Barbara Lippert's Critique

Previously in the land of Lipitor TV ads, an older man was shown going to the doctor in the rain, his wife waiting in the car. He came out with a prescription for his high cholesterol; we knew this because the scrip was approximately the size of a "Wanted" poster, only with a slightly larger font. I was surprised he could get it in the car. Weeks later, the couple went back to the doctor. This time it was sunny outside. And guess what? The Lipitor did the trick.Since 1997, when the FDA started allowing direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical ads to appear on TV, drug-company spots have become a weird and definable subgenre—kind of like the advertising from another planet. Many spots seem to involve pod people convening in groups. Celebrex ads, for example, show how the capsules impart the wisdom of the East; after taking them, you end up in flowing garb, performing mystical hand movements while standing in perfect group formations in public parks. The Nexium commercials also suggest group think and really scare me. People stand on cliff tops and emote robotically on behalf of a "purple pill," an android/color combo that reminds me of the Heaven's Gate cult. What a way to sell heartburn relief.No doubt, the odd form and content of the ads are partly a result of the FDA's strict guidelines. These require listing all possible side effects, bringing lovely new phrases like "gas with oily discharge" into the culture. It's become such a national joke that Steve Martin wrote an entire comic essay on the warnings ("This drug may shorten your intestines by 21 feet," he cautions). What's so refreshing about Lipitor's new spots, from Merkley Newman Harty, is that they stray from all the clichés—including the one about the old folks who can now go back to enjoying the grandchildren. Instead, we get a new archetype that is almost embarrassing to America's still somewhat puritanical nature: vibrant, virile, hyper-groomed 50-plusers who obviously take pleasure in their fit bodies. They're so stoked on self-amor that they emote a sort of electro-charged sexuality. Which is especially unexpected when it comes to selling cholesterol medication."Pool" opens with some compelling cha-cha-cha music. It's Rosemary Clooney, in a 1959 recording of "I Only Have Eyes for You." A man with a Burt Lancaster build (right out of From Here to Eternity) showboats around a luxurious public pool area. (Despite the lack of a Speedo, the combination of the music, the virile older guy and the hard-to-recognize locale seems slightly foreign.) Incorporated in the scenario are small, modern graphics containing supplemental info. We learn that the Tanned One does 75 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and 50 laps a day. Flexing and stretching, all eyes on him, he strides up to the pool and dives in. Water splashes all over his female admirers as he executes a complete belly flop. "No body is perfect" a title card tells us. So even this idealized specimen (he actually carries an apple at one point) has high cholesterol, which, like high blood pressure, is a silent killer. The spot then neatly breaks into the FDA-mandated announcing work, which is done over footage of Mr. Stubble swimming. "Diva," the other spot, also effectively focuses on the inside/outside dichotomy. We see a red carpet, lines of stretch limos. While the paparazzi snap and the crowd cheers, a woman emerges from her black car. She sports longish gray hair (she must be French—gray is definitely verboten in Hollywood), and we find out that she's 5 foot 9 and a size 6. She clearly loves the attention as she waves, walks along the red carpet and ... splat! Down she goes (it's clear that it's a turned ankle, not a heart attack). She stands up with grace as we get all the serious info ("High cholesterol doesn't care who you are …"). The spots represent a giant step for the category, but also something innovative for seniors in advertising: They've fallen and they can get up.

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Barbara Lippert's Critique

Barbara Lippert

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Barbara Lippert