Visual Rewrite-Philly321

A Glimpse of Happiness

0:01

The opening scene starts off with a middle aged African American man turning the volume louder on his stereo. The man turns the volume up loud and bobs his head. This head motion tells us that he is in tune with the beat. Clearly the volume would not be that loud if the event was serious or romantic. Is the music for his own personal enjoyment or for the enjoyment of others? It could be both. It is hard to imagine that he is raising the volume to impress any male friends because that might even embarrass him to use it for men. The generic all-grey styling of the stereo indicates that this scenario is not party related and reflects more of a casual event. His facial expression shows that he is filled with good, lively energy. His sleeves are rolled up slightly to indicate that he is comfortable and relaxed. Because this is a celebrity endorsement, we see that the man is in great physical condition. They could have used any man for this part, but they chose a man in fantastic shape. This ad could be making a claim that all men should be held to a higher standard in terms of health and muscle mass.

This situation could not be romantic. When we think about romanticism we think about dim lights, candles, table cloths and a button to push that would play seductive music. The stereo looks like he tuning into the radio. This indicates that this music is for his male companions.

The wall does not display any type of woman’s touch. This could be an indication that this man is divorced or lives in a bachelor’s house. In fact, the two paintings shows that he is putting them up to take up space. The wall is a plain color and there are no artifacts or furniture that tell the audience that there is woman in the household.

0:02-0:03

The man is breaking down and putting ice cubes into a bucket. The amount of ice shows that their might be more than one person. This ad could have used a small bucket, but they chose to use a larger, more modern appliance. Perhaps its purpose is meaningless or that it wants to hold the viewer to a higher standard of newer appliances. Ice is for casual events. Perhaps, it could be used to keep the beers cold for the boys. We can make a connection between the radio’s volume, the paintings on the wall and the ice cubes. These are all indications that this event is for men, which could be a number of things like fantasy football, ordering strippers, etc.

0:04-0:05 Here, this man is pouring pretzels into a bowl. Up to this point, the man has not prepared anything fancy or romantic, which suggests this could be for a friend or a child, perhaps both. It is hard to imagine pretzels would be used for a meal or served as an entree. Could it be that the man cannot afford more expensive products? It is entirely possible. Pretzels are not a necessity, but can be used as comfort food when people are talking. The colorfulness of this caption has a friendly nature that may introduce a sense of energy or liveliness. The bowl also gives off an impression that he lives in a house with children. It’s not the type that a grown man would use; it may even embarrass him to use in front of other adults. Also, there is no ring on his finger to show the audience that he is not married.

0:05-0:06

The camera angle shifts further back to get a full view of the refrigerator and a few colorful beverages that the man seems to be placing into it. The cans are colorful and resemble a kid’s drink such as tomato juice.The ad chose to have the man holding four drinks instead of one. What is the purpose? Could they be misleading us into believing that there are more guests?  It is entirely possible that the man has these drinks for personal enjoyment, but it could also be an indication that his potential guests are younger. His facial expression seems a little more flushed with fatigue perhaps to show that setting up for his guests has taken its toll on him. The modernness and size of the fridge could be used to signify that he lives with multiple people or eats a lot, but could also mean both.

The walls and cabinets are plain colors. We are missing a woman’s touch in the house. Similar to the paintings on the wall, there is nothing really decorative about the house. A fridge and cabinets are the basic necessities for a man to sustain himself and have a couple friends over.

0:06-0:08

A caucasian delivery man appears at the door with a box and a separate bag of food. Delivering food is a good because it is quick and easy and requires little effort. Could this be an indication that the man lives alone? It is also entirely possible that the man does not know how to cook. Still, we do not get any indication that there is another male or female in the household that could lend him a hand in cooking. Here, we get a full view of the man. The collared shirt up to this point still raises multiple questions. Is he preparing for a woman? Are the filmmakers being misleading so that we would be surprised by the nature of his guests?

