Rhetoric of Space

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Sex and the City (1) by Alexandra Velarde

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZcFB3wMyfk



            






















             The movie Sex and the City advertises everything from clothes to restaurants. It is based on the very popular television series and picks up where the series left off. Sex and the City is about everything that four best friends go through while living in New York City. However, they are not girls who enjoy a simple way of living. They are very much attracted to all the luxurious things that the city has to offer. The movie advertises many things because the girls are considered to be fashion icons that many women look up to.
            According to chapter 10 of Understanding Movies, “Virtually every movie presents us with role models, ideal ways of behaving, negative traits, and an implied morality based on the filmmaker’s sense of right and wrong” (Giannetti,3). The stars of Sex and the City are role models, and if they are wearing or doing something, it is likely that it will gain popularity.  In the movie, Carrie is getting married and Vogue asks her to be photographed for their wedding issue. In the scene, Carrie tries on multiple high-fashion dresses and mentions the brands while trying them on.  She mentions Vera Wang, Carolina Herrera, Christian Lacroix, Lanvin, Dior, Oscar de la Renta, and Vivienne Westwood. Although she eventually chooses the dress by designer Vivienne Westwood, her name-dropping was a very beneficial form of advertising for all of the designers. It was especially beneficial for Vivienne Westwood because if the iconic Carrie Bradshaw would wear a dress by her to her wedding, many brides would want to do the same. The products evoke pathos for the audience because it gets them excited about Carrie getting married and trying on her wedding dress. It is also a form of ethos because they are brands that are well-known by a lot of people and it allows for them to appreciate the dresses even more. The fact that the photo session is to be printed in Vogue magazine is also ethos because it is a major fashion magazine with millions, if not billions of readers. The fact that so many people purchase the magazine is a form of logos because people are able to rationalize that having a spread in the magazine is something significant.
            The movie advertises Louis Vuitton, a famous brand in different ways throughout the movie as well. One way is by having a famous fashion icon Andre Leon Talley, who appears in the movie as himself, carry a Louis Vuitton suitcase with his name on it. According to Understanding Movies, “Many filmmakers believe that casting is so integral to a character, they don’t even begin working on a script until they know who’s playing the major roles” (Giannetti, 5). Obviously the scene in the movie with Andre Leon Talley was not written until he agreed to come out in the film. This was a form of advertisement for both the film and Talley because many people got to know him with the film and others who knew him might have watched the film because he was in it. This was a form of ethos because he is a fashion icon making him very credible in this particular movie. There is also a scene where Carrie’s assistant Louise is telling her that her dream is to own a Louis Vuitton purse, but it is too expensive for her. Towards the end of the movie, Carrie gifts the tear-filled Louise her first Louis Vuitton purse. It is a form of pathos because the scene is very emotional, while it is also ethos because Louis Vuitton is a very famous brand in the fashion industry. Louis Vuitton has many customers already, which is a form of logos, but the movie advertising the brand could have only helped it grow in popularity.
            Advertising in movies can be a negative thing if it is not done wisely. Fortunately for this movie, the advertising was done impeccably and fit the storyline completely. None of the advertising seemed out of place or was harmful to the movie. In fact, one of the reasons I love watching Sex and the City is that I get to see the fabulous things the characters wear, and the amazing places they go to. This is definitely one of my favorite movies of all time.
 





No comments:

Post a Comment