Moving Image Formats about Food- Blog 6

Lurpak butter ads 

Lurpaks butter adverts have always been rememberable, the most famous one was with the butter man in the 1980s and early 90s. 

 The Adverts (Chop Chop advert)- 

 

Recently over the last few months, we have seen new adverts for the butter. An interesting collaboration of shots showing different techniques in the kitchen- as the song goes..

“chop chop chop chop chopping

dice dice dice dice dicing

peal peal peal peal pealing

we’r cooking up a rainbow today

healthy doesn’t have to taste hum drum

blend blend blend blend blending

mash mash mash mash mashing

roast veg brash brace burning

we’re cooking up a rainbow today

chop chop chop chop chopping

we’re knocking up, fixing up, whipping up, we’re cooking up a rainbow” 

 

All sorts of vegetables and fruits and foods are prepared and cooked within the kitchen for different meals. This just shows you not only how to cook things and what you use when dealing with a type of food, but of course how and when to use the butter Lurpak.

(Proper Good Food advert)-

 The most recent advert that came after this was the ‘proper good food’ ads in 2012/2013-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9ox1tMRyyk . Like the previous set of adverts, this also displays cooking different meals, greasing glass dishes, opening tins, melting ingredients on the pan, grating cheese, cutting carrots and putting a meal together and cooking it in the oven. The main advert on TV is the one showing how to make cheesy pasta dish and cottage pie. 

With the ads mentioned above, as well as looking briefly through Lurpak’s history of ads, the main theme isn’t necessarily about the butter itself, but about food and cooking, and of course using Lurpak butter within your cooking.  

 

(2011's advert)- 

This involved 'The Kitchen Odyssey' theme- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bj-HOzHarMU , which involved a man’s decision about what to have for breakfast before going to work. it ended up with him cracking open two eggs, melting some Lurpak butter in a pan, cooking the whisked eggs in the pan to make omelets and then grated cheese on top. 

 (2010 advert)- 

This was about a woman baking cakes- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WFfj8n-PTE , The women baking cakes attempted to bake a chocolate and what looks like to be almond cake. Quick, but simple. The second ad in 2010 was about making pies- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eMLOkyC7wM.  This involved a man attempting to make mince pie. I found this quite amusing this one not because it’s a man trying to cook, but because his reactions and how he just puts on the uncooked pastry in bits is the exact thing that first time cooks trying this would do. Very familiar. 

 (2009's adverts)- 

This year had a series of adverts displayed the different uses of the butter;

The first was the ‘Saturday is breakfast day’ with making pancakes in the advert- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbCxzuDQikQ&list=PLFCE7462A2E55273C, which involved the story of using Lurpak butter with any type of breakfast you had on a morning. The laziness of staying in bed, suggested the concept of looking forward to breakfast because of the use of Lurpak. 

 The second ad to be shown in 2009 was the potato ad- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmxgnhdKnek . This displayed information about the potato from growth to use. After that, it showed a male making jacket potatoes, and instead of showing all the different toppings like baked beans, cheese or even tuna on top of the baked potato, all that was shown was he putting on Lurpak butter. This stated that by only putting on Lurpak butter it would make your jacket potato taste good enough to eat plain. 

The third ad to appear for Lurpak in 2009 was the mushroom ad- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02J9S2Qq0CA&NR=1&feature=endscreen. This ad had the same principle as the potato ad, showing how mushrooms grew in the wild, giving some factual information about them, and then stating that by cooking them in Lurpak butter in a pan, would be enough to enjoy. 

The forth 2009 ad was about ‘lighter’- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0Ew4HRfysw&feature=endscreen&NR=1. This ad opened up the option for cookers who wanted to eat but watch their weight, to use butter but not have to worry about the after-effects of having it. Lurpak lighter advert gave it’s butter fans the confidence to cook but to not worry about calories or what they were eating.

 

Other throughout the years such as the ‘bread’ ad in 2007, and the Lurpak spreadable ad in 1996, shows that this is a company dedicated to showing that Lurpak butter should be in everyone’s kitchens. 

