Hyundai: “Bad Neighbour” (Starts at 00:06) – Australia
Injured and unable to drive, a man asks his neighbour to drive him to and from work. The mild-mannered fellow is transformed by the experience and soon has the swagger of a man who has risen above his station (it could be argued, of course, that the car has transformed him into an arse, but let’s assume anyone cynical enough to see it that way probably wasn’t in the market for a Hyundai in the first place).
Agency: Innocean Worldwide (Sydney)
Director: Nick Ball
Meat & Livestock Australia: “Richie’s BBQ” (Starts at 01:09) – Australia
Broadcasting legend Richie Benaud may be looking a little frail these days, but he demonstrates a perfect instinct for timing and comedy in this funny commercial for lamb. It opens with a voyaging Captain Cook being interrupted by a strange noise while peering at the Aussie coast through his spyglass … Richie Benaud ringing on his mobile. This triggers a beautifully edited round-robin of silliness as a number of luminaries from Australian history join a conference call about Richie’s barbecue.
Agency: The Monkeys (Sydney)
Director: Tom Noakes
Laminex: “Peacock & Diamond” (Starts at 02:53) – Australia
Two men at a drinks party are standing around making small talk when an attractive young woman enters the fray. They both produce a fan of peacock feathers as if competing in a primordial mating challenge before a further moment of arousal appears to catch them both by surprise. There’s not much of a connection to the advertised product but it certainly gets your attention.
Agency: Ogilvy & Mather (Melbourne)
Director: James Haworth
Gtech: “Break Free” (Starts at 03:27) – UK
This funny advert uses a synchronised dance troupe to demonstrate the advantages of using a Gtech vacuum cleaner over a rival model. During a routine choreographed by Arlene Phillips and with music provided by Queen’s I Want to Break Free (with its own famous association with vacuum cleaners), all the women apart from one move smoothly across the dance floor thanks to the lightweight model provided by Gtech.
Agency: McCann Worldwide
Director: Chris Sweeney
KFC: “Families” (Starts at 04:31) – UK
It’s 50 years since Colonel Sanders began peddling chicken in the UK and this lovely commercial celebrates half a century of bringing families together with a tender tale of a boy adjusting to his adoptive parents. Director Ben Liam Jones has given this a really light touch – witness the body language of the anxious dad welcoming his son into his new home – and a sensitivity you wouldn’t necessarily associate with this brand.
Agency: Bartle Bogle Hegarty
Director: Ben Liam Jones
Meningitis Now: “Fastest Hour” (Starts at 05:35) – UK
This brutal film has real impact. Warnings of this kind often have a reassuring tone designed to remind people that if their actions are equal to the emergency, everything will be all right. Here, the need to alert people to the viciousness of meningitis supersedes any consideration for our feelings... and rightly so. Anyone who has ever been touched by the sheer, unbelievable, undiscriminating awfulness of this disease will know how important it is to move fast if there is even the slightest possibility of its presence in a person who is unwell.
Agency: Leo Burnett
Director: James Lawes
Jason Stone is the editor of David Reviews
