Australia’s latest lamb ad is being described as so bad it is turning viewers into “raw vegans”, based on its attempt at political satire that has fallen flat with audiences.
The ad, launched on Thursday by Meat and Livestock Australia, is a West Side Story-inspired musical where duelling gangs chant “left” and “right” in front of a horrified suburban mother.
The gangs fight through song before uniting over a plate of chops.
It has been widely condemned for its heavy-handed satire, described as unfunny, confusing and – at more than two and a half minutes – excessively long.
I just watched the terrible lamb ad and I think I'm a raw vegan now
— Josh Butler (@JoshButler) January 10, 2018
i think the lamb ad people should take a year off
— A Busy Dad (@mtats) January 10, 2018
after seeing the latest lamb ad i've decided to become vegetarian.
— lehmo (@lehmo23) January 11, 2018
The ad begins with the mother telling her children to go inside as the two gangs face off outside her neighbourhood barbecue.
“It’s the extreme left and rightwing commentators represented as Broadway-musical-style street gangs, a satirical commentary on our currently divided political climate,” she says.
The ad also features a potential Milo Yiannopoulos lookalike, a literal fence-sitter and a leader of the left street gang that commenters say looks suspiciously like the federal Greens leader, Richard Di Natale.
i watched the lamb ad and have two conclusions: this boofhead is meant to be milo yiannopoulos ... pic.twitter.com/ZoPfQRbNWE
— Alex Bruce-Smith (@alexbrucesmith) January 10, 2018
That’s @RichardDiNatale isn’t it?
— Paul Kidd (@paulkidd) January 10, 2018
Since 2005, Meat and Livestock Australia has launched annual lamb ads in summer and spring. Last year’s summer ad drew praise for its diversity and Indigenous representation.
The year before, the ad starred SBS newsreader Lee Lin Chin attempting to rescue overseas, “lambless” Australians and bring them back home for Australia Day. It drew more than 600 complaints to the Advertising Standards Bureau, mostly regarding a scene that made fun of vegans.
In September last year, the spring lamb ad was also condemned by Hindu and Anglican organisations for being disrespectful to their religions.
The ad featured Jesus, Ganesha and Zeus, among other deities, having lunch and making jokes about religion – with the theme that lamb was “the meat we can all eat”.
For this year’s ad, MLA’s chief marketing and communications officer, Lisa Sharp, said the campaign again focused on the “theme of unity”.
“We are celebrating freedom of choice, freedom of speech and our nation’s ability to put aside our differences and join together over a lamb barbecue,” she said.
As part of the campaign, MLA will also host a “Lambnesty” barbecue, inviting people with differing political opinions to “unite over the ultimate lamb feast”.
