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Her Latin looks have seduced cinema audiences across the world, but when it came to an advert for mascara, a leading beauty company decided Penelope Cruz's natural beauty needed enhancing - earning it a reprimand from the advertising watchdog.
When the French cosmetics firm L'Oreal shot a television advertisement for mascara, featuring the star of Captain Corelli's Mandolin, it boasted that the product could achieve "out of this world lashes".
In a sense the claim was correct because the Spanish actress's eyes had been enhanced with false lashes to make them more luscious.
Unfortunately L'Oreal neglected to mention the false touches in the commercial for "Telescopic" mascara, and in a ruling the Advertising Standards Authority decided the advert misled viewers. The ruling - which said Cruz's sultry looks were an exaggeration of nature - has shown the black arts used by make-up artists to improve the eyes of leading ladies.
According to industry experts, actresses routinely add a few individual lashes to the sides of their eyelids to achieve the kind of fluttering effect associated with Audrey Hepburn.
L'Oreal - whose claims for a wrinkle cream promoted by Claudia Schiffer were banned by the ASA two years ago - should have taken greater care with its latest campaign.
Cruz was seen standing on an apartment terrace next to a telescope that pointed towards the night sky. On-screen text promised: "High precision" and "up to 60 per cent longer".
The Madrid-born former dancer breathed: "For out of this world lashes. Astronomical ... Take your lashes to telescopic lengths."
A viewer suspected that Cruz had been wearing false lashes and complained to the ASA.
The company eventually admitted that Cruz had worn individual false lashes - although not a complete set of false lashes - to enhance her eyes.
Although digital tests suggested that Telescopic mascara could make most eyelashes look 60 per cent longer by highlighting the slender tips, there was no difference to the actual size of the lashes and the ASA criticised L'Oreal's approach.
It added: "While Penelope Cruz may not have been wearing a full set of eyelashes, the images of her wearing individual false eye lashes ... nevertheless exaggerated the effect that could be achieved by using the mascara on natural lashes."
The ruling came on a bad day for the £45 billion ($115 billion) a year beauty industry in Europe. In a separate judgment, the ASA decided that adverts for Nivea's DNAge misled the public because scientific tests did not support the claim the face cream increased cell renewal.
German company Beiersdorf was told not to repeat its television ads for the product, which promised a "revolution in face care", increasing cell renewal and protecting DNA from cell damage.
Although there was evidence that the turnover of the surface layers of the skin was improved, there was no sign that the skin renewal cycle was improved. The folic acid in the cream had made no difference to cell renewal in tests when compared with a control group.
Tests on the face cream had been conducted on the arm, upper arm or forearm, which was not a good model for facial skin, the ASA ruled. It said: "Because the evidence provided by Beiersdorf did not support the 'cell renewal' claim we concluded it was misleading." The advert breached rules on misleading statements, evidence and implications.
- INDEPENDENT
