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It’s okay for suitcases to flatten wolves, says ad watchdog

An ad for UBank in which a man falls from a plane and a pack of wolves is crushed by falling debris is not guilty of showing images of excessive violence or animal cruelty, the Ad Standards Bureau has ruled.

One complaint read: “I found the ad quite frightening. I felt the image of the man being sucked out of the plane was too graphic and will stay with me in an unpleasant way. With terrorism this image reminds me of real threats. I hated the wolf being crushed by the suitcase. It is violent and offensive to an animal lover like me.”

UBank confirmed that no animals were harmed during the making of the ad, and said: “The absurdity and improbability of the wolves being hit by falling items from the aeroplane, depicts survival of the hero much like that used in children’s animations.”

The wolves used in the ad were dogs stylised to look like wolves, UBank added.

The ASB ruled that the scene showing a suitcase falling from the sky onto the wolf is so far-fetched that it is unlikely to cause distress, and threw out the complaints.

The ad was created by The Monkeys.

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