Honda claims their upcoming 2015 Civic Type R will be their most hardcore performance car ever. It sounds awesome, especially considering it's based on a car as ordinary and pedestrian as the Civic. Honda explores that duality in a new ad that you simply must watch.
I can't embed it here, sadly, but the ad is called "The Other Side", and it's on the HondaVideo YouTube page when you click Other Side. When you watch it the first time, it's just a video about a guy who picks his daughter and her friend up from school, then drives them to a surprise party in a normal, safe, ecologically-friendly way.
Watch the ad again, and this time hold down the R key on your computer. It's the same guy, but his car is a red Civic Type R, and he's not just a dad — he's a highly-skilled wheelman hired to get two burglars the hell away from a big heist. But where do his loyalties really lie? Wait for the surprise at the end.
It's great. The whole thing is great. Both videos are incredibly well shot; the first one is a sweet story that's as good as any ad for a Civic, and the other side is like the movie Drive if Drive had more of the getaway driving we wanted and less awkward Ryan Gosling silences.
Good stuff, Honda. Now bring the Civic Type R to America.
Props to Raphael Orlove for that insane top .GIF