A Tale of two ads
Five years ago, Lowe produced two ads for Stella at the same time.
One was Ice Skating Priests:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-8qty25EPk
While the other was Le Sacrifice.
Before they were made I was aware of the two scripts going around town and of the high-calibre directors who wanted to shoot them. I may have got this wrong (I don’t think I have, but I’m going to cover my arse anyway), but I believe Frank Budgen had first pick, with the other one, assuming he wanted it, going to Jonathan Glazer.
Now, I am fully aware that history has declared Ice Skating Priests to be the victor – it has won far more awards than Le Sacrifice and seems to be recalled with greater alacrity and fondness. I am also fully aware that its craftsmanship is superb, with faultless cinematography, casting, direction and music.
However, as a script, and as an idea, I think Le Sacrifice is by far the better of the two, and have always been surprised that it is comparatively unsung. It is crazy, brave, original, different and an unexpected departure for the brand, whilst being entirely consistent with its European movie connections.
Whereas the plot of ISP is really quite poor. Priests fancy a beer, get a lackey to bring a case, lackey and beer fall through ice, priests insist lackey retrieves them. It’s not exactly Nouvelle Chaussures or Pilot, is it?
So I can see why Frank took on Le Sacrifice, and I very much prefer it, but I can also see that I’m in a minority.
Assuming more of you like ISP than Le Sacrifice, perhaps you could tell me why.
ISP is more human in some sort of way. It connects better to normal people. You know, people that watches commercials without thinking who did it. It flows better, like a music video. It share something with the zeitgeist of our time: the bad boss, the dictador, the poor little me, etc.
Le Sacrifice is beautiful, I love it. But, of course, french Surrealism is not a very easy thing to grasp. You have to know the backgrounds of the style to understand it fully.
That said, I am with you. I think Le Sacrifice is one of the most beautiful and intelligent artistical jumps of an ad. Stuff I would like be doing.
Cheers.
Totally agree. I never understood why Ice Skating Priests won so many awards.
Awards are often judged by morons. Trouble is advertising is subjective. The other trouble is there are vested interests at play.
Off subject… What about Rich Flintham and Laurence Green leaving Fallon. Word is they are doing a start up with the “gorilla” client…
Im getting my book together!!!
I was not aware of that. Is it common knowledge? Is it true?
After some freelance at DLKW Ben?
Blimey – you must be desperate.
I’m not sure praising an ad their CD did five years ago is going to make up for this
http://www.ben-kay.com/2010/06/lowe-buys-dlkw-cash-vs-creativity-and-what-it-says-about-the-future-of-the-industry/
But, hey, it’s nothing personal. Just calling it how I see it.
Yeah i heard that about Fallon too, geeeez who will / could take over from Rich?
Fallon on the skids now!
Le Sacrifice is the better film. ISP is the better Ad.
Can’t imagine your average british public Joe enjoying Le Sacrifice.
“Jeff, did yow sey thut Wife beyta ad? It wus reyly urignul an innuvutive, it wusnt wot I was expectin at all. Ahh luv ubstrackt umor muy.”
errrrrrrr Juan?
I don’t get Le Sacrifice. But I guess that’s the point. It’s surreal innit? It does absolutely nothing for me though. Ice skating priests on the other hand is brilliant. You might say the story is obvious but the setting isn’t and the storytelling is absolutely amazing.
Regardless of which is better, these Stella ads, and the rest of the campaign, were always things I looked at with awe and it’s sad that they, or anything which is made with as much love as these, don’t get made anymore.
For me watching these two pulled something into sharp focus… have you seen stella’s recent work? It doesn’t compare, not even a little… all those over long retro ads i can never seem to watch until the end, because they fucking bore me to death.
Massive fail Mother. Massive.
I reckon anyone in adland would love to make Sacrifice, its different, brave and anyone involved would i imagine have been slightly nervous about what the client and then people will say which is always good and really rare as an opportunity. But as an ad it has to be ISP which is after all why the film exists. Sacrifice, great for people who appreciate great european cinema, which in the grand scheme isn’t many. ISP, brilliantly crafted in every way is a brilliant ad that doesn’t feel like an ad, which is good, no?
I didn’t really like ISP when it came out. Probably because it looked a tad weak compared to Pilot, etc, (I think it was the last of the pencil-grabbing Stella epics). It’s a bit too long/indulgent/predictable/The Omen. But having just watched it again it looked really fucking good. Perhaps because there are absolutely no decent ads like this around at the moment. Especially for Stella. Thought Sacrifice was a load of bum when it came out. Still do. The ‘shhh’ thing at the end? Merde. Rumour is the new ECD at the time pushed it through with juries, rather than punters in mind.
I like Ice Skating Preists because of the sound track.
Maybe because the original was sampled by Brain Tax on ‘Last Date’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGx3naCKNNA
Is that flintham news bollocks or what?
On no evidence other than judgement, I’d be willing to bet that Priest sold more product than Sacrifice.
“Merely to let your imagination run riot, to dream unrelated dreams, to indulge in graphic acrobatics and verbal gymnastics is NOT being creative. The creative person has harnessed his imagination. He has disciplined it so that every thought, every idea, every word he puts down, every line he draws, every light and shadow in every photograph he takes, makes more vivid, more believable, more persuasive the original theme or product advantage he has decided he must convey.” Bill Bernbach
But Le Sacrifice isn’t just a series of unrelated dreams/graphic acrobatics/epistemological step-aerobics.
It’s telling the same story as every Reassuringly Expensive Stella ad before it. Namely that this drink is so wonderful that people will want drink it no matter what the consequences (betraying an ally/disappointing your dying father/turning into an egg). Just because it’s shot in a French surrealist style doesn’t mean it doesn’t make any sense.
MERDE! How stupid of me, now that you’ve explained it to me I see it all. Thank you.
Ciaran
I agree with Gene “The Rod” Rodenberry.
Frank, is that you?
Because not everything in black and white makes sense.
flintham news is true
i never understood how ice skating priests backed up the message ‘reassuringly expensive’
i always thought it was more ‘you’ll go to any lengths for a stella’
though gene rodenberry has shed some light on it.
i thought the young man who fixed the roof was more propositionally sound.
I always found it strange that this one seemed to slip under the radar (directed by Dougal).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjFHcN_UwDE