Lynx Apollo as a brand is aimed at men and the
representations in this commercial are built around a set of gender
stereotypes. The men are strong and the women are prizes to be won. The central
representation in the Lynx Apollo television
advertisement is of man as hero, fulfilling the stereotypical role of rescuer,
first as a lifeguard and then as an astronaut. The representations of men in
this campaign are part of a wider strategy that Lynx developed further,
supporting the general assumption that an astronaut has the advantage when it
comes to getting the girl; an astronaut embodies manly qualities like…… and is
depicted as even more of a catch than a lifeguard, who in the advert is
depicted as….. The strap-line is “An astronaut never has to….” unlike other men
who might struggle to attract girls.
The general message of the advert is that if you wear
the new deodorant, Lynx Apollo, it
will make you just as good as an astronaut.
Lynx went further, setting up an international
competition in which 22 lucky (male) winners would sign up for the chance to go
into space with the Lynx Space Academy. The competition, Facebook presence and television
as well as online advertisements drive male audiences to buy Lynx Apollo.
The representations in this advertisement are built
around gender stereotypes. The central male figure is a big, bold strapping man
and he looks like the sort of super hero you could find in disguise.
The design of the advert showcases an exotic location,
an Australian beach on a sunny, peaceful afternoon, but then the dramatic
narrative kicks in as peace turns to chaos when the lifeguard spots a shark
circling a swimmer. The lifeguard
The relationship between all the characters represents
the lifeguard as a strong, bold and good looking. Then the girl is the ‘damsel in distress’,
which shows a sign of sexism because it is showing the woman as a weak feeble
character and the man as a brave and bold figure, because he doesn’t hesitate to
act when there is a girl who is in danger.
The landscape around shows it is very hot as there are
hardly any clouds in the sky and the surrounding land is a very hot looking
area. This shows that there is an exotic location. As he swims through the
water it almost seems he is a superhero as he ploughs through the water with a
great amount of strength. It shows a great amount of contrast effect between
the damsel in distress and the hero.
When he looks through the binoculars it shows the
advert producers are using a camera technique, which is a point of view angle. As
he jumps down from his high seat is shows him as majestic and higher class than
the rest of the people thrown into the scene. The sudden change of pace happens
when he spots the girl, the music changes from being silent to slowly morphing
into being a fast situation.
The message of the Lynx Apollo lifeguard ad, is that
if you wear the new Lynx Apollo you are the hero of all heroes and just as
awesome as an Astronaut. The main message that it says at the end of the advert
is: “Nothing Beats an Astronaut”