Critique of the Glo “Feliz Navidad, Nigerians” Advert Using Laura Mulvey’s Lens

 Critique of the Glo “Feliz Navidad, Nigerians” Advert Using Laura Mulvey’s Lens

The Glo “Feliz Navidad, Nigerians” advert is a high-energy Christmas commercial produced by Nigerian telecommunications giant, Globacom, to celebrate the festive season with a sense of cultural pride, musical excitement, and star-studded visuals. The ad features a lineup of well-known Nollywood actors and influencers such as Timini Egbuson, Uche Nwaefuna, Chizzy Alichi, and Kiki Bakare, among others, participating in a vibrant Christmas gathering. Set against the popular holiday tune “Feliz Navidad,” the commercial opens with an ensemble of stylishly dressed tap dancers and musicians, transitioning into a series of choreographed performances and joyful group interactions. At first glance, the advert seems to champion Nigerian creativity and communal celebration. However, when critically viewed through Laura Mulvey’s feminist lens, particularly her concept of the male gaze, it becomes clear that traditional gender roles and objectifying cinematic techniques persist within the advert’s structure. This essay will explore how the advert, while culturally rich, reproduces patriarchal visual codes that privilege male spectatorship and reduce female participants to passive objects of aesthetic pleasure, using Mulvey’s framework of psychoanalytic and feminist film theory.

At the heart of Mulvey’s argument is the idea that mainstream visual media are structured by the male gaze, a term she coined to describe the way film and photography position women as objects to be looked at, rather than as subjects who possess agency. This concept is evident in the Glo advert through the visual framing and camera work that often focuses on the bodies of female dancers and guests, especially in the opening sequences. For instance, the camera lingers on the legs and torsos of female tap dancers dressed in glittering, body-conscious costumes. These shots are designed to create visual pleasure for a presumed heterosexual male viewer, aligning with Mulvey’s theory that women in film exist primarily as spectacle. While the dancers perform with skill, the way they are filmed emphasizes their physical form rather than their talent. The camera’s movement—panning slowly over their bodies or capturing them in tight shots—separates their image from their individuality, fragmenting the female form into consumable parts. Mulvey would argue that such visual choices reflect patriarchal ideologies embedded in film grammar, where women are not portrayed as complete beings but as signifiers of male desire.

This objectification is further reinforced by the passive roles given to female characters in the advert. Although the commercial features several female celebrities, their screen time is largely focused on reaction shots—smiling, dancing, or admiring male performers—rather than taking active control of the scene. The men, on the other hand, are often placed at the center of performances or shown in assertive positions. A notable example is Timini Egbuson, whose confident presence and direct engagement with the camera contrast with the women’s more decorative and supportive roles. Mulvey’s theory emphasizes that in classical film, men are typically the active agents of narrative progression, while women function as “to-be-looked-at-ness,” existing to enhance the visual field rather than advance the story. In the Glo advert, the women appear to support the festive mood rather than shape it. Their reduced narrative agency aligns with Mulvey’s argument that cinematic structures—advertisements included—are designed to satisfy male fantasies by rendering women as passive visual ornaments.

Another critical aspect of Mulvey’s theory is the idea that the male gaze is not simply about what is shown, but how it is shown. The Glo advert employs a cinematic style that prioritizes stylized beauty and glamour, a common tactic in both commercial advertising and classical Hollywood cinema. The female characters are costumed in festive yet revealing attire, with hair, makeup, and lighting all crafted to emphasize attractiveness. Even in group shots, the camera draws attention to feminine beauty through slow-motion sequences and soft lighting. This technique, often referred to by Mulvey as fetishistic scopophilia, transforms the female body into a surface of idealized beauty for the viewer to consume visually. The pleasure here is not narrative but erotic—a disempowering act that prioritizes appearance over substance. Rather than being portrayed as individuals with voice, intention, or power, the women in the Glo advert become symbols of seasonal allure. This reinforces patriarchal visual pleasure, where the female figure is a site of fantasy rather than a social subject.

Moreover, the Glo advert reinforces a broader media trend that Mulvey criticizes: the repetition of visual codes that normalize gender inequality under the guise of entertainment. Even in a context as seemingly light-hearted as a holiday commercial, the repetition of certain cinematic tropes—women as background dancers, ornamental guests, or passive admirers—teaches viewers to associate femininity with docility, beauty, and support. The advert becomes a site where patriarchal values are unconsciously reproduced, cloaked in joy and spectacle. Mulvey’s analysis helps us understand that such representations are not benign or coincidental; they are deliberate aesthetic choices that align with the logic of patriarchy. Furthermore, these visual messages are internalized by viewers, shaping their understanding of gender roles and expectations in both media and society. The women in the Glo ad are not invited to challenge or redefine their roles; instead, they are fitted into an age-old cinematic formula that maintains the status quo of male dominance and female submission.

In conclusion, while the Glo “Feliz Navidad, Nigerians” advert successfully captures the spirit of celebration and cultural pride, it also reproduces long-standing visual and narrative codes that position women as passive subjects of male desire. Through Laura Mulvey’s lens, we see that the advert, like much mainstream media, is structured by the male gaze, which dictates not only how women are looked at but also how they are made to exist within a media narrative. By emphasizing beauty over agency, pleasure over participation, and spectacle over substance, the Glo advert upholds patriarchal ideologies in a space that could otherwise have offered more empowered, egalitarian representations. Mulvey’s theory reminds us that until women are granted equal narrative agency and freedom from objectifying visual grammar, even the most joyful media productions will remain complicit in the reproduction of gender inequality. To move beyond the male gaze, media creators must reimagine how women are portrayed—not as adornments to festive cheer, but as central figures in shaping meaning, joy, and story.