Patriotism, Hope and Clint Eastwood’s Chrysler Commercial

By the time the second quarter ended, my Super Bowl party was in full swing. Fingers sticky with buffalo sauce, I was passionately arguing that the game ultimately depended on the efficiency of the Giant’s defensive line. The room was filled with raucous laughter, taunting, boasting and a mathematically improbable quantity of food. It was in the midst of all of this happy chaos that a lone voice, raspy and guttural, cut across the room. Daddy was home; Clint Eastwood was speaking.
If any actor wants to know how to develop a character, I urge them to follow Eastwood’s career. Over the course of a film career beginning with Man With No Name in 1963, he has become an enduring cultural icon, representing masculinity through cowboys, boxers, police officers and generally gruff old men. That is why Eastwood, a lifetime resident of California and former mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, was selected by Chrysler to narrate its heavily pro-Detroit commercial.
As images representing the last four years since the 2008 economic crisis flashed across the screen, Eastwood remarked that, like the Giants and Patriots, America is at halftime and is determined to “win the game.” After nearly collapsing completely in 2008, the Detroit automobile industry has slowly regained stability. Chrysler has recently come under the control of Fiat and has managed an impressive financial turnaround, and America is also showing signs of increasing financial stability. The “Great Recession” seems to be loosening its stranglehold on the American labor market, with unemployment falling to 8.3%, the lowest it’s been since February of 2009, and increasing market confidence across many sectors. Chrysler’s overarching message is that just as Chrysler has turned around, America will as well, ultimately “getting right back up again, and when we do the world is going to hear the roar of our engines.”
With growing anxiety about America’s possible future as a struggling superpower in a post-Cold War climate, any attempt to unite the American people, even in a gesture as superficial as a Chrysler advertisement encouraging support of American industry, is to be commended. The commercial had only passing references to any car brands; the main message was a patriotic, nationalist stab into American culture with an inspiring speech right out of a Rocky or Rudy.
At my Super Bowl party, the commercial was considered silently, and as the final phrase, “It’s halftime America. And our second half is about to begin,” echoed alongside somber brass tones, an idea took shape. “Eastwood for President,” we said laughing and nodding. An easy joke, as the commercial had all the hallmarks of a modern political ad, showing scenes of Americans rising in the morning to begin daily work, accompanied by cinematic music and an inspiring narration.
Considering Eastwood’s former political life in California and the political success of previous Western stars (although I think the general superiority of an Eastwood cowboy flick over a Reagan cowboy flick is basically undisputable) the idea is just short of completely impossible. It seems we were not the only ones to feel that way. When I went to tweet about the Giants success after the game, I was shocked to see that the popular Conn College twitter CamelProblems, along with many other users, had tweeted “#clinteastwoodforpresident” and the hashtag has been trending since the game, even re-emerging after Romney’s disappointing results in Tuesday’s Republican primaries.
Not everyone seems to be in on the joke, however.  I’m not suggesting that that I know the mind of Clint Eastwood, but I doubt he had any political motivation to do this commercial other than perhaps some affinity for American cars. “I was, frankly, offended by it,” said Karl Rove, former Deputy Chair of Staff under the Bush administration, on Fox News this past Monday. “I’m a huge fan of Clint Eastwood, I thought it was an extremely well-done ad, but it is a sign of what happens when Chicago-style politics, and the president of the United States and his political minions are, in essence, using our tax dollars to buy corporate advertising.” While some, like Rove, viewed the advertisement as an offensive, government-financed political ad, others could see that hard-line Republicans are upset with the recovering economy because optimism is resurfacing and nothing helps an incumbent like optimism; Americans are unlikely to replace a working part.
The only truly noteworthy aspect of the Eastwood commercial (aside from the irony of an American spaghetti-western star as the spokesperson for an Italian-bought American company) is its indication of the growing trend in political rhetoric. Things are turning around—the worst times are behind us. Unemployment is going down, inflation is low and although millions of Americans are still struggling, the general trend is upward. Hope is back, and in some small way, Chrysler captured that mood. •