Which is a scene from the 1969 filmed version of the Joan Littlewood/Theatre Workshop Ensemble first produced in Stratford east in 1963.
The Sainsbury's advertising agency have robbed a living with this one. it is especially ironic that they have stolen from what was undoubtedly a skewed, and anti war, play and film.
The film is absolutely stunning by the way, and arguably Richard Attenborough's finest work.
The legendary events of that first Christmas in the trenches is a story belonging to everybody, and if Sainsbury's had credibility they might have re visited the events afresh rather than re hash the work of somebody else.
Nadou has it spot on, the 1963 production and subsequent film sparked the debate, the 2014 advert is there to spark sales, cynical to put it mildly.
Might as well say it rips of the Pipes of Peace video.
Addressing the same, historical, event does not equal ripping off.
'The legendary events of that first Christmas in the trenches is a story belonging to everybody, and if Sainsbury's had credibility they might have re visited the events afresh rather than re hash the work of somebody else.'
I am not arguing that people can't address the same historical event, it is the artistic rip off that is sour. Anybody looking at the Sainsbury's advert and the Attenborough film can see how almost identical they are artistically, the addition of the football makes it even more cynical in my view.
This is the final sequence from the original film:
In my view the film was intended to be thought provoking and certainly memorable, and a bit educative, here we have big business cynically reducing this anniversary to a form that can bring in more money.
Last week at the funeral of my mother I was able to make reference to her father, my grandfather, who had fought in the Sudan, the Boer War, and was wounded on the Somme, a part of that living link had gone, but especially last week it had a depth of memory for me. The Sainsbury's ad seems a cynical exploitative patch up, by young rip off merchant ad land hipsters for whom the events of the Great War have little personal meaning.
To do good - regardless of their true motivation - JS must be good capitalists. As bad capitalists they go broke and henceforth are in no position to help anybody. Their shareholders demand that they operate prudently.
Cui bono? Well, the RBL has a modest windfall and a ton of free publicity. The actors and production crew who made the film were presumably not amateurs. The ad agency, the brokers who arrange the tv space, the tv networks themselves who did rather well from selling the air-time, the chocolate bar makers .... and it's poor old JS, who generated/bankrolled these little earners, who are the ones to get a good bollocking.
It's a charming film which soon enough will lose its novelty value. For Gawd's sake, where's the harm? What next - those bastards at the NHS who make a living out of illness and misery? The Old Bill, who live off crime?
Sainsbury's and the Legion partner to bring WW1 Christmas truce story to life 13 November 2014
Directed by Ringan Ledwidge, the advert is a creative interpretation of the moment when on Christmas Day 1914, British and German soldiers paused, laid down their arms, and came together on neutral territory to share greetings, treats, cigarettes and even a game of football. Sainsbury's and The Royal British Legion have sought to make the portrayal of the truce as accurate as possible, basing it on original reports and letters, as well as working with historians throughout the development and production process.
From Henry's long post earlier this is the Sainsbury's blurb.
'creative interpretation'?
'.....as accurate as possible, basing it on original reports and letters, as well as working with historians throughout the development and production process'.
Do me a favour.
George Harrison and the Chiffons comes to mind.
In my view it is a simple rip off tarted up by the quote above. Plagarism is a healthy force within all the arts, everybody stands on somebody's shoulders. But this advertisement isn't an artistic development with respect for the aesthetic, and mental and emotional engagement, it is a lazy rip off of the work of somebody else's 'creative interpretation' based on 'original' sources.
Sainsbury's and the Legion partner to bring WW1 Christmas truce story to life 13 November 2014
Directed by Ringan Ledwidge, the advert is a creative interpretation of the moment when on Christmas Day 1914, British and German soldiers paused, laid down their arms, and came together on neutral territory to share greetings, treats, cigarettes and even a game of football. Sainsbury's and The Royal British Legion have sought to make the portrayal of the truce as accurate as possible, basing it on original reports and letters, as well as working with historians throughout the development and production process.
From Henry's long post earlier this is the Sainsbury's blurb.
'creative interpretation'?
'.....as accurate as possible, basing it on original reports and letters, as well as working with historians throughout the development and production process'.
Do me a favour.
George Harrison and the Chiffons comes to mind.
In my view it is a simple rip off tarted up by the quote above. Plagarism is a healthy force within all the arts, everybody stands on somebody's shoulders. But this advertisement isn't an artistic development with respect for the aesthetic, and mental and emotional engagement, it is a lazy rip off of the work of somebody else's 'creative interpretation' based on 'original' sources.
Sainsbury's and the Legion partner to bring WW1 Christmas truce story to life 13 November 2014
Directed by Ringan Ledwidge, the advert is a creative interpretation of the moment when on Christmas Day 1914, British and German soldiers paused, laid down their arms, and came together on neutral territory to share greetings, treats, cigarettes and even a game of football. Sainsbury's and The Royal British Legion have sought to make the portrayal of the truce as accurate as possible, basing it on original reports and letters, as well as working with historians throughout the development and production process.
From Henry's long post earlier this is the Sainsbury's blurb.