My Experience- 

After looking into these adverts, I love the reoccurring theme of cooking within them over the last 15 years. The message behind them is clearly ‘with Lurpak it makes cooking easier’, as well as Lurpak making meals taste better. It’s wonderful to see adverts celebrating healthy food and home cooking. Brilliant use of close up shots to show the cooking itself, the textures of the foods, and the beautiful colours of cooking mixtures. 

Despite not using Lurpak butter, it has definitely made me change my mind about what to have for dinner after seeing some of the recent adverts. The ‘proper good food’ advert has made me want to have cottage mince pie one evening, and the advert with the catchy song “chop chop chop chop chopping…” etc has given me an insight into instruments and equipment within the kitchen unit, how to use them and what to use them for. 

Lurpaks advert campaigns get you excited about cooking and eating again, which, in my opinion, we all need to start doing again. 

THE REAL WOMEN CAMPAIGN- TRUE OR LIE? Blog 3

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I have blogged previously about Dove and Ann Summer’s real women campaigns and how they have done us British women proud. But unfortunately for this ‘real women’ campaign, not all are true to their word about showing real women in real women ads. 

Marks and Spencers real women campaign was exposed in 2012, displaying that their marketing campaign for the real women wasn’t real at all. Apparently they had done shoots starring real women wearing their products, and then reshot the photo shoots using models, having them pose in the exact same ways as the real women in the previous shoots. The fact that the models had no wobbly bits and were thin and perfect looking, was a complete insult to not only what the campaign was suppose to stand for, but British women. 

For me personally, despite not shopping at M&S for clothes, it still made me think that the company didn’t want to show real women to us at all. It was almost their way of saying, ‘we don’t think that British women are beautiful enough to star in our adverts’, which is totally cruel! 

The campaign was to promote their new underwear line to hug, hold and slim down women’s figures. After reading into this story, it showed that the real women who did originally model the new line weren’t pleased with the shoot mainly because the underwear in which they modeled didn’t fit them at all. One women said the bra was not her correct size, and another said that one of the hugging body shapers were too small. Surely modeling clothes of any sort must be shown with a true light, displaying how a product fits the body and which how it holds and enhances? If it doesn’t show this, then what is the point? 

 

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On a side note, looking at the recent Christmas 2012 advert to promote their winter range, the advert was, I thought very sexist. Despite including a downs boy in the children’s part of the ad, that didn’t excuse them for hardly showing any of the male clothes ranges. 50-60% was women wear, followed by the children collection, and then there were maybe two shots of a male model, modelling a suit and a winter jumper. That’s just sexist. 

  With M&S real women campaign failing to impress and then their next advert being sexist, lets just say that this company for their marketing isn’t in my good books at the moment. They are trying to win back the British public’s vote, but I feel its doing more harm than good.

Moving Image Formats about Food- Blog 5

Hey all, I have reviewed a TV series this time. My interest in history has influenced me to research this TV series. Hope it is of appeal and fascination.

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The Supersizers Go /The Supersizers Eat

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About the TV Series-

Roman all the way through history to the world war and to modern day, these two series go through each period to have a taste literally of the food that has changed so much. 

Starting with a pilot episode called Edwardian Supersize Me, journalist and restaurant critic Giles Coren, and broadcaster and comedian Sue Perkins peared up to present and experience the different type of diets throughout the eras.

 The first season (May/June 2008) ‘Supersizers Go’ involved Wartime, Restoration, Victorian, The Seventies, Elizabethan era, and the Regency age. The second season in June/July 2009 however, saw them experiencing The Eighties, The Medieval Period, The French Revolution, The Fifties, and Ancient Rome in ‘Supersizers Eat’. 

The Experience-
 
Dressing the part, and eating their way through the centuries, they explore and reflect the effects of such diets, and see the effects on the body through heath checks before and after each experimental week. Despite not cooking the food themselves, instead having specialist chefs and cooks coming in, it is interesting to see the development in the foods and reasons why we ate and drank what we did in specific periods.  

