1. Essay on The John Lewis Advert 2018 (Elton John)
The Advert i will be analysing will be the 2018 John lewis advert. This advert contain a celebrity
know as Elton John. Elton john is a British Artist known for his music. He started his career in the
1970’s singing genre music from: Pop, Rock and Blues, from this he became a well known artist
across the globe. He stars in the John lewis advert in 2018.
John lewis is a high end department store which is based in the United Kingdom. The first John
lewis store was opened in 1864 and has grown massively to this day, including the total of 51
store being opened.
Since 2007 John lewis launched their first Christmas advert. Since then, it has become a tradition
for them to release an advert on the count down to Christmas every year since.
They have always created emotional and effectively adverts, which appeal to all age groups which
makes the advert so well known each year. This year john lewis partnered up with adam&eveDDB
to complete the project.
This year the message john lewis have wanted to present is to cherish the gifts you receive this
Christmas as that special moment is something you should have with your forever. This message
is positive and magical.
The advert is about Elton Johns journey in music. This journey shows him as a child receiving a
piano for Christmas to his journey now. However, this is shown in reverse because it’s taken a
step back in time from adult life to child.
The clips of Elton john show his performances from an Adult to a child. What i find touching about
the clips is it represents Eltons life effectively. For example: There is a clip of him playing in a pub
when he was younger. This is a true story as it’s where he was first scouted to become a per-
former. This scene shows how much joy he gave to people , especially his mother who is shown
multiple times. This shows that his music is inspiring.
The Piano is there to symbolise his music journey and how significant it is in Elton Johns perfor-
mances. This is shown through out as each clip showing Elton john includes his piano. This repe-
tition is effective because there is a consistent link between each clip shown in the advert which
allows the symbolic item become known in the consumers mind.
There have been different uses of colours through out which represent different aspects in this life
displaying different emotions. This is show by the colour shown in each scene. The few colours
which have been repeated through out are reds, greens, whites and blues.
The red is shown the most through out because it portrays an important message of love. It is
also a dominant colour which helps attract the audience to that main section of the scenes. The
red is also intertwined with the green which displays the classic Christmas colours. This helps
represent the Theme of Christmas through out.
The blue, red and whites are shown together as well. These are the colour of the union jack which
have been placed as a symbol in the middle of the advert. This reflects a Theme of British values,
which allow the audience to feel proud of their country.
These colours are all used through out. However, there is a scene in the middle which has a pause
of silence and just voice. This always the audience to reflect as that is a big part of the Christmas
period. This then allows the transition of the colour white being used a lot more when it comes to
Elton johns childhood. This shows a sense of innocents which allows the scenes to contain more
emotion towards the audience. These scenes also reflect the Christmas period too, which is time
where you are suppose to be happy and joyful. The costumes included in this advert also link into
colour. The costumes are all covered in sequins through out Elton johns youth. This adds spirit
and magic into the advert. Elton john is also always dressed smartly, even when he was a youth.
As a youth, this adds an innocent effect to the overall scenes. This is because he looks smart and
polite just from the costume choice.
There have been different camera angles used as well to highten the emotions of the advert. A
few camera angles that have been used are panning, close ups and middle shots. The panning
shots have been used through out the whole advert. This is because is shows a movement in time
which links into the whole concept of the advert. This makes the journey seems more real and as
if we are living it with the main character. However, at the start and the end of the advert they use
a close up shot. They use this because it adds a bit of suspense and realism to the overall advert.
This helps the audience feel connected to the character which creates the advert to become emo-

2. tive. The close ups start and begins close up to the main characters face (Elton John). This allows
the audience to see the growth of Elton john and how the whole advert is a series of events in his
life.
The middle shots included through out the advert are there to add a neutral ground. This allows
the audience to make their own assumptions on how they feel watching it.
Overall, i feel like the John lewis advert is effective. This i because it is emotive through out and
they have thought about every aspect of the advertisement. This includes outfit choices and
colour choices. It portrays the message john lewis are wanting to convey in an effective and emo-
tive manor which really appeals to the audience.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNbSgMEZ_Tw (Thursday 3rd Of January 2019)
https://www.standard.co.uk/shopping/john-lewis-christmas-2018-advert-revealed-elton-john-
takes-centre-stage-with-story-of-how-piano-gift-a3990421.html (Thursday 3rd Of January 2019)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-M96LTJt4_c (Thursday 3rd Of January 2019)