BITE Insight

There’s always that member of the family who is the fun one, the one that lets you get away with things your parents would tell you off for. It’s this ‘fun’ uncle who is the flawed star at the heart of Figliulo&Partners’ heart-warming Christmas ad for Virgin Atlantic and Delta Airlines.

The Prodigal Brother is a darkly comic spot that tells the story of wayward Jacob, returning to his brother’s house unexpectedly for Christmas. The short film, designed to promote the airlines’ partnership, opens with a glitzy, Michael Bublé-esque rendition of Deck the Halls and a plane landing with a screech.

The ad takes a turn when it becomes clear that Jacob is not that welcome in his brother’s house because, as it transpires, he ruined his wedding and never properly apologised.

Jacob tells an imaginative story to his brother’s three excitable children – one that includes a dead yak, a magic spider, Socrates and karate. Through this slightly rambling tale, he manages to convey his long overdue apology to his brother and sister-in-law so that there is a happy, emotional Christmassy ending for everyone.