  
I will be reviewing each episode in separate blogs possibly as I feel that reviewing both whole series which has 5 plus episodes in would make this blog rather long. 

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Another TV show that this duo did together is ‘Giles and Sue Live the Good Life’ back at the end of 2010. This will be reviewed at a later date also. 

So if you love food and history, check this out!

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=supersizers+go&oq=supersizers+&gs_l=youtube.1.0.0l10.187.187.0.1819.1.1.0.0.0.0.217.217.2-1.1.0...0.0...1ac.1.q8Z0sVaZZxs 

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=supersizers+eat&oq=supersizers+eat&gs_l=youtube.3..35i39j0l9.34298.34682.0.35307.5.4.0.0.0.0.144.387.2j2.4.0...0.0...1ac.1.OMnT8Kh-IYE

Moving Image Formats about Food- Blog 4

Hi everybody, I have bought more food films, so I have a few more things to review.

 No Reservations (2007) 

About the film-

The film stars Catherine Zeta John as character Kate, a busy career woman as a Head Chef in a successful restaurant. After her sister dies in an unsuspected car accident, leaving her with her orphaned niece (Abigail Breslin), she has to balance her work, being a new parent by looking after her niece as well as everything in between. Due to her absence from work, insisted by the restaurant manager, she is temporarily replaced by a new young male chef, Nick (played by Aaron Eckhart). Once Kate returns to work, there is conflict and tension between the two. After the passion for food and cooking, as well as looking after the niece Zoe, the two chefs are spiralled in a whirlwind of romance as well as a love/hate relationship. 

The Feel of the film-

 

Despite family loss and romance fuelling this film, it is all centred around the passion and love of food and cooking. I admit that food does take a slight back seat within this film, it is however used to turn negative situations into positives. Character Zoe is finding it hard to live with her aunt, and missing her mother, so Nick and Kate use the influence of food, and the curiosity of learning about it, in order to create a friendship between them all. There are a few moments between Kate and Zoë where you can tell they are both thinking the same thing- about the mother/sister who died, as well as that they both miss her. 

 The romance element to the film is gradual, having the main characters come together through the care of Zoë as well as trying to out do each other in the restaurant kitchen. It is nice to see two people coming together over something they are interested or passionate about. Most films just have two people falling in love for other reasons, whereas in reality people do normally get together because of things they enjoy. So it is enjoyable to see Catherine and Aaron’s characters have some sort of ground to them, and despite their professions not being an average person’s job, it still has average people’s problems and feelings about things. On the other hand it is quite exotic, falling in love over the aspect of food- oohh.

As for the food aspect to the film, it is amazing the food that is created within the story. The feel of food is up-market, expensive and small portions. Kate is stuck to find food that her niece likes, which I found quite funny as she has spent so long cooking elaborate dishes, average food has gone from her mind. but with the help of Nick, they all find happiness in life together, through the use of food. 

The overall feel of the movie had me in debate. some aspects had dark and upsetting undertones, however others were light, with a family good feel to it. 

 

My personal experience-

My favourite pieces to the film were when the characters were cooking or the scenes that were set within the restaurant kitchen. I feel that this is because, I find not only cooking amazing, but also the face-paced cooking environment brilliant to watch, learn from and work in. Looking at the kitchen scenes just makes me want to go into cooking and food servicing even more. I have had experience working within a café environment, and have got into cooking more recently, so seeing the set up and the work within the kitchen set filled me with passion and urgency. 

As well as this, looking at the food that they were cooking has given me a taste of high-class restaurant food. I have not had many chances myself to try really expensive or mouthwatering dishes, so seeing what goes on back stage and, what and how they make it was very interesting. What was of a fascination to me was what happened when a customer sends a meal back to the cook or chef. I do realise that the reaction of Catherine’s character was done for the film and entertainment only, but it did make me wonder, how chefs and cooks do react if that happens. You put heart and soul, time, sweat and energy on making a meal for someone, and they have a problem with it or don’t like it. I sort of know how they feel, now I am getting better at cooking (my partner is enjoying my meals), I don't want there to be anything wrong with the food I cook. I am now going to feel bad about sending food back to the kitchens next time I'm eating out. 

