"For Papa!"

29 January 2026

2 mins 30s

(Whoops) Have a banana!

Slapstick doesn't always land, and neither does Ben Stiller... but they both land spectacularly well in this fab Super Bowl ad for Instacart from Spike Jonze... although, to be strictly accurate, Stiller doesn't land at all well. Spurred by the crowd's response to a flip performed by his 'brother' (played by Benson Boone), Stiller decides he must outdo his sibling by upping the ante.

This leads to a short series of catastrophic decisions, as Stiller's character meets each failure with a need to escalate the risk, with his resulting misfortunes getting funnier by the stunt. This gives it a high re-watchability score, a factor in the success of advertising that is too often overlooked.

Jonze judges the pace exquisitely, and allows the audience to anticipate each pratfall in a fashion that perfectly amps up the comedy. The ad has been wrapped in visual veneer that makes it look like a relic from the 1980s, and this adds a layer of comix intrigue as we watch the action unfold. The decision to have the two principals play it with cod Mediterranean accents might have a few people scratching their heads, but it can't really be accused of stereotyping if you can't pin down where they're supposed to from!

Ben Stiller has a remarkable facility for physical comedy and seldom will you see a better exhibition of it than this.

USA

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