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In this thread, Headvoid will post his thoughts on the Christmas tv advertisements

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Best Buy has a series of commercials where the mom is being a bitch to Santa. I don't think they're going over too well, because DON'T BE MEAN TO SANTA. My mom hates these commercials and i thought maybe it was just the two of us who think they're kinda off... but apparently youtube hates them too!

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I think this one is kinda cute, though. At least it's not as bad as the others

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RUDE!
 
Ok, first we will start off with the grocery Multiples:

Asda & Morrisons - bearing in mind their head offices are about 20 miles apart and that they swap staff so regularly you can easily get confused - these two adverts are really odd.

They both essentially are the same idea. Notably a Morrisons major head fell just after the campaign was released. It's almost too embarrassing for people to talk about - did someone hire one creative team for both adverts? Anyway, Asda was told by many THATS SEXIST! until the Morrisons one came out three days later and everyone went THATS SEXIST TOO (or is it just me?) Anyway, when the Boots "hairdrying a dog" furor came on afterwards people cared less.

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On to Tesco - who swapped their advertising people from Red Brick to W&K. This will mean ABOSLUTELY NOTHING to you, but the W&K people are big and they made the Cravendale cats adverts (and Nike)

Anyway - their value ads are great (10 seconds, clever copy, ends in a ding) but this just left people very confused. Not so much WTF as more What? er... awkward...

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(generally, we like the "ding plus hat" thing - it's a small thing, but hey.

Then we had Sainsburys - who are actually doing quite well at the moment on market share, but this "days" thing just left everyone again, a little confused. It's not exactly a new idea, and not exactly delivered with any new treatment.

What do I want to buy? Who do I identify with? Can I eat it? Just a bit nice, but SHOW ME THE MONEY
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Then we have Waitrose. Truly the most stupid Christmas advert I have seen for some time. We've decided to save money this year! The ad is shot in a warehouse and I can't remember what they say, frankly I couldn't hear what they were saying because the voices in my head were shouting "IF YOU ARE SAVING MONEY, WHY ARE THESE TWO FAT RICH BASTARDS ON THE TELLY? DID YOU NOT PAY THEM THEIR USUAL FUCKING HUGE APPEARANCE FEE?"

They were sacked about a week ago BTW. Evidently, the research showed I was not alone in this mental anguish.
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Next - I will look at the High street - including possibly the most incredibly sickening effort from John Lewis.
 
Oh I love this stuff. And it'll be a first watch of some of these for me as I tend to turn the sound off during ads (sorry, but those meerkats were the last straw).

Wow, that Waitrose one is really bad. I mean, I don't like Heston "I'm boring so I'll make turkey icecream" Blumenthol anyway, but it's really cringeworthily nonsensical. "We're not going to make a BIG TV AD", he says on tv, his voice echoing.

The Sainsbury's one is nice, but it's not very memorable. And the Tesco one just doesn't feel at all Christmassy.

Back up to the SEXIST ones...

Ok, the Asda one wasn't bad. I particularly like the shot where it seemed that one of the chores of Christmas was unemotionally staring into space trying to recall what you needed to add to the shopping list while being humped by your husband. But I actually LOVED the Morrisons Sexist Christmas ad. The surreal touches were really good! If I was a put upon mother I would shop at Morrisons. They feel my pain and get my humour.

Can't wait for more of your insider reviews!
 
I like the Asda ad more than the Morrison ad, but just because it's a bit more upbeat, or something... I didn't think they were either particularly sexist, maybe because I'm American? I DON'T KNOW, but I like that they showed the person working really hard to make a good Christmas. It could just as easily been the dad working so hard. At least the mom's doing all the work weren't complete dingbats.

Not much to the Tesco ad, FURBY IS EVIL. I guess I was spoiled by the minute and a half long ads I watched first, lol. Now I want all the Christmas ads to be little Hallmark movies.

Sainsburys - short and sweet. We get lots of ads like those, usually for grocery stores.

I agree the Waitrose ad wasn't good. If you want people to give money you gotta tug on those heartstrings.
 
Yeah I was confused by the "Christmas DAYS" thing myself.

There's on that ends with "we're here for you this Christmas...we're here for you FOR LIFE" that I find kind of sinister for some reason.
 