Overall a good film, and it defiantly hints as using food as a coping mechanism, as well as what food means to different people.  However I would have liked for there to have been more descriptive and expression of food within some scenes. A good film with a dark undertone which displays a comfort in the love of food, and an insight into the food and restaurant business.

My Influences- The Two Christina's

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Christina Hendricks-

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Christina Hendricks is well known for her most famous role to date, in Mad Men. Seen as the mature softly sexual lead secretary, Hendricks has never failed to surprise us with her curves. She uses her curves to her character's advantage within the series, and displays the type of fullness that women back in that era had. Not only is she what men want, but she is what woman want too. No other woman can do the bust like she does, she has a beautiful complexion and features, and she’s ginger (power to the gingers). She rocks every style, and was totally made to play a character from the era of the Mad Men series. She is just one of those amazing women who you think how does she do it with those curves.

Also starring in a few episodes of 'Firefly' which is a American space western drama, Hendricks has not been afraid to work what she has. Of course its not all about her body when it comes to acting, it's talent, however it does get her noticed and dam she can work the carpet! 

Christina Aguilera- 

After seeing her arrive in 1999 with her number one hit 'Genie in a Bottle' this lady has never been afraid to let it be known of her full-on confidence with her body, sexuality, and her artistic side. We know that she has THE voice, and makes it good, and sometimes bad, that she knows it too. She has done extremely well career wise, up until recently. Her last two albums 'Bionic' and 'Lotus' haven't done as well as she'd liked, but her personal life has been more in the limelight than her talented music. After a short marriage and sudden shock divorce from her previous husband Jordon Bratman, she has been more known for her voluptuous weight gain since then. Looking back at her career, I thought Christina looked good when she did her Stripped tour, but it was only until she has gained all this weight recently, that I feel she looks better now than in her early career days. 

Her record label has even said to her that she needs to lose weight, as it is not fair on all the people that work for her including backing dancers for her tours and music videos. They were basicly saying that no one will see her in tour because of her weight, so if no one will see her, that means no work for everyone else. That is insulting! Thank goodness she has the balls to tell them to f*** off, because it is HER body, and seeing as everything else she does is controlled by her record label and her busy work schedule, her body and her weight is probably the only thing she has for herself. As well as looking after her young son (from first husband), she has always had her head screwed on. I love the fact that she is so full of confidence, but sometimes it verges on arrogance. 

Christina has always looked gorgeous, and has never hidden behind anything to hid her body. When people ask her about her weight, she answers honestly, but also with a slight attitude. Like Claire Richards, Christina isn't afraid to be bigger and curvier, as I think that's how she's suppose to be naturally. I have paid more attention to her because of her attitude towards weight and eating, rather than her music, however her music will always have attitude in it. 

Both these women are an influence for me because of their bigger hourglass figures. Aguilera is the same height as me, so I can see from her that more weight still looks hot on a small women, and so encourages me to gain more weight, and Hendricks gives me fashion confidence, as I find it hard to find clothes to fit my curvy figure. 

Both incredibly head-strong women. 

THE REAL WOMEN CAMPAIGN- TRUE OR LIE? Blog 2

Last time, I talked about Dove’s real women campaign, but now for celebrate about the recent famous real women campaign of Ann Summers in 2011 that got women’s focus. 

There was a competition where normal young women entered in order to become the face of Ann Summer’s new Valentine’s Day Campaign for 2012. The winner was Lucy Moore, a size 16, won the competition, showing that not only do beautiful and amazing lingerie look great on bigger women, but the fact that she won through the vote of the general public, shows that the general public want to see bigger and curvier women in the advertisements. 

