The trend for some major tech and
telecommunications providers during the holidays lately has been to dip into
the nostalgia well by creating ads referencing some pretty classic movies. Last
year, Google melded their Google Assistant tech with the 1990 now-classic 20th
Century Fox holiday film “Home Alone,” reimagining the events of the movie with
Kevin (reprised by actor Macaulay Culkin) now having access to smart speakers
to run the house. This 2019, Comcast’s cable, internet and wireless arm Xfinity
is taking a page from the above playbook, advertising their services while
referencing an even more immortalized Christmas film: “E.T.”
Inquirer.net has it that a sweet Christmas commercial was put out
by Comcast – Xfinity that serves as a sort of distant sequel to “E.T.: The
Extra-Terrestrial,” the 1982 sci-fi classic from Universal Pictures (also a
Comcast subsidiary) directed by Steven Spielberg. Entitled “A Holiday Reunion,”
the ad also features one returning (live-action) cast member from the original
movie, Henry Thomas who played Elliot, the boy that befriended the lovable
alien E.T., returning in his classic animatronic form. Set 37 years after the
film, it sees E.T. returning to Earth and meeting a now-adult Elliot to spend
time with his family.
Clocking at a total of 4 minutes,
the commercial begins with Elliot’s children noticing a light in the woods
outside their home on Christmas Eve. Accompanied by their parents, they find
E.T., who Elliot easily recognizes, hiding behind the backyard snowman. The
lovable alien then hangs out with the family, who introduce him to Earthly tech
advances while he was away: internet, streaming TV and virtual reality among
others, all powered by Comcast Xfinity. E.T. then confides to Elliot that he
has his own family now back “home.” Early the following day, Elliot and his family
take E.T. back to the woods where his spaceship returns to pick him up.
As to be expected, the commercial
takes iconic beats from the original “E.T.” film, such as the alien levitating
the bicycles of Elliot’s kids (homage to his own 1982 flight which is now the
logo of Amblin), and E.T. pointing his glowing finger to people’s hearts as a
sign of affection. Naturally, the ad is tied together by the memorable music
score of John Williams. With Comcast Xfinity’s “A Holiday Reunion” out now for
viewing, one cannot help but wonder which company and what olden Holiday fare
will do this same seasonal commercial treat next.
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