'creative interpretation'?
'.....as accurate as possible, basing it on original reports and letters, as well as working with historians throughout the development and production process'.
Do me a favour.
George Harrison and the Chiffons comes to mind.
In my view it is a simple rip off tarted up by the quote above. Plagarism is a healthy force within all the arts, everybody stands on somebody's shoulders. But this advertisement isn't an artistic development with respect for the aesthetic, and mental and emotional engagement, it is a lazy rip off of the work of somebody else's 'creative interpretation' based on 'original' sources.
Henry thinks The Magnificent Seven was better than Seven Samurai.I'll leave you to draw your own conclusion from that...
It's not the exploitation that bothers me most on this. That is just part of life and big business/advertisers, whatever, exploit different things for a profit all the time. What I feel most uncomfortable about is that this is just not a true reflection of what the 1st World War was like. The conditions, the inept Officer orders, the millions killed because of that. I don't think anyone who was there that day, or was a mother or a wife of someone who was there that day, would appreciate this Ad but of course they are no longer here to argue their case.
I appreciate that the British Legion are getting a kick back from this but that doesn't excuse the fact that, in my opinion, they have made an error of judgement in sanctioning this. In my eyes this belies what an awful, barbaric war the First World War really was. Every year we have the poppies which is a great continuing tradition to remember those that fell and what they endured. Over the years, also, it has become more and more obvious what a truly awful war WW1 was. In my opinion, this Ad has taken a step backwards by painting an unreal picture of what conditions really were like over there.
I'm sure the BL would come out with all sorts of blah, blah about this but I think, if the survivors were still around, they wouldn't appreciate what the BL have sanctioned. Just my opinion.
Try reading "It's All Quiet on the Western Front".
And, I'm not a prude or a goodie goodie but I just felt distinctly uncomfortable when I watched this Ad.
The reservations about sanitising TGW are understandable. But this viewpoint stems from prior knowledge. Many young 'uns today are unlikely to know much at all about those years of grotesque slaughter, even when their own forebears were involved.
The film approaches the subject from an unfamiliar perspective to reach a new audience. In the film there is no mistaking the terror with which the first two soldiers make their moves, their gestures fearing to receive an uncaring bullet in return. The brief interlude of peace is contrasted with what surrounds it. It's a short film and must make its impact very simply and very quickly.
The film's greatest benefit is to raise awareness, to stimulate curiosity. I recently re-watched all 26 episodes of the BBC's epic 1964 series and learned about TGW all over again.
This ad is no more about groceries than the awe-inspiring display at ToL is about flowers. It's a visual metaphor, that's all, so what about some benefit of the doubt, eh, like the humanitarian compassion of that fabled Xmas a century ago?
Couple of points - don't think it actually snowed at Ploegstreet Christmas 1914 and having kicked a ball or two on the actual field, not only isn't it level (slopes up to the German lines) but it would have been well ploughed before the trenches arrived.
I would have thought that the profit on the chocolate would be significant. A normal bar of chocolate is not as much as £1 and there is profit on that. I wouldn't be surprised to discover that as much as 50% (50p) on each bar is profit. If they sell a million bars (and I don't think that's too unrealistic) they might be giving over £500k.
I do get a little frustrated with companies that pass over those massive cheques that have their name on them when it is donations from their customers, but this is different. The only product in the advert is a bar that they are selling for no profit. Sure it's less that they make from their normal activities, but we can't expect them to give all their profits away, after all.
Personally, I liked the advert. I've never been in a war, nor have I lived in conditions anything like what those men went through. However, it doesn't stop the thought of fighting men stopping to play football at Christmas from lifting my spirits. It helps to restore my faith in humanity and confirm that even when at war we are all (well most) decent people with respect for others.
If it achieves nothing else it makes me smile. If it raises money (even a little) for those that have fought for us then great, if it raises money for the Supermarket that nmakes the film then I have no problem with that.
Incidentally I don't have a problem with those that don't like the advert, or those that don't like Sainsburys for making it, or at all. I just don't share their view. I'd prefer to see adverts like this one than have Kerry Katona stuffing her face with processed food from Iceland on my telly. Just my view, of course.
Personally think it's disgusting that Sainsbury's are trivialising war to sell a few more Turkeys. I expect most of the cannon fodder of the great war could never even dream of the excesses of modern life that Sainsbury's relies on as a business model. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-30417641
While I still support the JS venture I also applaud another recent ad of a quite different genre but also a beautifully made little film with an anti-war theme. For those who haven't seen it (sorry, can't do a link) go to YouTube and look for In Reverse, currently standing on 802K views. A truly remarkable ad.
I wonder if the subtlety of the Sainsbury's advert will lead to a group of overworked Tesco employees looking over at their counterparts from Asda on Christmas Eve and result in a football match in the car park and maybe afterwards they exchange nectar points... Boxing Day high street hostilities resume....
Comments
Might as well say it rips of the Pipes of Peace video.
Addressing the same, historical, event does not equal ripping off.
Henry if you read my post I say:
'The legendary events of that first Christmas in the trenches is a story belonging to everybody, and if Sainsbury's had credibility they might have re visited the events afresh rather than re hash the work of somebody else.'
