• by Todd Wasserman , March 27, 2023

A new ad from Barilla evokes the 1955 film “Lady and the Tramp,” concluding with a very familiar scene.

In the ad, via Publicis Italy/Le Pub, a man and woman are on a date. They walk around and he eventually leads her to the back of a place called Tony’s, where the waiter sets a table for them. The waiter then tells the  chef that “Buddy has a girlfriend! Two specials.”

The chef cooks  Barilla pasta, and the waiter delivers one plate of pasta to the couple. As in the movie, the two eat the pasta, but one strand gets caught between them and prompts them to kiss.

“A classic with new intensity,” reads a headline as the camera zooms to the night sky.