Christmas Fables & Festive Stables: 5 Ads You Should Watch Right Now
It’s officially winter – the nights are getting longer and the days are closing in. Luckily Unruly is here with the best 5 ads from the past 7 days, so you have something to watch while tucking into mince pies and mulled wine.
This week’s stocking is stuffed with festive ads from Honda, Cadbury’s and Walmart – all featuring more tinsel and baubles than you can shake a candy cane at.
We’ve also got a wonderfully shot ad from Purina, which tells the story of a little girl and her Christmas horse.
Rounding out the list is a tongue in cheek ad from Dulux, celebrating the paint’s future-proof abilities.
Enjoy! ( and Merry Christmas!)
5. Honda – Honda Brings Holiday Magic to Kids in the Hospital
2016 was a bumper year for VR technologies – so much so that plenty of brands included the use of headsets in their ads. Honda’s latest Christmas ad does just that – but stands out thanks to its genuinely heart-warming story. It’s a simple concept, use VR to give children in hospitals a Christmas experience they couldn’t have otherwise, but succeeds thanks to the obvious love and care that went into the creative.
4. Dulux – Observations
This short but sweet ad from Dulux sees its iconic Old English Sheepdog in the backseat of a car, narrating the benefits of high-quality paint as the vehicle passes elegantly decorated houses. The ad refuses to take itself too seriously and pokes fun at some of society’s more frivolous ‘future tech’ (pizza delivery by drone, for example).
3. Purina – A Holiday Wish For A Horse Named Sam
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Kk79NJtC_k
This slow ad from Purina tells the story of a lone horse, Sam, who remains unadopted after Christmas. Luckily for Sam, he is quickly found by a family clearly in the market for a new equine friend. The ad earns a place on the list because of its methodical cinematography and surprisingly effective soundtrack – a piano cover of Old Lang Syne.
2. Cadbury – Christmas Commute
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpZnj0D0w3U
Whether you believe this charming ad from Cadbury is real or not, its results are undeniably sweet – and guaranteed to put a smile on your face. It shows a small girl whose dream is to make her Mum’s work commute just a bit more tolerable, and she does so in a fantastically festive way.
1. Wal-Mart – Holiday Hypnosis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8X7meuKT2Ng
Top of the list this week is this unusual Christmas ad from Walmart. Its aim is to remind adults of the joys of Christmas, to take them back to when they were kids and would race downstairs to open presents in a flurry of wrapping paper. To this end, Walmart uses renowned Hypnotist Chris Jones to turn back the clock and literally make these grown-ups feel like children. The effects are oddly heart-warming and the ad definitely succeeds in conjuring memories of excited Christmas mornings.
