Apple has begun running a pair of new television ads for the iPhone 4S and Siri featuring actor John Malkovich. This comes after a pair of celebrity ads started running last month with Samuel L. Jackson and Zooey Deschanel.
Malkovich: Life.
Siri: Try and be nice to people. Avoid eating fat. Read a good book every now and then. Get some walking in. And try to live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations.
Malkovich: That's pretty spectacular advice, actually. Thank you. I enjoyed this chat immensely. You are very eloquent.
Siri: That's nice of you to say.
The celebrity ads scored very well with viewers, registering higher scores from advertising tracking firm Ace Metrix than any other iPhone 4S ad released so far this year.
John Malkovich is well known for his unique acting style and his iPhone 4S ad reflects his somewhat peculiar persona. The query that Malkovich posits -- "Life"-- elicits a number of different responses from Siri, including:
"42"
"I Kant answer that. Ha ha!"
"It's nothing Nietzsche couldn't teach ya."
"Life: the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death."
"I don't know. But I think there's an app for that."
"I can't answer that now, but give me some time to write a very long play in which nothing happens."
"I find it odd that you would ask this of an inanimate object."
"That's easy… it's a philosophical question concerning the purpose and significance of life or existence in general."
"Life: a principle or force that is considered to underlie the distinctive quality of animate beings. I guess that includes me."
"A movie."
"I give up."
A second ad is airing as well, showcasing a bit more of Siri's talents:
