The Official "Really Rather Good TV Ads" Thread

In stark contrast to the Official Bad Ads and Cr*p Commercials Thread this thread is to highlight the TV ads
that don't annoy, or make us want to chuck the telly out of the window. If there are any TV ads you like at
the moment, for whatever reason, funny, sad, informative, etc . . . give them a mention here . . .

IMHO, the best TV advert doing the rounds at the moment, is the new McCain ad that I mentioned in the other
thread. It features scenes of almost deserted places and scenarios . . . abandoned cellphone ringing on a bus
seat, bathtub with no-one int it, but overflowing with water, an empty parkbench with a wet paint sign that is
blown away by a draft . . . The ad has a beautifully performed version of the old Nat King Cole song "Smile"
as it's soundtrack, and the caption "chin up" on a CGI background of moving clouds at the end.

Artistically, this ad is excellent. The only other advert that's better than this, is the one for the Honda Accord
featuring a sort of obstactle course made up entirely of car parts. That must have taken a huge number of
takes to get it right, but the end result is absolutely fantastic.

These two ads are easily the best I've seen all year, if not for at least the last five years or more, but in your
own opinion, are there any other TV ads, past or present, (preferably presnt) that are as good as these two.

McCain "Chin Up" advert - Bitrate 350Kbps - Filesize 2.5MB

Honda Accord "Works" advert - Bitrate 350Kbps - Filesize 5.1MB

(To download the clips, right click and select "Save Link Target As . . . ")

the Honda ad is called "Cog" according to my DVD of it.

I think that the mccain chin up advert is ace. Just how bad stuff goes wrong, have a mccain and chin up. Lovely music too. I notice how the kid has disapeared that used to come from the back of the man and smiled at the women.

The PG Tips advert that disappeared I think. Was shown often during GMTV.

Does anyone know what the piece of music is called in the McCain advert - and wether it's commerically avialable?

Stu

You don't know the song?!

It's called "Smile" by Nat King Cole, obviously not sung by Nat King Cole. It's apparently someone called Frances Ruffelle.

Well I didn't recognise this version of it - hence why I asked!

But now you've said Nat King Cole the sound of slapping heads can be heard around my PC

Stu

One of my favourite ads it for 118 118, when they're singing, chanting and running. But there was a really funny advert for The Guardian on a couple of months ago, which had two cartoon cows, from my memory it went like...

Baby Cow: Mummy, what will happen to me when I die?
Mother Cow: Well your stomach will go to the friendly local butcher, and you're (other) part will go to a nice organic company.
BC: But what about my testicles?
The ad then cuts to a football fan eating his pie at the match, in a really gross way, as he is there munching away.

Now that was one of the funniest ads for ages.

I've heard that the Honda ad took around 600-700 takes. Not sure if that's it, but I'd imagine it'd be close.

I heard that it was all done by computer??

Nope, it was all real. It did take nigh on 600 takes, but it's actually 2 shots stitched together. Though they did do it all in one shot, just they prefered how a different second half looked (if that makes any sense)
As for ads, there were some surprisingly funny BT Business (IIRC) adverts, which were just simple sketchy cartoon things but I liked them

I'm not at all suprised that it was achievable in a whole take, but one wonders how on earth they managed to make not one, but three tyres sequentially roll UPHILL?