Why do Labour videos invariably have sinister and frightening undertones even when they’re overtly shiny and happy?

Published: January 21, 2013 at 10:09pm

What is it? Is it the music, the beat, the shouting, the placards that make a supposed celebration look like a protest demo?

Is it the ugly faces of Frederick Testa and William Mangion, the return of washed-up relics from 1970s Xandir Malta like Jane Marshall, her husband Albert, and Mario Philip Azzopardi (who would have produced this video just as he did the one filmed at the Palace with that other fossil Narcy Calamatta)?

Is it the fact that the young people are like something from a brainwashing sect?

On the face of it it looks good, but the feeling it creates is freakily sinister.If I

And those POOR lovely children, used and abused in propaganda for a man and a political party who bent over backwards to dash their chances of an EU passport.

They don’t know any better and they don’t have a vote. But if I were 21, my attitude would be, ‘Mela x’naghmel nivvota ghal Joseph Muscat, daqs kemm ghamel biex jipprova jfottieli hajti. Vote Labour? Inz**bab.” U kif.

And oh dear, what a shame that JOS-EPH only has two syllables, and not three like O-BA-MA. Then JosephMuscat.com and Mario Philip Azzopardi could have ripped the whole thing off even more closely.

A damned shame, too, that any attempt at reproducing the essential element of the Obama video – different people, different ethnic groups – would send your typical progressive and liberal Laburist running straight into the arms of Norman Lowell.

So all they could rip off, really, was the pregnant girl saying that she wants her unborn baby to have a cleaner environment. My unborn baby had to endure the coal dust and heavy pollutant fumes of the third-rate power station set up by Muscat’s hero Mintoff in Marsa (where I worked at the time).

So stuff that. Sorry, but I can’t find more elegant words to express my sentiments. Labour + The Environment? What a joke. This is the party that has enrolled the support, and probably the funding, of major land developers already.

What fakes. Dangerous fakes.




52 Comments Comment

  1. Tumas-Muscat says:

    Doesn’t this sound a little similar to this, only much more frightening?:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghSJsEVf0pU

  2. Peter Mallia says:

    Daphne, this is unbelievable:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghSJsEVf0pU

    Bloody plagiarists.

    • Peter Mallia says:

      I think this is in clear breach of copyright.

      The US producers of the clip (will i am’s recording company) should be alerted ASAP.

      This is the Labour Party, which wants to make Malta the best in Europe. How – by ripping off other people’s work?

      They could have at least tried to show some Maltese talent and not COPY a huge iTunes hit and try and make it their own. Maybe William Mangion just wasn’t up to it.

      SHAME on the party and on all those who contributed to this clip.

  3. sam says:

    I still cannot believe Labour has the ‘guts’ to produce this ‘music’ video.

    And the young people who are in it – are they for real?

    Mhux hekk mela Joseph hi dahhalna fl-EU. And Jane Marshall might have to emigrate back to Australia.

    When it comes to William Mangion and Fredrick Testa, I so cannot comment as it will take me ages.

    No words can describe how out of place they look.

    U bilhaqq jien nhobb naqra l-fairy tales ghax Joseph ihobb jaqra l-fairytales too.

  4. Stephen Borg Fiteni says:

    I’m 18 and that’s what my attitude is, the EU has done tremendous good to Malta and me, and that ALONE is enough never to vote for those who were against it.

  5. francesco says:

    Danacol ?

  6. francesco says:

    Danacol Danacol Danacol ?

  7. ciccio says:

    I prefer the one about “A frijk lives here.” It made people talk about it.

  8. Sunny B. says:

    Ramona Frendo at 0.25′.

    • Jozef says:

      Yes, she believes in everyone’s right to what is morally theirs. Except when someone is left injured by a lorry

      They shouldn’t have been on the pavement, street too narrow.

  9. Tumas-Muscat says:

    Oh, and about your whole EU point and 21-year-olds, I coincidentally know one of the group singing at the end. She studied European Studies at university and went to work with the EU institutions in Brussels for a time, and she STILL doesn’t know any better.

    Now that is some serious brainwashing!

  10. B says:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghSJsEVf0pU

    Did they really think no one would notice?

  11. Peter Mallia says:

    How bloody ironic seeing Jane Marshall saying that she believes that it’s through Joseph Muscat that Malta’s education and health sector would be as good as the ones in Europe.

