Rhetorical analysis of Super Bowl Budweiser commercial 2015

1. Rhetorical Analysis of a
SUPER BOWL commercial
The lost puppy

2. Introduction of characters

3. The man – he seems like an American farmer. Age range is
wide. He is portrayed as a hard working guy. Application of
ethos. People would relate to him. Would admire him.
The puppy – this kiddie Labrador retriever just pulls our heart
strings when he pops up his head from that pile of hay.
Application of pathos.
The horse – Horse has been shown as the puppy’s best friend.
Audience is supposed to have known it beforehand from the
previous commercials. And even it they don’t, horse neighing
when the little puppy was stepping out indicates the friendship.
Application of ethos. We love the puppy and the horse loves it
too.. Establishing his positive image and subtly wins credibility.

4. Pixar prompt
The ad appears to fit in with Pixar storytelling
framework
Once upon a time.. - this ad is just an add on to the existing series ads
Based on a common quintessence. Main characters are, a farmer,
a horse in his staple, and a puppy. Where the puppy and the horse
share a strong bond of friendship.
Every day.. - once again, depicting the commercials in such a way
that audience automatically fill the void about the quotidian life of
the characters
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5. The cap
The cap on the farmer’s head never gets down. He wears it in
all the shots. Although its not explicitly shown what is written
on the cap.
But the red color and the font is enough to subtly acknowledge
the Budweiser brand.

6. When I wake up, well I know I'm gonna be,
I'm gonna be the man who wakes up next you
When I go out, yeah I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who goes along with you
These are the lyrics of the songs which goes along in the
background. It’s played for the entire duration when the puppy
is all his own. Fuelling optimism to our heart. And thereby
subtly conditioning audience with the reminder of the warmth
of friendship. #BestBuds
The tempo of the song is slow and the upbeat tune of the
original version has been avoided distinctly.
(500 miles – The proclaimers)
The background music

7. One day...……
Puppy escapes.. and then gets lost in the city. No home.

8. Application of ethos
The man and the horse have
shown to be sharing audience’s
Feeling.
• Concern, worry
• ‘Bring puppy home’

9. Lights
White vs black
Bright vs dark
Good vs bad

10. Lights
White vs black
Bright vs dark
When the first time puppy was spotted.
Flicker of hope.
From the dark to the bright.

11. Lights
White vs black
Bright vs dark
When puppy was in danger When the puppy came back home

12. Lights
White vs black
Bright vs dark
Good vs bad
This effort underlines the expectation of ad retention.
By making an effort to harmonizing
the visual aspects with the narrative,
they wish to engage people more hence increasing
the retention.

13. Owner tries to search for the puppy. Puppy has a
bad time. Wolf tries to hunt the lonely puppy. Horse
came to rescue him.
Because of that...

14. Due to the particular vertical positioning of the characters,
puppy subtly gets placed on the weaker side giving rise to
more empathy towards the kiddo.
The leaned over branchlets of the powerful tree towards
him also makes a subtle impact of being vulnerable

15. The frequent emphasis on pathos and effort to put
subtle presence of Budweiser throughout an advert
underlines the expectation of linking people’s
sentiments with Budweiser.
In other words, it is selective demand advertising.
The particular type of emotion is expected to get
linked with the brand to create a brand distinction.

16. Because of that...
Wolf runs away. Puppy is rescued.
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17. Happy ending.
Once again the buds are together. Audience feel delightful and
the man is boozing Budweiser with the Budweiser hat.
The message is, Budweiser is something to be boozed with your
buds. Its an attempt to permeate the socializing culture altogether.

18. 6
Until finally...
Horse bring the puppy back home. And all
Buds are united...