Armani Ad

This Armani advert connotes very stereotypical gender roles, power and wealth. The denotation shows a man and a woman, standing close together, with a night skyline behind. It has a very contrasting use of light on the pair and on the scenery.
The Mise en scene shows a certain power to the pair as they are above the entire city. They are positioned in the centre of the long shot, drawing the eyes of the audience to them, assisted with the spotlight on them. However, the woman stands intimately close to the man. Her back is turned to the camera and her surroundings. This connotes a patriarchal influence on the pair which highlights the masculinity he bares. She is shown to find shelter, protection and defence from the dominating man. Furthermore he is wearing a sharp suit, a main part of the typical 'masculine' stereotype.
The lighting is different on both the woman and the man. Her face is mostly covered by her hair and his side, again suggesting a need for protection and dominance from him. Where as the man has a highlighted face and front, this suggests an exposure to his surroundings but one he is more equipped to as he looks down the lense portraying an intimidating and confident character. The fact we can’t see much of her (the front of her/her face) gives an impression that she doesn’t have as much of an identity as he does, heightening the patriarchy displayed. The man also displays a stern expression suggesting his lack of interest in her as if she is one of the props, supporting Van Zoonan’s theory. Alternatively, he could be expressing this to show confidence and control, potentially covering something deeper.
For the target audience in the dominant-hegemonic position to see this, there could be an ideology around the question of: would women fall for them if they wore this cologne? would they have this much power? Be this sleek/sharp/pristine? Could their lives be as photographed if they bought it? However, negotiated/oppositional readers could target the heavy patriarchy displayed and then never fall for the media language used.
The actual bottle is pushed to the side of the frame and almost blends in with the background due to the dark colours and lighting. This presents the couple/lifestyle as being more important than the actual product. To an opposing eye, the advert is clearly dividing roles played on the basis of sex and barely presenting the cologne as desirable and a ‘must buy’, altering what an advert is needed for.