"We need look no further than this year's John Lewis Christmas ad to see that one of the most urgent national conversations is the crisis of boyhood. Fears around the rise of the manosphere, spiralling mental health problems and loneliness among young men have made headlines, from Sir Gareth Southgate's Richard Dimbleby lecture, in which he expressed fears that toxic influencers are replacing traditional father figures, to the phenomenal success of the hit Netflix series Adolescence."
"As this festive institution itself turns 18, it is fitting perhaps that it tells the story of a middleaged father and his silent, headphone-wearing teenage son. The gift of a vinyl record of Alison Limerick's 1990 dance anthem Where Love Lives transports the dad back to his 90s clubbing days, until the pace changes and father and son see each other over the chasm of years. The boy, in true adland style, becomes a toddler and then a baby."
"Showcasing a white, middle-class family, especially in a cost of living crisis, hardly seems radical. But it is the glimpse of a father-son bond that captures the zeitgeist. Last year's ad, shot in a John Lewis store for the first time, featured two sisters. John Lewis Christmas advert doesn't star any men, declared one headline. It is no accident that this year it is all about men: the mother and daughter are shadowy figures in the background; although significantly, only the mum speaks."
The John Lewis Christmas advert centers on a middle-aged father and his silent, headphone-wearing teenage son. A vinyl record of Alison Limerick's 1990 dance anthem Where Love Lives transports the father back to 1990s clubbing nights and evokes shared musical memory. The pacing shifts to show the generational chasm between father and son, with the boy regressing into toddler and baby in a stylized sequence that ends in a reconciliatory hug. The advert contrasts crowded dancefloors and communal joy with contemporary isolation driven by screens, streaming and social media. The ad showcases a white, middle-class family amid a cost-of-living crisis and foregrounds concerns about boyhood, loneliness, mental health and changing masculine identities.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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