Looking at the girls, it is wonderful to see young women who look average being shown in their full beauty. As well as this, different sizes and shapes too which is a big difference to the simple straight and size 6 we see from Ann Summers and other lingerie companies. Agreeably that not all the women who model for lingerie companies are stick thin, but we are so use to seeing them not against the average sized person that their size becomes the norm on ads- we don't see them as a small size 6.  

Yes all women no matter what there size or shape will look good in lingerie, because, lets face it we wear this stuff to look more attractive to our partners and to make them want us more. But it is so much nicer to see someone with confidence, happiness and personality showing us what looks great, rather than a straight-faced miserable girl just standing there with her hand on her boney hip. Even the one’s who do have a seductive look about them, their bust has been pushed up and the panties have been stuck to their hips, for they should really be falling off them. 

It is a breath of fresh air to see a woman who is one of us real women, showing us what men want and showing men what we want to give them. I for one have never found the models of Ann Summers attractive, and has not been influenced to buy a product. I have bought from Ann Summers after seeing what would suit my own body, rather than looking at the models for inspiration.

The lingerie company Ann Summers have done a lot of adverts in the past in order to promote and sell a new brand or line, but this is the first time which we actually pay attention to what the lingerie will do for our bodies and make us feel when we wear it. Having a true and real women modelling the Valentine’s Day collection in 2012 was not only a step forward for plus size models and lingerie companies, but about the attitudes. I definitely would want to see more ‘real’ women advertising lingerie in the future. 

Raquel

Technology with Body Modification

Body modification is accepted because we all know we don’t love everything about our body, and we want to look young and youthful for as long as possible. so now we find it accepting to change ourselves because we don’t like something. Plastic surgery is one of the options to change one’s body; nose jobs, facelifts, Botox and even tummy tucks and the like are ways to enhance and improve the body.

The TV series nip tuck, are focused on two plastic surgeons and their practice in Miami Florida. On a daily basis they carry out operations and do surgery on people to make them happier about their lives and their bodies.  In reality we are putting things in and taking things out of our bodies when we undergo surgery to satisfy our thoughts on what looks perfect. Putting in butt and bust implants, and taking out fat and other disgusting things that our bodies need. 

  Looking at celebrities who get surgery done, in particular Heidi montag from the hills, she was already a gorgeous looking young women, and then went down the fake route. Question is- why?  

There is an increase in plastic surgery over the years, the last decade or so, and it is sad to think that there is that many people who don’t like what they see in the mirror. Yes we may have the technology now and obviously the money to change what we don’t like, but that isn’t a good enough reason to take drastic action. Any surgery whether its plastic or normal surgery has a high risk factor, and quite possibly always has a follow up and more surgery later on to update the previous surgery. 

Despite plastic surgery being an increasingly safe yet still problematic procedure to have done, there are other options for changing one’s body. Robotic limbs are starting to become accepted into society. We have already seen Paralympic runners with carbon fibre limbs, as well as this, we can see this type of technology now made to help disabled people, amputees and soldiers. This is a good thing, as an increase in a.i., helps those get their lives back. those who have lost their limbs, by using this type of body modification, puts body modification in a good light. 

Our technology is getting to a point now, where we can put things into the human body to help us. Pacemakers already help the heart beat, but how far will we go in order to make our bodies, and to go as far as the human race, better? 

Looking at the technology side to this, the film ‘repo men’ starring Jude law and  Forest Whitaker, concentrates on the technology that helps humans. It is a sci-fi action thriller film where artificial organs and body parts are put on credit. If you are in need of a new organ, but can't afford it, you have the operation done and then have to pay back the money accordingly, a bit like a mortgage payment.  

Now realistically speaking, if someone needs a new organ, you have to go on a waiting list, and have your dying organ replaced by someone else’s in a operation. So far we have only been able to replace organs with new ones or use technology to aid an existing organ. So this film that plays on the possibility of technology going that far that we are able to replace organs with a technological organ, is pure genius. 

