Nicky Bullard
Chairwoman, MRM Europe & chief creative officer, MRM UK
Ok. I’ve gone for the cliché. Yep, I’m writing just one week after the first closing ceremony, and I’m on an Olympics theme. Prepare to cringe. Private View is always a tough one. Because I will be giving a very private view of this collection in the most-read industry mag. People’s hard work is being commented on by a person who didn’t see the brief, know any of the restraints or have any of the background. So just like the crew in Tokyo, I need to be a fair judge and judge in the moment. I have limbered up and chalked up my hands, and we are going around the gym circuit.
Mark Elwood
Executive creative director, Leo Burnett
I love a big populist advert, something the whole country is going to enjoy, with a celeb or two hopefully. Some humour maybe, a proper catchy track, even dare I say it, a jingle. We’re supposed to entertain as an industry, not interrupt. Well, 北京赛车pk10 have handed me a bumper month to publicly review, Private View. It’s heavyweight celebs galore: Zac Efron, Jessica Alba, Jonathan Pryce and heavyweights of another kind in Tyson Fury and Tony Bellew, along with cameos from Bill Bailey and… Cleopatra. But have the ads (and agencies) used that celebrity power to deliver full wattage?
Dogs Trust – "Underwear ever after" by Creature
Nicky Bullard: The Rings. Ok, these are all about strength, crucifixes and red faces. But no red faces here with this little charmer. As the doting parent, ahem owner, of Minxie the Cockerpoo, this Dogs Trust ad got me in the gut. Delicate storytelling around a pretty full-on subject. I’m sure it will get a good old response. I like the pants too, and reckon they were probably lent to the props team by the agency’s CEO.
Mark Elwood: Dogs Trust, featuring Wilf the Dog and the amazing Jonathan Pryce, star of stage and screen, in support. Both deliver great performances. Bravo, bravo. It is a nicely crafted story, the location is perfect, it would have been easy to veer towards middle England. The idea is if you pass away before your doggy does, Dogs Trust (knowing your dog) will find it a new owner, all the ‘feels’ covered here. But while I would take Wilf in a heartbeat, I wouldn’t want to inherit his former owner's OLD PANTS… OLD PANTS, NO FUCKIN’ WAY. Overall, deserves a treat.
Dubai Tourism – "Dubai presents" by Mother
NB: The Vault. This is where we need to see speed, bounce and a perfect landing. The Dubai campaign is pretty exhilarating. Deffo high velocity and loads of high jinks. And with a few twists and turns thrown in, too (see what I did there?). I’m not sure I get the big idea though, unless it’s about using the destination as your very own movie set for your very own adventures. Ahhh…
ME: Zac Efron and Jessica Alba star, but let’s be clear, it’s the destination that shines. This is a brilliant idea for a tourism spot. A big, big budget and a big director in Craig Gillespie guide us through an action-packed (Mr and Mrs Smith style) movie trailer that deftly takes us on a tour of the many sights Dubai has to offer. I would really like to see the full movie of this spot and, for the first time, I thought about a holiday in Dubai. Job done.
Ladbrokes – "The wait" and "Game day" by Neverland
NB: The Floor. We’re looking for co-ordination, somersaults and jolly music here. Maybe even a ribbon. So points for co-ordination to Ladbrokes, with loads of drummers ‘playing to the same tune’. But for me this ad takes a little stumble. It’s very hard to represent every kind of footy fan of course, so points for difficulty, but the cast don’t feel like fans to me. And, eek, soz, I’m not sure about the drums and the relevance. The only drums I’ve seen at football matches (used to watch Chelsea home and away) are those annoying ones played by those ‘fans’ we all can’t help but swear at.
ME: Ladbrokes – blimey. this nation loves a bet. Unluckily. Two spots here, one highlighting the start of the new football season and two highlighting the excitement and tension of match day, all through the medium of drumming. While the line and action cleverly helps, gambling feels less like a solus activity, the spots leave me wondering what I should feel. Maybe that’s just me.
Currys PC World – "Ultimate tech test" by AMV BBDO
NB: The Pommel Horse. I’m expecting to see some swinging, swagger and possibly some scissors. Well, Bill Bailey performed most of those in Strictly for sure. And he is also very sprightly in Curry’s "Ultimate tech fest". So fast that he performs a stunt within the time it takes for his laptop to boot up. It’s short and sweet and he lands well.
ME: Back to a celeb, with Bill Bailey and Currys PC World now. I like Bill Bailey but I can’t help feel a ‘John Frieda’ transformation spot would be a better use of him and his mane. Difficult this one: "Highlight the HP’s awesome boot-up speed please." "Really? What? Really? But does anyone give a monkey’s about that?" "Someone, does." "Oh ok, we’ll try." Well done for trying, seriously – sometimes that’s all you can do.
Sky Bet – "Declaration of hope" by Who Wot Why
NB: The Beam. Perfect balance is a must here. And it’s always hard to get a fantastic performance out of non-actors, as we know. Just a twitch, but I wonder if the Sky Bet edit wasn’t quite as intricate as I’m guessing they wanted it to be. So a bit of a wobble on this one, but no-one’s fallen off.
ME: On to Sky Bet, a tightly crafted 30-second romp through football fans' hopes and fears at the start of the new season. A smattering of celebs in this spot, too, but the best thing? Jeff Stelling making an early bid for panto season with his VO at the end. A safe bet, nicely placed.
CALM – "The invisible opponent" by Seven Stones and AMV BBDO
NB: Now on to the ad for CALM, and its piece entitled "The invisible opponent". A perfect analogy in my opinion for mental illness; fighting something that you can’t see, that those close to you can’t see, let alone always explain. It is important cut-through work and for me, perfectly poised.
ME: An advert for the mental health charity CALM (北京赛车pk10 Against Living Miserably) and what a belter it is. As entertainment, boxing may not be for everybody, but it’s a powerful analogy here. Edited brilliantly from footage of the first Tyson Fury v Deontay Wilder fight, Wilder is digitally removed to highlight 1) Fury’s well-documented struggles outside of the ring and 2) mental health as the ‘hidden opponent’ many are in the ring with daily. I really hope this spot works as hard in the real world as it will with awards juries. It is populist advertising with a real purpose. I hope those suffering with mental health issues, in our industry and beyond, see this spot and it helps them to get help and keep fighting on.
Amazon – "Prime changes everything" by Joint
NB: The Parallel Bars. Concentration needed on this tricky apparatus. And yes, concentration needed when watching the Prime Video ad, which jumps off the "Prime changes everything" campaign theme. Good old Cleopatra is coming atcha and it’s pretty mad stuff. She’s got an iPad and becomes supremely generous with her Prime account, having been inspired by something she’s viewed on the Amazon Prime platform. She even gets herself a motorbike.
ME: Amazon Prime and its agency Joint have made some lovely spots and this is no exception. A tightly directed (by Wayne McClammy) 30-second ad that seems longer, works hard and entertains from beginning to end with the added sparkle of Cleopatra in pole position, literally.
BrewDog – "The planet's favourite beer" by Droga5 London
NB: And finally The High Bar. Set by Brewdog. Great job.
ME: As we all know, controversial punk beer brand BrewDog has been in hot water recently – can new agency Droga5 lower the temperature for it a little? This advert feels like a new dawn for the brand, an ad with a purpose, targeting everyone, not offending anyone (except Heineken, which can take it). No-one likes to see an old punk; everyone has to grow up at some point. I like that it is the world’s first carbon-negative brewery and plants a tree for every beer sold. I hope it keeps growing up; I might start buying its beer again and liking its brand. Cheers Droga5, the next round’s on BrewDog.