NORTHERN PLANNER

In the last two months we must have watched Cars or Cars2 at least 3 times a week, thanks to our little boy;s utter entrancement with Lighting McQuenn and co. He doesn't take just one McQueen replica to bed, oh no, he takes two.

I happened to read the reviews on Amazon after we'd the films a few million times and went a little deeper with the 'proper' film critic reviews, finding myself a little surprised they seemed to get quite a pasting, especially the second film.

I wondered if they sort of missed the point, that these films are made for children, with some adult themes to maximise Mums and Dads taking their brood to the cinema or forking our for the DVD. I wondered how many of the reviewers had watched children watching the films, rather than the films themselves.

Just like I was saddened by the snide comments in the Guardian about the comeback of Girls Aloud (talentles, irrelevantm don't write their own songs etc), which missed the point that their fans really didn't and don't care about craft and talent, or maybe they do, that's not what Girls Aloud gave them.  They gave them fun, license to lighten up, the joy in ordinary girls made good and that knowing, cheeky, independent, sexy take on womanhood that Sex and the City delivered as well. In fact, that's probably rubbish too, they looked great and sang insanely catchy tunes.

Which also made me wonder how people in agencies really judge ads and stuff. If you want to know how peopl respond to TV advertising, sit with your own family and friends in front of the telly and see if they respond or enjoy any, let alone, 'talk about them' at all. Likewise with digital, sit with someone at an laptop screen, on their actual sofa while they half pay attention to Corrie etc.So if they eveb waver over banner ads or brand stuff that's snaked into their newsfeeds.

I was reminded of a comment in the blogs, to a quite good recent ad, slagging it off for being too much like Blackcurrant Tango.

First, the target customer wasn't even in long trousers when that came out and second, if they were, they won't really remember or care that much.

That's agency types talking to themselves.

Just like film critics judging childrens' content the same way they do a Orson Welles film, are missing the point.

Like Girls Aloud fans don't care an iota for what Guardian readers think.

That's not to say people are stupid, there's nothing worse than researched to death creative stuff, reduced to the lowest common demoninator, treating them like idiots. But then again, if it's stuff that only a few thousand people in adland find interesting, moving or enertaining, it's only really talking to itself.