0:09

A green table is carefully placed in the middle of the room. Why green? Green in commercials is interconnected with the idea of health and the balance of emotions. It is entirely possible that this ad uses green to indirectly make a claim that overall health and maintaining a balance in your life is extremely important. While we do not fully understand what is being established here, we can make a claim that, through color psychology, this man is bettering his health. It could also be concluded that a green table could be an indicator for some type of card game. Why a card game? A card game is sort a mindless game that could be used for fun or to occupy time. His hand placement reveals that he wants everything to be perfect and neat. In the background we see paintings on the wall. These paintings are the first indication of a woman’s touch in the home. A bachelor pad certainly would not have fine, complex paintings such as the those provided. The kitchen in the back has marble counter tops and tiles on the walls to give it more of a modern look. The modernness of the kitchen and the various kitchen supplies tells us that multiple people live there. It would be simply ridiculous for one man to own a surplus of kitchen supplies.

0:10

A chair is placed beside the table furthest away from the man. He leaves a small space between the chair and the table. Perhaps someone with a smaller body, like a child, would be able to sit down comfortably. There is wood floorboards underneath the table. The significance of the floorboards could be a statement that little children do not live in the house. If a child were to live in the house, the ground would not look as spotless as it does given that children are messy and somewhat destructive. The drawer in the back seems to be more a woman’s touch. It is hard to believe that a man would take the time out his day to buy a drawer for decoration purposes. However, his efforts to set this whole thing up seems strenuous and exhausting, which shows that he cares deeply for the people coming over.

0:11-0:13

The camera shows three different phases: the stacking of cards, a separation of cards into two piles, and a shuffling of the cards. It could be inferred that this process is preparation for a card game or trick. While the ad does not go out and say it, it certainly implies that the man is preparing for a card game or potentially a card trick. The camera angle is a close up of his hands so that the audience’s attention is drawn to the placements of the cards.

0:14-0:15

The cards are being dispersed into three piles, including one for the man. This gesture assures the audience that there are definitely two guests. The three piles of cards gives us an idea that the game could be gold fish or some child-like game. His hands seem to be tossing the cards without regard for its neatness. This is clearly not an organized event or to be taken seriously. We can see this through the man’s energetic flick of the cards into three different directions. If the cards were distributed slowly, it could indicate that he is dreading this occasion.

0:16-0:17

The camera angle switches to a close up to the gentleman’s face. His facial expression shows that he is trying to be sneaky and mysterious. He hides his face underneath his cards to give off a playful persona. It is quite ridiculous that a grown man has child-like tendencies such as the one provided. We can conclude that his guests are children or close family because it would be hard to believe he would make a face like that with his male friends. The ad could have chosen any facial expression (angry, sad, humiliated) but they chose this face. There are five cards in his hand, which reveals that the game is most likely gold fish or some other fun, kid-like game.

0:18

Here, the camera angle switches to the entirety of the man. The man lowers his cards and looks to his right with a blank face. It could just be from his enormous build, but his arms are spread throughout the entirety of the table. The ad is trying to provide the audience with a sense of comfort. If the man was nervous and uncomfortable it would be evident in his body’s posture. Once again we get a glimpse of the kitchen. The ad chose to use the kitchen because that is generally referred to as the heart of a home for a family. A kitchen is where meals are prepared and families get together to talk about their day. This is a clear indication that his guests are part of his family.

0:19-0:20

Two young boys enter the screen. Is this man their father? Where is the woman of these children? The children are wearing casual clothes. Now that the audience knows his guests were children, we learn that his dress shirt has been deceitful through out the whole video. I believe that this ad has become less persuasive because of his shirt. A casual shirt would have been just as effective and less misleading for the audience. The man lowered his cards to confront his child on the right. Both children have their jaws open in astonishment and shows the playfulness of this scenario. The ad is creating a fun, playful environment perhaps to set a standard for families and encourage parents to spend time with their children. The kitchen is being still shown in the background. This ad is clearly trying to relay the message of family by the importance of a kitchen in a household.

0:21

The man is now visibly happy and content. The children are laughing hysterically, perhaps to indicate that the man lost. The cards have been lowered even further, perhaps to focus the audience’s attention more on the atmosphere rather than the game itself. The ad is depicting laughter and joy to make the audience feel a certain way. The audience could be jealous, happy, or upset depending on their family situation. A correlation between the kitchen and the people in the video is made by the sandwiches and drinks on the table. The ad is trying to influence the audience to eat healthy by providing fruit juice, pretzels, carrots and a white bread sandwich, the perfect mix of nutrients to maintain a healthy diet. This environment symbolizes togetherness and sets a high standard for families to eat healthy and spend time with each other.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3_f8tEnY-o