    How ironic of the Marshalls, who were the first to get on the EU payroll as Maltese translators in Luxembourg as soon as Malta joined the EU thanks to the PN.

  12. K says:

    Another shameless copy…. and this one is close enough for Will.i.am to sue

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghSJsEVf0pU

  13. DAISY II says:

    My my my am I hearing correctly? William Mangion says he believes in Joseph because he delivers. And what does he deliver exactly? Pizza by Luca?

    How can you say that he delivers when he has NEVER had any administrative of ministerial post? What exactly is he going to deliver: a power station and two huge gas tanks that will smash the value of homes in the area?

    What a shambles.

    • Josette Jones says:

      He hasn’t even delivered the links from Google to the 10-year gas purchase agreements that his stooge KonMiPL promised. Let alone everything else.

  14. andrew vs says:

    Obama Taghna Lkoll

    Have a field day Daphne.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghSJsEVf0pU

  15. Pro says:

    Amen to that!

  16. David says:

    Dawn jafu li kif jibda il-video igib il-progetti tal-gvern PN? Vera ma jisthux igibu l-isptar, l-universita, il-playing fields etc. Imma mil-banda l-ohra jekk ma jgibux dawn jistaw ma jgibu xejn hlief il-monument tal-iMsida.

  17. Peter Mallia says:

    Does the ‘oh-so-correct-Jane-Marshall’ know she was taking part in this total rip-off of somebody else’s creativity output? Artists, my foot.

    • maryanne says:

      Where have we failed Jane Marshall? X’jonqosha? Did she say better education? What would some of Joseph’s followers do with education?

    • MP says:

      I can imagine Albert Marhsall fuming had this act of blatant plagiarism been done by the PN … SHAME, BLOODY SHAME. How on earth can we give Malta to the Labour Party, after having achieved so much?

      How can we turn back the clock?

      What are those willing to shift allegiance able to see that level-headed people just can’t?

      • Jozef says:

        Albert Marshall was all over the place when the strategy for creativity was introduced for discussion a few months ago.

        Obviously he’s not having anyone take his money.

  18. woah! says:

    Have a look at this and tell me Labours’ campaign song isn’t an exact replica.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghSJsEVf0pU

    [Daphne – No, it isn’t an exact replica. Obama’s original doesn’t use old Mintoffjani like Jane and Albert Marshall and Mario Philip Azzopardi, or late-middle-aged and ugly ones like Frederick Testa and Willie Mangion.]

  19. MP says:

    But wait a second, wait a second, did Kurt Farrugia or some jerk at Mile End really think they were the only ones following Obama’s candidature four years ago?

    Do they really think that they are the only ones interested in what’s happening in the world? My god. I’m speechless.

  20. Peter says:

    Thank God for this clip, Daphne. Honestly, I was rather ‘cold’ so far in this election and willing to be a spectator until the end.

    But this went a step too far. THIS IS MY MALTA TOO.

    I will do all I can not to let Labour make a mess of it once more.

  21. MxC says:

    Billboards, silly iphone like boards, banners in the worst possible places barring the view when coming to a roundabout with “Malta Taghna Lkoll” (e.g. Hamrun roaundabout coming up from the slop of Birkirkara), a “great” inspirational song, the short feature at the cinemas…wat’s next?

    A giant zeppelin or those small planes flying with banners “Malta Taghna Lkoll”?

    Or some guy like the doughnut van tune repeater which instead of “hawn tad-donuts, kemm huma tajbin” goes “Malta taghna lkoll, ivvota Labour”?

    God, I’m already sick of all this and we’re only two weeks into a nine-week campaign.

    • Jozef says:

      They put one of the plastic iPhones in Piazza Regina opposite the Casino.

      I saw tourists walk up to it mistaking it for a menu.

  22. MX says:

    I’m confused…is josephmuscat.com a political party or a cult because all this “I believe in Joseph Muscat…” is throwing me off.

    [Daphne – JosephMuscat.com is the sort of sect where you end up drinking spiked Koolaid in the jungle.]

  23. Jozef says:

    They matched the backdrops to the colours in the logo.

    Problem is they didn’t match the clothes or skin tones.

    Spiccaw kollha bis-suffejra.

  24. Joe says:

    Both videos send shivers down my spine but for very different reasons. One comes across as togetherness whilst the other as militant.

  25. TrueThespian says:

    Simply amazing how people who call themselves artists and lovers of the dramatic/visual arts can stoop so low and blatantly copy a video thought and produced by others.

