Page - 28 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 01/01

28 | roger Odin www.jrfm.eu 2015, 1/1, 23–30 this is a Pepsi advert – unable to grasp what more the community wants of him. Then the camera pans from a close-up on the mark on the master’s forehead to the same sign on a banner behind him. The initiate suddenly realises that the sign corresponds exactly to the pull-tab on his Pepsi can; he shouts and head butts the can, flattening it. in doing so, the mark of the pull-tab sign is imprinted on his forehead, much to the satisfaction of his mentor and fellow monks, who rush in to congratulate him. We may now summarise the communication strategy behind this film, which in- volves articulating two narrative figures. On the one hand, we have a carefully staged dramatic progression leading to the revelation of an enigma and an unexpected, spec- tacular, yet funny action in which the product is shown to be the operative factor for integration into the monastic community. On the other hand, there is the confusion between the religious space and the Pepsi space: the monastery is dedicated to Pepsi and to become a full member of the community, one must imprint the Pepsi mark on one’s body. The purpose of this assimilation process is, of course, to promote the product, but also to amuse us, to make us laugh. The combination of suspense and laughter acts as a go-between, bonding viewer and product. however, it seems fair to say that for this strategy to work, we must have no difficulty putting the religious space represented here at a certain distance. We may assume that an audience that does not belong to the Buddhist religious space has no problem with this. What the film shows us does not bring into play the religious space of each viewer; it is merely something exotic. Furthermore, the film, although it represents a religious space, communicates in a cinematic rather than a religious space. The way in which the temple is described, both in what we are shown – the practice of martial arts, the shaving of the young initiate’s head, the acrobatic Kung fu exercises, the trial of breaking bricks – and the manner of showing it – not only the composition, but also the soundtrack with its shouts – reminds us of all the stereotypes that Kung fu movies have presented on this topic. lastly, the trick with the pull-tab on the Pepsi can is clearly tongue-in-cheek. Despite this distance we may ask whether the film might not shock someone with genuine Buddhist convictions, in which case its communication strategy would be at odds with the viewer’s religious mental space. Have a Great Break (2005) This question seems even more crucial when assessing the impact, for communica- tion purposes, of the Coke Light film. The film starts like a love affair, with a young woman walking her dog on the beach who is thunderstruck on seeing a handsome male emerge from the waves. it then cuts back and forth between the young man and his admirer, who watches him while drinking Coke. This sequence plays (perhaps rather heavily) on the young woman’s hungry, lascivious looks, with close-ups of both bodies (mouth, breasts, back), and