The film’s story however is interesting, as of course no one can really pay off the amount of money they owe the company for giving them a new organ. Heart, kidney, liver, and eyes are just a few of the body parts advertised within the film’s story, however all sorts of body parts are able to get replaced by technological ones such as knees, voice boxes and more. 

Understandably if this was real, and we really did have the technology to make improved organs and body parts, this would be a brilliant way to replace the parts which have been damaged by disease or no longer work due to an accident for example. But this film shows a darker side to this, with people getting new body parts for the sake of it. one of the main characters Beth played by Alice Braga has so many parts of her body replaced by technology, its practically half robot half human. But some of her technological body parts she had done just because she didn’t like what she naturally already had. By changing her eye colour and the sound of her voice, is just an example similar to those who have plastic surgery done to change what they don’t like. 
 

A medium that takes this technology even further, is the game ‘Deus Ex- Human revolution’. This is a cyberpunk-themed action role-playing video game, with it set in 2027, the central topic is the ethics of advancing humans with artificial replacements for body parts. 

Looking at the live-action trailer on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gcsd6mJ3R08 ), it really hit home. Taking away the fact that this is a trailer for a game, and put it in the context of a possible one-day reality of our world. Watching the trailer while putting yourself into the world of it, really makes you think.

It is said that if one doesn’t change, then one would feel less than everyone else, less strong and less intelligent. Also the phrase “if you don’t take the drugs you die”. The back-story to the game is that if a person gets a technological body part, they have to keep taking this special drug in order for their body to not reject the technological aspects of it. But getting the drug costs money, and if you don’t have the money to buy the drug, the body part will turn against your body.  

This ‘changing to become better’ stigma is similar to getting anything changed to fit in. if everyone looks a certain way or even dresses a certain way, one doesn’t want to be the odd one out. We as humans can’t help it; we are wired to be part of a group, and in doing that we need to fit in. The end slogan of the trailer is

‘be human, remain human”.

Maybe the underlined, hidden more deeper meaning behind this slogan as well as maybe changing the body generally is to remain human, remain true to yourself. Don’t change your image; love yourself for who you are. Of course the message of the trailer and the slogan for the contents of the game is completely different, but if one looks at it from a body image, confidence, love you point of view, it totally makes sense.

Looking at the trailer from a realistic point of view, one can so see this type of trailer not only for a film, but the issues that it addresses, not surreal at all.

It wouldn’t surprise me if somewhere down the line, like beauty products say they help get rid of wrinkles for instance, that companies take advantage of people wanting to change themselves, and some sort of world develops like in the back story of dues ex game or in repo men film. I have do hope that some sort of technology does help those who need it, such as accident victims, and those who have lots limbs etc, because that’s what I feel technology like this should be used for. As for those who want to use the technology just to improve on their already perfect bodies, like what plastic surgery does.

Like I said earlier, I feel sad that it is clear that so many people are upset and don’t like their bodies. Agreeably we all have something we don’t like, but that’s the beauty of the human body and the differences between us all- we are all different, and the imperfections of ourselves as people, as well as our bodies, makes us who we are, and it makes us perfect.

If we were all the same, as in if all women were thin with big boobs and blonde hair, where’s the variety and sexiness in that? All men going after the same type of women, not attractive, and the same for men, if all the men were the same, women would become bored of the chase.

We may get fed on a daily basis what is the idealistic view on what perfect is, but it is clear from surveys, data, and the general public’s point of view, that we all are only human, and we are perfect as we are, because if we weren’t, or if we don’t think we ourselves are, then if we don’t love ourselves, who else will? No one likes someone who is always complaining about their bodies, weight, how they look, or at least that’s the reaction I have got from asking some of my friends.

We shouldn’t be comparing ourselves to the person in front or behind of us, we should be looking at our own reflection in the mirror. If you don’t like what you see, there will be someone out there, a friend maybe, who envies the part of you that you don’t like, and they wish they had what you have. That’s what make us all unique, no one else has what you have.

So no need for solutions on how to make yourselves better or prettier, or more attractive through body modification, because you already are. 

 

Raquel