I am not arguing that people can't address the same historical event, it is the artistic rip off that is sour. Anybody looking at the Sainsbury's advert and the Attenborough film can see how almost identical they are artistically, the addition of the football makes it even more cynical in my view.
This is the final sequence from the original film:
In my view the film was intended to be thought provoking and certainly memorable, and a bit educative, here we have big business cynically reducing this anniversary to a form that can bring in more money.
Last week at the funeral of my mother I was able to make reference to her father, my grandfather, who had fought in the Sudan, the Boer War, and was wounded on the Somme, a part of that living link had gone, but especially last week it had a depth of memory for me.
The Sainsbury's ad seems a cynical exploitative patch up, by young rip off merchant ad land hipsters for whom the events of the Great War have little personal meaning.
Can't quite get my silly old head round this ....
To do good - regardless of their true motivation - JS must be good capitalists. As bad capitalists they go broke and henceforth are in no position to help anybody. Their shareholders demand that they operate prudently.
Cui bono? Well, the RBL has a modest windfall and a ton of free publicity. The actors and production crew who made the film were presumably not amateurs. The ad agency, the brokers who arrange the tv space, the tv networks themselves who did rather well from selling the air-time, the chocolate bar makers .... and it's poor old JS, who generated/bankrolled these little earners, who are the ones to get a good bollocking.
It's a charming film which soon enough will lose its novelty value. For Gawd's sake, where's the harm? What next - those bastards at the NHS who make a living out of illness and misery? The Old Bill, who live off crime?
'creative interpretation'?
'.....as accurate as possible, basing it on original reports and letters, as well as working with historians throughout the development and production process'.
Do me a favour.
George Harrison and the Chiffons comes to mind.
In my view it is a simple rip off tarted up by the quote above. Plagarism is a healthy force within all the arts, everybody stands on somebody's shoulders. But this advertisement isn't an artistic development with respect for the aesthetic, and mental and emotional engagement, it is a lazy rip off of the work of somebody else's 'creative interpretation' based on 'original' sources.
I appreciate that the British Legion are getting a kick back from this but that doesn't excuse the fact that, in my opinion, they have made an error of judgement in sanctioning this. In my eyes this belies what an awful, barbaric war the First World War really was. Every year we have the poppies which is a great continuing tradition to remember those that fell and what they endured. Over the years, also, it has become more and more obvious what a truly awful war WW1 was. In my opinion, this Ad has taken a step backwards by painting an unreal picture of what conditions really were like over there.
I'm sure the BL would come out with all sorts of blah, blah about this but I think, if the survivors were still around, they wouldn't appreciate what the BL have sanctioned. Just my opinion.
Try reading "It's All Quiet on the Western Front".
And, I'm not a prude or a goodie goodie but I just felt distinctly uncomfortable when I watched this Ad.
The film approaches the subject from an unfamiliar perspective to reach a new audience. In the film there is no mistaking the terror with which the first two soldiers make their moves, their gestures fearing to receive an uncaring bullet in return. The brief interlude of peace is contrasted with what surrounds it. It's a short film and must make its impact very simply and very quickly.
The film's greatest benefit is to raise awareness, to stimulate curiosity. I recently re-watched all 26 episodes of the BBC's epic 1964 series and learned about TGW all over again.
This ad is no more about groceries than the awe-inspiring display at ToL is about flowers. It's a visual metaphor, that's all, so what about some benefit of the doubt, eh, like the humanitarian compassion of that fabled Xmas a century ago?
I do get a little frustrated with companies that pass over those massive cheques that have their name on them when it is donations from their customers, but this is different. The only product in the advert is a bar that they are selling for no profit. Sure it's less that they make from their normal activities, but we can't expect them to give all their profits away, after all.
Personally, I liked the advert. I've never been in a war, nor have I lived in conditions anything like what those men went through. However, it doesn't stop the thought of fighting men stopping to play football at Christmas from lifting my spirits. It helps to restore my faith in humanity and confirm that even when at war we are all (well most) decent people with respect for others.
If it achieves nothing else it makes me smile. If it raises money (even a little) for those that have fought for us then great, if it raises money for the Supermarket that nmakes the film then I have no problem with that.
Incidentally I don't have a problem with those that don't like the advert, or those that don't like Sainsburys for making it, or at all. I just don't share their view. I'd prefer to see adverts like this one than have Kerry Katona stuffing her face with processed food from Iceland on my telly. Just my view, of course.
other ads that reference wars (e.g. Heneiken dambusters)
films about wars
novels set around wars
pop songs about wars
history books about wars?
Must be nice chocolate, might treat myself and get a bar, more money for the BL.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-30417641
While I still support the JS venture I also applaud another recent ad of a quite different genre but also a beautifully made little film with an anti-war theme. For those who haven't seen it (sorry, can't do a link) go to YouTube and look for In Reverse, currently standing on 802K views. A truly remarkable ad.
Boxing Day high street hostilities resume....
I love the "I'm blind Dec" bit, right old school biker grove.