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The Battle of the Christmas Adverts

Charlie Harrison gives us the lowdown on the best and worst of this year's festive adverts

By Charlie Harrison, MA Global Political Economy

Charlie Harrison gives us the lowdown on the best and worst of this year's festive adverts.

Now, of course, the point of adverts is to sell things to us. When it comes to Christmas, however, I wish they didn't have to be so bloody obvious about it.

This year has been an interesting one for Christmas adverts. A surprising number have eschewed their traditional heart-warming tales, and indeed any sense of the loveliness of Christmas altogether, in favour of sheer, unadulterated marketing.

"the advert isn't about caring for people you love, it's about celebrity glorification"

Christmas time is when every cynic loves to temporarily emerge from their pits to belch to everyone they know that they mustn't have any fun because Christmas isn't about what it's supposed to be about any more, it's all about the presents now. In the past I have always managed to successfully stave off these parasites, usually by drowning them out with Mariah Carey, or by beating them away with an unusually large cracker.

This year, though, I think they might have a point.

Let's start with the big one, shall we? John Lewis' advert could have actually been my favourite of the year, were it not for one small detail. It's a very well made advert and contains a terribly nice message about how just one, well-picked present can completely change someone's life. It inspires us to think carefully about our loved ones and what they would want most in the world.

There's one catch, though; it contains Elton John. I don't have anything in particular against Elton - but his presence immediately takes the audience out of the story of the advert, and all you can think about is how this is obviously just marketing for his ongoing farewell tour, as well as the biopic coming out in 2019.

Suddenly, the advert isn't about caring for people you love, it's about celebrity glorification, about people with wallets bigger than my bedroom pretending to be relatable just so that they can squeeze another buck out of us. Very upsetting. If it had depicted a fictional musician that anyone could actually relate to getting their first instrument, this advert could have been something special.

From one controversial advert to another; Christmas came early for Iceland's PR team this year when their advert was "banned" from being broadcasted for being "too political". Except, it wasn't "banned" in the edgy, pushing-the-boundaries way that word implies, it was simply impossible to broadcast it because it was made by a political group (Greenpeace). That is the law. That didn't stop the noble Iceland from taking to Twitter to let everyone know how heroic they are, though, before branding the ordinary working people of ClearCast as a pack of Grinches, simply for doing their jobs and obeying the law.

The advert is beautiful, doubtlessly; the animation is wonderful and the message inspiring and well-delivered. But it has become so overshadowed by the controversy surrounding it that the artistic merit of the advert is hardly worth commenting on. At least it is drawing attention to an important issue, even if the whole thing feels like an expensive way for Iceland to self-five.

"the resultant advert looks like it was designed by a magpie on crack"

Then, we move on to those adverts that make no effort to be something nice, and might as well have a flashing sign saying "CONSUME" over top of them. Littlewoods apparently challenged themselves to see how many products they could shove in our face in the space of twenty seconds, and the resultant advert looks like it was designed by a magpie on crack and edited by Iceland's orangutan.

TK Maxx features a family whose lives are vastly improved by the presence of a long sock that belches gifts at them, learning that valuable lesson that endless presents make a valid alternative to genuine human affection. Who knew? McDonalds, meanwhile, had the laziest advert I have ever seen, with a level of imagination roughly equivalent to the nutrition in their food. The word generic doesn’t come close to covering it.

This is all getting terribly sad, isn’t it? It can't all be lazy corporate shenanigans, right? Well, there are a few nice ones to melt our frozen hearts. The Sainsbury's advert, for instance, depicts an oddly extravagant Christmas school play, complete with adorable singer and proud mum. I loved it more than is at all reasonable; it's immensely cheesy, but breathlessly cute, and impossible to watch without smiling.

Boots' advert was nothing too special, but lovely regardless, and that's all I ask for. Meanwhile, Heathrow…alright. I don't know what it is about those bloody bears, but they've been doing the same thing every year for the past 3 years, and it gets me every single time. There is something about small teddy bears wandering around an airport that is so heart-achingly endearing, and Christmassy, and yet somehow doesn’t feel manipulative as an advert. Maybe they’ve got the pitch-perfect balance between cuteness and brand recognition, or maybe I'm just a sucker for a teddy bear in a hat. I don’t know.

"this year, Christ was laid in a manger constructed from an IKEA flatpack"

However, despite the best efforts of the Heathrow bears or Sainsbury's singer, it's impossible to ignore the fact that the word on the herald angel's lips this year was materialism. This year, Christ was laid in a manger constructed from an IKEA flatpack, and wrapped in designer swaddling cloth. He turned water into Coca-cola, and fed the five thousand with Big Macs. He gave the blind man lipstick and the leper an iPad. And all the while, soft piano music played in the background to make it seem like the whole thing was terribly wholesome, and that we should feel good about stretching our bank accounts to breaking point just to feel like we've done enough for our families to feel loved.

And He was played by Elton John.

(Featured image credits: Wesley Tingey)


What's your opinion on the christmas adverts this year? Let us know in the comments below or on social media.

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