During Thursday night’s NFL season opener between the Jets and Redskins, I caught an ad for Levitra, Glaxo’s new anti-impotence drug. It started out with a middle-aged man putting his lawn mower up in the storage shed and coming across a football in the shed. He looks longingly at the football, then the ad cuts to a scene where he’s throwing the ball at a tire swing and it hits the outer rim of the tire (he misses the “hole”). Then the voice-over guy starts talking about new Levitra, and how it will make everything better, and the guy is throwing the ball perfectly into the “hole”. His wife then steps out of the house, and the couple begin frolicking in the back yard while the voice-over guy says, “Once you’re in the zone, everything is good”…
I mean, c’mon. How much more obvious can a “subtle” commercial be?
Speaking as an advertising whore, I can tell you this. Because of the regulations surrounding the advertising of pharmceuticals, there is almost NOTHING you’re allowed to say, promise, allude to, or hint at without having a 20-minute diatribe on side effects, recommended doses, who might or might not benefit from said pharma, what 18 focus groups came up with for interesting ancillery information and a legal disclaimer the length of the American Consitution.
For this reason, ad agencies are put in the position of having to create dippy “allegorical” spots, which don’t actually mention anything real, don’t promise anything concrete, don’t actually talk about either the condition, the treatment or the cure. Thousands of hungry lawyers are just waiting for a lawsuit. That’s why pharma ads are so goofy.
Of course, the ad you’re refering to is spectacularly silly. The metaphorical “hoop” isn’t exactly a three-point jump shot. More like a desperate throw from center court.
Seems to me that ad would be more accurately described as suggestive rather than subliminal. Subliminal would be if the words “Sex” were superimposed for nearly imperceptible fragments of time or something. You know, like when they would flash “Drink Coke” on one frame of a film and only your subconscious can see it?
I thought subliminal advertising was banned, anyway. I WISH they would ban suggestive advertising…it’s in everything from AFLAC commercials to Burger King ads.
“Unsubtle Subliminal Advertising” is a contradiction anyway, HelloKitty. If you see it, it’s obviously not subliminal. Suggestive, sure. Most advertising is.
If they state in the commercial, “This will make your wee-wee work again,” they are also required to give that list of side effects (“may cause diarrhea, nausea, dizziness…”). If you have one, you gotta have the other.
That’s why you see commercials about some great asthma medicine and also hear that it may cause bleeding from the eyeballs, incontinence, and gills.
The alternative is to show a commercial showing a bunch of weird happy people in a field somewhere, that leaves the viewer going, “Great, but what the fuck does it do?!”
I love the commercial for the anti-depression medicine that may cause sleeplessness, nauasia, and all kinds of stuff like that. If I got hit with that raft of side-effects, it would probably increase my depression instead of curing it.
ANNCR: New Preparation J. Get back to life as you once knew it.
[deep voice reading REALLY quickly]
DEEP ANNCR: May cause scurvy, dropsy, loss of sexual prowess, pink eye, loss of balance, amputation of one or more limbs, random fugue states, forgetfulness, spontaneous attraction to poodles and morning sickness. Effects similar to placebo. But much, much worse.
[sexy ANNCR voice]
ANNCR: Ask your doctor about Preparation J. If he’s busy playing golf or screwing his secretary, ask your local drug dealer or Egyptian online supplier. It simply makes sense. Get back to life as you once knew it.
Yes, don’t forget you have to list all the possible side effects of a pharmaceutical product. In a related vein, here is what Saturday Night Live did about 10 years ago with a product called Happy Fun Ball™.
— Warning: Pregnant women, the elderly and children under 10 should avoid prolonged exposure to Happy Fun Ball.
— Caution: Happy Fun Ball may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds.
— Happy Fun Ball Contains a liquid core, which, if exposed due to rupture, should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at.
— Do not use Happy Fun Ball on concrete.
When I was in college a bunch of us went to a drive-in movie. I don’t remember what we saw, but I do remember that between features, during the traditional plug for the snack bar, there was a sudden flash of the works “buy snacks.” It was quick, but long enough that several of us saw it and started laughing.
If I recall correctly, subliminal messages would take up one frame out of 24. This one must have been 2 or 3 to be long enough to be clearly visible.
I had a laugh, but I also felt it was in bad taste somehow.
