Perhaps there needs to be a watershed for Christmas advertisements. Not allowed on TV earlier than the week earlier than. This yr’s lot haven’t carried out a lot to alter that view. There are the standard manufacturers that principally present as many merchandise as they’ll with acceptable music and – if the funds and availability permits – the odd movie star. M&S with Daybreak French and Ryan Reynolds, ASDA with Michael Bublé for instance. Or singing oven gloves for Morrisons. Nonetheless, there appears to be a slight ‘anti-Christmas’ method with a ‘simply kidding’ ending. M&S, once more, with a variety of celebs destroying conventional Christmas issues and John Lewis, with a unique type of Xmas tree.
This yr, the type of emotional movie carried out so effectively in earlier years for John Lewis is for Lidl, with the type and useful racoon. Shot in NY I feel as a result of absence of racoons within the UK. Fairly good if a bit related in tone to previous JL advertisements.
However what ought to we make of this yr’s John Lewis advert? It says quite a bit for them and their earlier company that ready for the advert had turn out to be a key a part of the Xmas run up. This yr’s providing doesn’t fairly work for me. It’s effectively shot with a pleasant soundtrack and the fly-trap is effectively animated, however it simply feels neither one factor or the opposite.
And there are nonetheless some celebrating the ‘joys’ of Christmas, just like the Tesco movie which is nearly as excruciating as {the teenager} in it feels about Christmas – till the top. Christmas grows on you?
These advertisements at the moment are a part of the industrial Christmas heat up, together with Slade, Bing Crosby et al. Little doubt we can even hear numerous Fairy Story of New York given the dying of Shane MacGowan – an incredible music that I doubt many who play it right now of yr perceive.
If all this appears a bit ‘Bah Humbug!’ for an antidote to all these industrial commercials I can solely counsel studying Laurie Lee’s ‘Village Christmas’.
Christmas advertisements come however every year. Thank God.
