10 men (and one woman) so angry at Gillette’s #metoo ad that it’s funny
Gillette have put out a two-minute ad engaging with the #MeToo movement that plays on its familiar tagline ‘The Best A Man Can Get’ by asking: ‘Is this a best a man can get?’
It’s fair to say not everyone’s happy with the ad, which feature images of sexism and violence in news clips and movies.
“Boys will be boys”? Isn’t it time we stopped excusing bad behavior? Re-think and take action by joining us at https://t.co/giHuGDEvlT. #TheBestMenCanBe pic.twitter.com/hhBL1XjFVo
— Gillette (@Gillette) January 14, 2019
Men’s rights activists and far right publications were particularly unhappy – and some people thought their response made Gillette’s point for them better than any ad could.
Here’s what they had to say.
1.
I've used @Gillette razors my entire adult life but this absurd virtue-signalling PC guff may drive me away to a company less eager to fuel the current pathetic global assault on masculinity.
Let boys be damn boys.
Let men be damn men. https://t.co/Hm66OD5lA4— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 14, 2019
2.
Just sell some damn razors and keep your social justice stupidity out of it. Looks like it's @DollarShaveClub from now on.
— Mark Dice (@MarkDice) January 14, 2019
3.
Insulting most of your own customers by insinuating they're all would-be sexual abusers & creeps has to be one of the most original marketing campaigns in decades. https://t.co/IIXzqEcn3u
— Paul Joseph Watson (@PrisonPlanet) January 14, 2019
4.
This is what happens when you hire UIC graduate snowflakes who think their university prepared them for the real world. No coloring books and safe spaces for you all anymore 😂 Soyboy marketing major’s who forgot their target audience and instead insulted them 😂
— HisShadowX (@HisShadowX) January 14, 2019
5.
We don’t need politics with our shave gel. pic.twitter.com/erZowlhdz8
— ART TAVANA (@arttavana) January 14, 2019
6.
If they made a women's razor ad that discouraged gold-digging, nagging, being emotionally manipulative and made it clear that it wasn't referring to all women, I'm sure there would be backlash. Rightfully so.
— dronez (@dronez) January 14, 2019
7.
corporate ads yanking on social issues to sell things isn't my cup of tea, but: if your oh-so-delicate masculinity is wobbled by the idea of someone giving you basic lessons in how not to be a piece of shit, the problem is clearly you, champ https://t.co/4yAIi3xFPR
— Dan Hett (@danhett) January 15, 2019
8.
Gillette is part of the anti-male SJW movement. Any men who are sick of this can come right on over to us at Bawdy Barber, where we understand how men work and don't try to change them into women.
👍👍— Bawdy Barber (@BawdyBarber) January 14, 2019
9.
Dear @Gillette: Some men are violent misogynists. Most are willing to die to protect our liberties and freedoms (including those of women). It is grotesque to repeatedly ascribe collective guilt onto half of humanity known as men. Being a man is not a disease nor a pathology. https://t.co/CAxGadDiD6
— Gad Saad (@GadSaad) January 14, 2019
10.
For God's sake. I'm telling the 3 men in my house your product will NOT be my home ever again. All three are fine men, 2 are rough Marines that sacrifice so you can insult masculinity. You can fuck right off with that.
— Steph (@steph93065) January 14, 2019
11.
https://twitter.com/ezralevant/status/1084886778123862018
Some weren’t furious, just funny.
Shaving is a gender construct. No one should do it. Stop buying razor blades. https://t.co/f7hsC9wLpQ
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) January 14, 2019
And a lot of people came out in support of the ad. Here are our favourites.
1.
Screw toxic masculinity. This is an awesome step to take. Great ad.
*urge to shave things increases* https://t.co/ebAQ0ZsB0m— Joaquin Baldwin (@joabaldwin) January 14, 2019
2.
Great campaign. It’s too bad that a whole lot of men here think that being a man means not allowing themselves to feel feelings, or treat other people decently.
— Laura Farr (@FarrWard3) January 14, 2019
3.
You know what, I normally don't really retweet ads like this – but the way this one reframes Gillette's "the best a man can get" slogan is genuinely very clever. https://t.co/2qYv5YYFM8
— Rami Ismail (@tha_rami) January 14, 2019
4.
Love this.
If there was ever any question as to how necessary the overall message is, read these comments and look at all the guilt oozing off these snowflakes. Well done.
— Anthony Urciuoli (@AnthUrch) January 14, 2019
5.
Thanks for this Gillette. I agree. We absolutely as men can do a better job instilling better morals and behavior overall with one another. Handing those core values down to our kids is paramount. And don’t tell me it doesn’t exist. Not all of us sure. But enough to change. https://t.co/3UVbnq2WtO
— Max Gonzalez (@GassyMexican) January 15, 2019
6.
Thank you for this, @Gillette. Although I never shave my body hair due to my feminist principles, I’m going to start buying your razors anyway in order to support your brave work.
— Titania McGrath (@TitaniaMcGrath) January 14, 2019
7.
The men fucking losing it in the comments prove the need for change. A fantastic commercial. 🙏🙏🙏 https://t.co/LZkakj62es
— Austen Marie 💚 (@AustenMarieTV) January 15, 2019
8.
Gillete: *showing a video about how men can and should be better*
Men: *actively proving them right*
— J. D. Wiser (@jd_wiser) January 14, 2019
9.
Exploitative? Maybe. Brave and timely? Absolutely. Also, I cried. Well done, @Gillette. #foroursons https://t.co/4hYNcgsxoX
— Emily Andras (@emtothea) January 15, 2019
We’re with this person.
The comments under the @Gillette toxic masculinity ad is a living document of how desperately society needs things like the Gillette toxic masculinity ad.
Seriously: if your masculinity is THAT threatened by an ad that says we should be nicer then you're doing masculinity wrong.
— Andrew P Street (@AndrewPStreet) January 15, 2019
And there was one thing we can surely all agree on. Can’t we?
https://twitter.com/zei_nabq/status/1084882586684583938
