14 DAY TRIAL // At the peak of the winter holidays that Europe and America (and pretty much everyone else except China) celebrates in December, Apple released one of its most touching short films. Today, the company is featuring what is essentially the same story, only with different actors, for Chinese audiences.
While the Chinese ad is equally touching, perhaps even more so for some viewers, I can’t help but feel that some injustice has been made towards the original (English) version.
I say this because “The Song” is not only one of the best ads I’ve seen from Apple in a long time, it’s also one of the best short films I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing. When a 1/2-minute video can cause you to gulp and reach for a tissue, that thing doesn’t deserve a remake. I for one wish Apple had the inspiration to delight its Asian customers with slightly different story along those same lines (i.e. grandma and niece).
As it stands, the Chinese version strikes me as a copycat that only manages to steal the magic from the original story. There are only this many grandmas with old vinyl recordings of themselves, and there are only this many nieces with enough Apple devices and musical prowess to remaster that recording, as well as a brain to come up with the same gift idea. Just saying.
Here's the Chinese version, and you'll find the original embedded below.
