Every year, without fail, at least one holiday commercial brings me to tears. In 2014, it was Apple's cryfest-worthy "The Song", in which a granddaughter records a meaningful tune for her grandmother. Last year, it was the John Lewis commercial with a little girl who wanted send a gift to the old man on the moon. But this year, Amazon has topped all others with its new Prime holiday ad, which couldn't possibly have come at a better time.
In the past, the successful combination for a tearjerker holiday commercial has typically been little girl plus elderly man or woman. Amazon's commercial uses only one half of that equation —it features two older men — but its message of religious tolerance creates the most heartwarming feels of the season.
The ad, described simply as "a priest and Imam meet for tea," shows two old friends of different faiths reconnecting for a cup. They have a shared problem: Both have sore knees from kneeling in prayer. I'll leave you to watch the ad below to see what happens, but suffice it to say each comes to the other's aid with a similar gift.
Yes, the commercial is ultimately promoting buying presents from Amazon and having them speedily delivered, but as ReCode points out, it takes on much stronger meaning in the current political climate. The New York Times reports that since Donald Trump was elected president, minorities on campuses around the country have faced hostility. Not to mention, we've seen swastikas spray-painted on playgrounds, "white power" chants, and Muslim women wearing hijabs who have been forcefully grabbed.
Amazon's ad is the not the cure to present acts of hostility. It is, however, a reminder of the goodwill that we should all be extending to each other — during the holidays and at every other time of year. It feels like a briefer, but no less powerful, take on Hugh Grant's opening monologue from Love Actually: "General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends."
Just one warning: When you watch Amazon's commercial, do so with a box of tissues nearby.
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