Saturday, 13 August 2011

Levi's: Go Forth (Not Right Now Though)

No matter how beautifully written, filmed and composed your advert may be, if you time it wrong or misjudge your audience, it can be an absolute failure.



Unfortunately for Levi's, and more unfortunately for the British nation, we experience some of the worst rioting for decades. It was disgusting, embarrassing and mindless. This view was, rightly, held by the vast majority of the public and for that reason this Levi's ad has been pretty ill received, despite not being shown on TV in the UK. The problem is that the ad is all about the romanticism of the youth uprising and standing up to authorities, an often sought after narrative. However we saw this narrative come to life this week, and it was ugly. The problem was was that the riots were not about standing up to authorities, it was for the sheer enjoyment of looting and striking fear into innocent people.

It's such a shame for Levi's as it's difficult to watch the ad without thinking of the horrible reality, because this is a really beautiful advert. It creates a warm and inspiring feeling, to stand up for what you believe in and to make a difference.

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