Gay/Straight Ad Watch: What a Bum!
Gay Guy, Readers,
I'm sure many of you have seen this ad for Reebok Easytone sneakers. It tries it's hardest to come off as informal, but it's actually precisely crafted. And it insults just about everyone.
From the opening moment, when we see the makeup artist dash offstage, Reebok wants us to buy into the whole "Oops, we're rolling!" motif, but the setup only serves to create several moments where the under-rehearsed cameraman zooms in on the spokesmodel's derriere. "Dude!," she complains. Later, as she extolls the rump-lifting capabilities of these sneakers, the cameraman slips south again... who hired this perv?!
"A better butt with every step." That's the slogan. And, wow, does she over-annunciate "butt" at every opportunity. So, Reebok, if you want to objectify any/all women's glutes, that's your call. I'm sure women everywhere are wondering what a "28% more toned" backside actually looks like. How many critical assessments (snicker) did Reebok need to arrive at a number so specific? A lot.
Own it, Reebok for Ladies. You are totally obsessed with the tush.
Speaking for straight guys, we're not judging... or complaining. But do you really need to redirect the blame for all of your superficiality onto a fake booty-hound cameraman? Not cool.
Reebok's other Easytone commercials (link, link) are even more gratuitous (talking breasts, erotic lighting, and yes, women bending over). They seem to be targeting women through straight men (88% of whom will be speechless when you debut your new posterior, according to one ad).
But as they've presented it, I can't imagine a more insulting gift for a woman to receive from her guy. Putting these under the Christmas tree this year is tantamount to saying "You've got a lot of work to do. Back there. Now get moving."
I'm surprised there's not more backlash. Or have I just missed it?
OK, I've run out of synonyms, and need to stop before I use "haunches."
--Straight Guy
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9 comments:
okay, in my books that is not a toned butt... it looks like a flat but, no curves nada!
Hmm...am I supposed to be offended by this commercial? Cuz I'm not...but then I'm not one of those types of women who scream "sexual harassment" if a guy looks me up and down at work either.
Thanks Wannabe and Gingerella
yeah. I don't think they wanted to go too va-va-voom with the model.
Would you be offended if a male coworker said your butt was 28% better than it was before?
I was offended only because a "by women, for women" campaign wanted to emphasize nice butts but had to implicate the straight guy cameraman to do it. If you think your rump is awesome, just say so.
I think it's a cute butt - but I prefer the J Lo type!
I definitely have a problem with these ads! I'd seen the "talking breasts" one....my God.
I think what bothers me is that it's so obviously created BY men, who've decided what WE women WANT. Or, what we SHOULD want to look like.
You don't see women getting together and pumping out (pun intended) an equal amount of ads aimed at improving the male population's "flaws", right?
Grrrrr.
Actually, if someone said anything on me was 28% better than it was before, I'd be thrilled! Because 28% is better than 0%.... ;)
The day a guy *stops* oggling our rumps is the day we need to be worried, for that is when we know we've either gotten too fat or too old to be attractive.
BTW, stop by my blog when you have a moment...you have a blog award waiting for you there. :)
An aside: Do you think parents talk about their daughters' acting achievements in these commercials? "Hey Bob, see the talking tits in that Easytone commercial? That's my Sarah's rack! That wasn't her ass, don't know who that was."
There's nothing wrong with mutual anything - if he likes to look at your butt, and you like it back, that's great - it's everything else that gets weird.
Haunches! The only other person I've ever know to say that word was my Aunt Rita! And really, you don't need to buy shoes to get your tush toned. Get off your tush and walk! Outdoors or on treadmill. Whichever tickles your fancy,lol ;) Seriously, I used to teach aerobic classes and I can tell you that exercise in any form will do wonders and save you some money as well =)
Straight Guy,
I thought that you might have made up this commercial. But I saw it over the weekend, so it's for real.
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