50s Advert Recreation Analysis
The Target Audience for this advert is both directed towards men and women. For men it is using the idea of Christmas to sell the product as a gift for their wives or other women in their life. I did this by putting stress on ‘her’ and by using an alluring pin-up model to draw in a level of sexual attraction- as if they would want their wife to look like that. Where alternatively I have used direct address listing details most relevant to women, i.e. the application and quality to appeal more to the female demographic. Socially this advert would construct a patriarchal impression as the model is being objectified (perhaps even under Mulvey’s male gaze) to display the product in a doll-like way. The revealed leg is rather sexualised, and the woman is quite reminiscent of Marylin Monroe, an iconic sex symbol throughout the 50s and 60s. There is also an innuendo surrounding ‘Hurry Down The Chimney Tonight’- which I’m sure you can work out for yourself- and is used in reference to ‘Santa Baby’ that came out in the 50s. This, I believe, would appeal a lot more to the male audience due to the blonde bombshell as it paints the idyllic woman for that time.
The preferred reading of my advert would be for women to want it and for men to get it for them (not those exclusively, but seeing as men were the primary financial supporters, it would make most sense in terms of revenue). It would also be ideal for the product to sell as a Christmas essential due to the use of ‘perfect’ ‘luxury’ and ‘easy’.
Looking at the layout of the advert, I have used a triangle/ ‘Z’ structure to train the eye across the product name, down through the model, and to the script and product image at the bottom. The Triangle shape created by the model and her raised knee also brings the eye up to the brand name which installs a trust within the audience of its quality as it is a reputable company that they would be familiar with, thus more likely to put money into.
The packaging of the product is as it is described [Luxurious] and golden. This increases the overall perceived value of the lipstick and makes it appear as a worthy Christmas present and has the quality of making the owner feel pampered; which was so commonly desired during that time with new technologies and things that made tasks easy.
The use of colour instils a seasonal feeling within the audience and the red to match the lipstick allows a level of homogeneousness to the aesthetic. This helps to brand the lipstick as a Christmas item because of its colour and not just its name, despite red lipstick being commonplace for that era. Red is also conative of romance, lust, and love which, again, appeals to a male audience’s desires, continuing to sexualise the woman in the main image.