Make-up ads don’t make Ad of the Week very often. They tend to be too formulaic: actresses touching their faces, complicated-sounding scientific claims…
So hats off to Maybelline for doing different this Christmas. It’s hired the stars of Hot Frosty – a bonkers Netflix Christmas hit last year, about a hunky snowman who comes to life. But the duo aren’t playing those characters: instead, over a series of ads, they enact a romance called ‘Maybe This Christmas’.
It starts cute: Lacey spots buff Dustin putting up his lights. “Maybe this Christmas…” she begins. Then the music changes from Christmassy to chilling: “…I can conceal who I really am.” What?
Further twisted meet-cutes follow, with suspicion building about Lacey’s secret – and Maybelline concealer playing a co-starring role. Is Dustin in danger? “You’re not a murderer or something, are you?” he asks.
The clichés are charming, the mystery is genuinely intriguing, the product placement makes sense and the brand’s key word ‘maybe’ is used smartly. Can the ad stick the landing? Well, yes! The payoff is very funny indeed.
Merry Christmas, Maybelline!
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