The Way Things Go

This is the name of a film that inspired the creation of Honda's Cog commercial. Some of you may remember this commercial, which featured the parts from Honda's Accord in a dazzling spectacle of cause and effect. While it doesn't have the same production values as the Cog commercial, it is done without the aid of CG.

The Way Things Go, created in 1987, is a 30 minute long film contain various household items, one affecting another. I've had this DVD in my collection for close to a year now, and every time someone new comes over, I put in this amazing film. It doesn't have a musical score, so I play a little ambient music to stimulate both the eyes and ears of my guests. The film starts with a close-up of a trashbag spinning. As it picks up speed, it descends upon a tire, which eventually is pushed along my the trashbag. The tire sets in motion a chain of events that lasts 30 minutes. Reactions range from fire and explosions, to the simple physics of a falling tetherball. Some of the reactions even appear to defy gravity!