I like to be critical (not that I have the right, just that I like it) and I’m not a huge fan of car ads: they’re normally chock-full of cliches and gratuitous, shiny product shots in place of any real creative idea.
However, credit where it’s due: this ad, from Jaguar, is pretty bloody spiffing:
Honestly, I don’t normally go all gooey over such things, but this is brilliant; atmospheric, brooding, crisp, refined, elegant, edgy.
It’s beautifully written and (broadly) based on truths about villains in films (certainly British villains)… and that Britishness is seamlessly linked, as a benefit, to the car.
There’s product shots galore, but they’re entirely relevant and slip in effortlessly.
There’s even well-timed product demonstrations – 0:34, 1:27, and 1:36.
Not only that, but this is an enormous leap away from that old-fashioned brand image of flat caps, brown leather driving gloves, and tweed. Jaguar now says ‘bold’… ‘daring’…. even a bit ‘naughty’.
The whole thing, from start to finish, is so slick: bravo Jaguar, bravo….