We love this T-Mobile ad, one of the Clio winners for best commercial of the year. (Be sure to press “HQ” for the high-quality version of the video.)
Writes Slate: “T-Mobile throws a surprise dance party in Liverpool Street Station, with hundreds of ordinary-looking Londoners suddenly breaking into a choreographed routine. This must have been a treat for the commuters trudging toward their trains, and it’s fun to watch the onlookers getting sucked into the fun.”
See Also:
I Just Want to Fucking Dance
Last Word: Operation Enduring Hotness
When I first saw this video a few months ago it made me tear up. It’s got a spiritual component – something about large groups of unrelated people letting loose is exciting to me. They’re being intimate in ways that people are rarely intimate. This scene a fundamentally nonconservative human expression.
How this delightful video was made:
Why do the Brits have so much more fun than we Yanks do? It doesn’t seem fair. This was a delightful video. Thanks for posting. Next time I am at Paddington or Waterloo Station, I want to lip synch Patsy Cline’s ‘Walking, After Midnight’ and see what happens. The trains would probably be empty.
Chuck, if British media is any cue, I think the culture in the UK is just a lot more sentimentalist than we are. They actually had a sitcom called “Last of the Summer Wine” about old people goofing around like teenagers. It’s cheesy and sappy and corny and cute.
I think it’s because they’re less religious than we are (I’ve seen figures that people with any religious beliefs are actually in the minority in the UK), so search for narratives like this to give life meaning. If you’re atheist or agnostic your spirituality isn’t about sin and salvation, it’s about human beings finding holy moments in everyday life. That’s what I was getting at with my first comment about this having a spiritual component.
hey guys, it’s not only the brits:
did you watch the Belgians at Antwerp central ? (link)
and you americans,
don’t feel too sorry for yourself,
you’re very good at standing still : (link)
and, no, don’t think it has to do anything with religion.
we just take the separation of church and state a bit more serious.
so politicians don’t have to parrot the most ridiculous statements of a pope
to win elections, like even your mr Obama had to.
Even ultra catholic Spain has gay marriage (exception to the rule: Italy)
Brilliance. Sheer brilliance. (Also those two links, thanks for those Ad.
I totally agree with what has been said above, but did you notice how many of the songs were written by Americans?
I REALLY liked this. Thanks so much for posting. It brought tears and joy to my day.
Fantastic! Great to know that no matter how crappy my day can be I can always rely on this vid to bring a smile to my face. Thanks for posting!
It’s a faux-flash mob…
Another example of a well known flash mob was the April 2006 silent disco in London. At various London Underground stations, people gathered with their portable music devices, and at a set time began dancing to their music.[17] It was reported that more than 4,000 people participated at London Victoria station.[18] This impacted the regular service of the system enough for the city’s police to begin crowd control and slowly clear people.[19] Though no one was arrested, it was reported that the City of London pledged to counter future disruption of the underground system.[citation needed] Since 2006, there have been several flash mobs in the London Underground, including subsequent silent discos comparable in size.[20]
via wikipedia…
The t-mobile advert is mildly reviled by most in London – the title should be “So-so brand rips off something engaging to shift product”. Again.
David,
The flash mob “silent disco” event came off as intrusive, exclusive and absurd, while the T-Mobile ad, with its broadcast music over the P.A, came off as joyous, inviting and communal.
Just because the T-mobile event was a commercial effort, rather than an insider flash mob happening, does not delegitimize it. The effort was much more ambitious, and it’s success with the millions who have seen the ad much more magnificent.
The “Silent Disco” event uplifted no one beyond the participants who were in on it. At best, it was a curiosity to the casual passerby who must have shrugged his shoulder or shaken her head and walked on.
And one more thing, David. Nobody loves a killjoy. You need to start dancing more. Shake that moneymaker, boy!