Edward Jones ads look like poor investment

Edward Jones talks up face-to-face relationships in some new, bare-bones ads by Cramer-Krasselt (see more here) that achieve the opposite of the intended effect. The spots play like a cross between over-artsy fashion/fragrance commercials and bad Twilight Zone-type episodes.They take place in a monochrome universe where everyone speaks in taglines. Sometimes lips move, sometimes they don't. A bearded guy stares into the camera with such intensity, surely the lens will crack. Is he trying to ignite a stock-market rally with the power of his mind? Why is everyone sitting on little cubes? Get these folks some chairs! The spare setting, choppy visual style and annoyingly ambient background music make the brand appear aloof, distant and disconnected from the here-and-now.