    And by the way just a few points:

    Frederick Testa – directed dramas on Net TV and earned himself a living from there for a couple of years before directing other dramas for PBS which according to JosephMuscat.com is a PN club.

    Jane and Albert Marshall – came back from Australia and have been given project after project, enough for Albert to live off drama and rather comfortably.

    Mario Philip Azzopardi – in the last 3 years has been given project after project by Teatru Manoel (getting paid more then any other local director/producer) to produce his plays.

    Hey guys! Are you crazy? Do you really want a change?

    And by the way Mario Philip had once declared that he would not be speaking to Albert Marshall any ore because the latter had accepted to sit on the board of directors of the new theatre after protesting against it!

  26. ciccio says:

    Labour is singing a tune which is five years old now.

  27. sam says:

    This video naqqsilhom il-points. What a joke. And where are the gejs li ilhom jiftahru bihom?

    Not even one gay couple in the vid. Paroli minn issa ahseb u ara they are in power.

  28. BDSM says:

    Lous Grech’s personal assistant, second from the left, is in some Labour production again. Incidentally she is also an ex- Air Malta stewardess.

  29. Athina says:

    And the girl first on right is Norman Hamilton’s daughter.

  30. TrueThespian says:

    Simply amazing how people who call themselves artists and lovers of the dramatic/visual arts can stoop so low and blatantly copy a video thought and produced by others.

    Frederick Testa – directed dramas on Net TV and earned himself a living from there for a couple of years before directing other dramas for PBS which according to JosephMuscat.com is a PN club.

    Jane and Albert Marshall – came back from Australia and have been given project after project, enough for Albert to live off drama and rather comfortably.

    Mario Philip Azzopardi – in the last 3 years has been given project after project by Teatru Manoel (getting paid more then any other local director/producer) to produce his plays.

    And Mario Philip had once declared that he would not be speaking to Albert Marshall any more because the latter had accepted to sit on the board of directors of the new theatre after protesting against it.

    • M P azzopardi says:

      @true thespian: for clarity’s sake, here are some figures. Average director’s fee at Manoel is between 800 and 1000 euros. My fee for SULARI. And XBIHAT was 300 euros each. As this was a co production with the Manoel, the management offered the amenities of the theatre and i offered the script as equal parts of the investment, which means i was not paid a cent for the script. We shared the profits equally. My take on sulari was just over 2k and 1.5k on Xbihat. Subtract 8k on fares for me and Therese over both productions and living expenses in Malta (the manoel made an apt available for my duration on the island) and perhaps you would kindly review your statements. These are not projects given to me by the manoel this was a co investment risk taken by both the theatre and myself. And for the first time in over 20 years two original Maltese plays filled all nights to capacity. Thank you.

  31. village says:

    Copyright infringement costs a lot of money.

  32. Toni0710 says:

    Ara vera tal-misthija ta.

  33. Natalie Mallett says:

    Mhux talli ikkupjaw id-diska imma l-isbah shots mehudin quddiem progetti li wettaq il-Partit Nazzjonalista.

    Basta maqdru kull progett li sar issa jridu jiftahru bihom.

    Halluna tal-Labour tridhux.

    Il-Partit Nazzjonalista huwa l-uniku partit li hadem biex jaghmel Malta taghna lkoll.

    Il-hdura taghkom ga bdiet hierga wara l-ewwel mass meeting li kellna go Haz-Zabbar meta ghaddew xi partitarji Laburisti jfittxu l-glied minn quddiemna imma baqa f’wicchom ghax hadd ma ta kas il-vulgarita u l-injoranza taghhom.

  34. M P azzopardi says:

    @true thespian: for clarity’s sake, here are some figures. Average director’s fee at Manoel is between 800 and 1000 euros. My fee for SULARI. And XBIHAT was 300 euros each. As this was a co production with the Manoel, the management offered the amenities of the theatre and i offered the script as equal parts of the investment, which means i was not paid a cent for the script. We shared the profits equally. My take on sulari was just over 2k and 1.5k on Xbihat. Subtract 8k on fares for me and Therese over both productions and living expenses in Malta (the manoel made an apt available for my duration on the island) and perhaps you would kindly review your statements. These are not projects given to me by the manoel this was a co investment risk taken by both the theatre and myself. And for the first time in over 20 years two original Maltese plays filled all nights to capacity. Thank you.

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