – then it’s hilarious.” We’re not talking Jackass level; we’re talking scripted, well-choreographed comedy. Watching someone get flung around a car is just funny. The best part: when Owen utters, “I think we’ve lost them, sir,” and her damn hand comes up over the dashboard. I also love that Owen calling a woman “sir” reminds me of Integra on Hellsing, which is an extremely fun anime if you haven’t tried it yet.

Like I said before, at its core, it’s really a glorified commercial, but it’s a fun commercial. Happy Saturday.