It takes a desperate mindset to fake your funeral in order to get your children to come home for the holidays. That’s sad. This ad for a German grocery store has been viewed millions of times online, to much conflicting response.
The commercial starts with Dad’s kids talking to him on the phone, saying they can’t make it for Christmas this year. He’s shown eating by himself at an empty table by a Christmas tree. That’s sad.
We see scenes of hospitals and of the adult kids getting texts and opening formal-looking cards. The kids, all dressed in black, come to Dad’s home. They are greeted with a laden table, lit with candles – and surprise! Dad totters out of the kitchen. The sentimental music includes the lyrics, “Home means nothing without you.”
“How else could I have brought you all together?” asks Dad. Once the kids get over the surprise, they are happy to see him. Then they enjoy a feast, laughing and talking, one big happy family.
It’s sad that he had to fake his death to get his children together for the holidays. Yet, you see no arguing about the extent he went to get them together. Don’t be so busy this holiday that you can’t make time to be with your family, however you define it.
There are comedy films where a main character fakes his or her death. In the comedy Checking Out, Peter Falk plays a 90-year-old actor who plans to commit suicide and sends formal invitations to get his three adult kids together. It’s a similar ploy as this commercial. In spite of the comedic overtones, it’s a sad state of affairs when it takes such efforts to bring a dispersed family together.
Wishing you and yours a happy holiday – without the drama.
