Nobody smiles all the time. Even in the movie called “Smile,” no one was always smiling. In fact, smiling is why I don’t like this Dish Network commercial and now it’s on full display in a new Thanksgiving ad from Publix. Take a look…
All Smiles. In this Publix ad the mom, daughter, and father are smiling in virtually every shot. It’s definitely not realistic and, in fact, it’s creepy when someone smiles that much. Why do you think the Joker was such a great villain? His constant smile was ultra freaky.
Screen Time. If we’re going to be mad at younger generations for always being on their phone, then the same rule needs to apply to these adult women. Think about the dad for a second. All the poor man has is his wife, confirmed when the mother says, “It’s a little quiet, just me and Dad.” So the Dad is in the background setting the table and the only person he can talk to or enjoy the holiday with isn’t even talking to him. Talk about a lonely holiday. Good job, Mom!
The Virus. I know it’s been popular since 2020 to show families and loved ones celebrating holidays separately because of COVID, but there are a couple of problems in the ad if the pandemic is the reason this family isn’t together for Thanksgiving. First of all, no one who has COVID would be as happy as the mom, dad, or daughter (did I mention the smiling yet?). The next thing, if one of them DOES have the virus, they probably can’t taste anything so why are they eating this big meal?
Final Thoughts. Publix is great about putting together heart-warming ads each holiday season. Heck, they even have one of my favorite commercials ever when they aired a Valentine’s Day commercial. But this Thanksgiving ad comes up short. The sentiment is admirable, I guess. The mom and daughter still connecting even though they’re apart but when we break down the why’s and the how’s, it simply falls apart.
How do you feel about the commercial? What could they have done better to pull on our heart strings a little more?
Thanks for dropping in…
-Out of the Wilderness
Out of the Wilderness 
Lol you totally missed the mark here…
All smiles: This one I’ll actually give you credit for. Far too often do clients ruin a good piece of content by being obsessed with pushing positivity, however – it’s a mother and daughter connecting over tradition, so yeah, of course the sentiment is going to be smiley.
Screen time: Why are we desperate to be angry with a younger generation for their screen time? Also if you paid attention you’d notice this was actually multiple calls made to her mother not one long call for entire meal preparation. And beyond that, have you ever been around a family member face timing a loved one? It’s a group affair, the dad would be thrilled the daughter has a presence in the kitchen, and when the meal was served they were together and off their phones.
The Virus: This is clearly you projecting. The story had nothing to do with COVID – obviously based on the daughter hosting all her friends at the end. It’s a story of growth and independence… the nuance of the pride a parent feels over the growth of their child combined with nostalgia.
Final Thoughts: I think your analysis misses the mark, the why’s and how’s feel more personal than a fair and objective critique on the content.
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I appreciate your angle on the commercial. There is definitely personal thoughts in my take on the ad. The most annoying part was all the smiling… the other stuff was my perspective, as you said. Thanks for checking out my post!
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