Yes - the unremarkable campaign from Leo Burnett for Co-op.

Changed from "Good with Food" said in a Scottish accent that EVERYONE remembers. (John Hannah from Four weddings fame) to a rather rubbish wet as a lettuce ad that everyon will forget. (Only 1,242 views lol)

Anyway - not to worry, everyone in adland happy as we have got some NEW PRODUCTION BUDGETS, rather than actually think people are just beginning to remember the line. Too many people dick around with stuff. It's a little like Kitkat brand manager saying this "take a break" thing is a bit dull, people expect it - lets make it "Bendy wobbly Kitkat lol"

here it is - Bear in mind Coop have a very profitable and large funeral business - does the line work across them as well?

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Right - the High Street!

Boots - I genuinely like this advert. There are some truths about how presents need to be personal and considered and about "bigger" things to do with peoples lives. It was also a brave move to step away from their hugely popular "here come the girls" creative. Can "Let's feel good" mean enough in the longer term?

The hilarious thing was that everyone went ANIMAL CRUELTY on twatter as they said the dog could have BEEN KILLED INSTANTLY!

I thought the bigger cruelty was extending the career of Elton John personally.

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Right - onto M&S.

Thank fuck they got rid of Twiggy and the other celebrities. Do you all notice the lack of celebs on adverts all of a sudden? Apparently conspicuous wealth being shoved down the throats of the poor is beginning to stick a little. I'M FUCKIN RICH AND FAMOUS BUY THIS PRODUCT AND BE LIKE ME is not working as well as it used to...

Anyway - here is a fantastically edited, beautifully shot, festive ad with all the trimmings. It is very joyful and even has some product in! (Call me old fashioned, but essentially we have to sell stuff to exist)

I loved it.

(Oh, almost forgot - every year there has to be a bit with a women in lingerie - it's traditional)

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Now, onto an advert that is becoming a parody of itself.

Adam & Eve, so stratospherically successful I am in fact just jealous. I met the two owners once in a dodgy office where there were about 20 of them. They worked like Trojans, delivered the 2011 John Lewis ad which propelled them to fame. They then continued to deliver and got bought this year by essentially the Darth Sidious of our industry (WPP group, Sir Martin Sorrel) - So, good luck to the bespectacled hipsters that they are.

HOWEVER, this advert is so utterly a pull at heartstrings it made me vomit. Basically the formula is this:
1. Slightly sad story, with "instagram" filter over the camera
2. Cute children in a world that clearly exists only in adland
3. Softly singing, slightly cracking, delicate acoustic female voice of a rock or HARD song

But hey - 2.9 Million views and everyone talks about it. Either I am ahead of the curve, or out of step with modern taste (Probably the latter)

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I just saw a "making of" the above advert where they said the director "slammed it out of the park"

I'm not sure I am going to get the taste of sick out of my mouth all day now.
 
So, TK Maxx - full of people trying to save money with VERY cheap gifts and lets face it cheap tatty stuff.

So - why not fill your advert with impossibly hip metrosexuals who drive vintage BMW 2000's and incredibly expensive VW camper vans, wear funky red bowler hats and sharp green tweed suits, who have spent about £2000 on massive Christmas house lights and live in a bloody dteached Victorian Manse property. People who own lovely DSLR cameras and tripods who get everyone together and smiling just at the right time.

WHERE DO THESE PEOPLE ACTUALLY LIVE? HOW CAN THEY ALL COME FROM THE SAME FAMILY? Even if one Hipster is in a family there is usually a smelly Aunt or Gran somewhere. It annoys me, it's just not real.

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I like that Boots dropped the "HERE COME THE GIRLS LOL MEN ARE DUMB" ads! And also have like mixed race people and women with dead husbands because THEY DO EXIST! What's next years, gays!?

The M&S one is weird because it starts with Christmas but then it's just SOME RANDOM SONGS.

I don't mind the John Lewis one really because at least it's a bit creative and there's not a cute child this year? It should have ended with the snowman's wife melted though.

Don't even think I've seen that TK Maxx ad. Maybe they don't exist in Scotland or they don't show it here because we hate hipsters.
 
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