X
- 2006
- R
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 32 m
- 2006
- R
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 32 m
Summary Thank You for Smoking is a fiercely satirical look at today's "culture of spin." The hero of the film is Nick Naylor (Eckhart), chief spokesman for Big Tobacco, who makes his living defending the rights of smokers and cigarette makers in today's neo-puritanical culture. (Fox Searchlight)
Directed By: Jason Reitman
Written By: Christopher Buckley, Jason Reitman
- 2006
- R
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 32 m
- 2006
- R
- Fox Searchlight Pictures
- 1 h 32 m
Thank You for Smoking
71
7.2
Where to Watch
Summary Thank You for Smoking is a fiercely satirical look at today's "culture of spin." The hero of the film is Nick Naylor (Eckhart), chief spokesman for Big Tobacco, who makes his living defending the rights of smokers and cigarette makers in today's neo-puritanical culture. (Fox Searchlight)
Directed By: Jason Reitman
Written By: Christopher Buckley, Jason Reitman
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 36 Critic Reviews
71
81% Positive
29 Reviews
29 Reviews
19% Mixed
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 36 Critic Reviews
71
81% Positive
29 Reviews
29 Reviews
19% Mixed
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
A sly, smart and very funny caricature of corporate politics and image culture.
The razor-sharp satire Thank You for Smoking is the wittiest dark comedy of the year thus far. It has appeal to all sides of the political spectrum.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 118 User Ratings
7.2
75% Positive
88 Ratings
88 Ratings
20% Mixed
24 Ratings
24 Ratings
5% Negative
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 118 User Ratings
7.2
75% Positive
88 Ratings
88 Ratings
20% Mixed
24 Ratings
24 Ratings
5% Negative
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
This movie is satire done right. It manages to pull all the strings to break conventions on how we see corporations and activists to add a nuance we (intentionally or not) erase from other human. Most people expect the movie to demonize the tabacco company and humanize the people fighting it, while it does the complete opposite. Maybe selling cigarettes is just a job and fighting its consumption just a cheap political trick? This movie will make uncomfortable all people who have a strict, black and white vision of the world, and will explain that it's 'wrong' to humanize human you disagree with.
If you have a more nuanced vision of the world, it's an hilarious movie.
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From 1575 to the present, there have always been those who have opposed the use of tobacco from Mexico to the Ottoman Empire to Bavaria, Kursachsen, and certain parts of Austria in the late 1600s. Some form of Government in some part of the world has always tried to ban or outlaw the use of tobacco. In the 1500s the Catholic Pope Urban VII in particular threatened to excommunicate anyone who "took tobacco in the porchway of or inside a church, whether it be by chewing it, smoking it with a pipe or sniffing it in powdered form through the nose". The Ottoman sultan Murad IV prohibited smoking in his empire in 1633 smoking was also banned in Berlin in 1723, in Königsberg in 1742, and in Stettin in 1744. These bans were repealed in the revolutions of 1848. The first building in the world to have a smoke-free policy was the Old Government Building in Wellington, New Zealand in 1876 this was due to the fact that the building is the second largest wooden building ever constructed and it was out of concern that smoking may cause a fire. From then to now there are groups that fight to have cigarettes removed from gas stations, supermarkets etc. Then there are those who promote Big Tobacco and there products. They lobby s to speak on behalf of some of the worlds most powerful tobacco industries men like Nick Naylor(Aaron Eckhart) the protagonist of Jason Reitman's feature film debut "Thank you for Smoking" where as some people, in Eckhart's biting narration states, "Michael Jordan plays ball, Charles Manson kills people I talk" and indeed he does. "Thank you for not Smoking is not only a dark and searing satire on the anti-smoking issue it is also an intelligent and thought provoking film that asks you to ask yourself and ask others the ideas surrounding the big tobacco business and there so called merchants of death. However, ask yourself this, is it truly right to take away a persons right to smoke? Jason Reitman's feature film debut "Thank you for Smoking" is a cynical, searing, hilarious, and thought provoking look into the world of politics and the men and women who occupy the seats on both sides of the table, so to speak. Reitman(Son of veteran director Ivan Reitman) adapted screenplay from Christopher Buckley's 1994 satirical novel of the same name is a film that is as intelligent as it is biting this film is a deeply funny look at how one man(Aaron Eckhart) seeks to promote cigarettes. Reitman shows he has a real true talent for writing and directing, something his father Ivan lacks. Reitman is an intelligent director and an even more intelligent writer he knows how to flesh out each and every character at there duly appointed time he knows how to write smart, engaging, thought provoking dialogue and cheerfully offensive dialogue that makes you laugh as well as think. Satire is a tricky territory and Reitman is a genius when it comes to this tricky territory he knows how to play out the ideals on the anti-smoking issue to its full extent while still maintaining a strong sense of humor and political reason all the while the audiences is sitting there thinking and laughing . As it should be "Thank you for Smoking" targets two specific audiences the political opinionated and everyone else those who have strong political opinions(much like me) will either love this film, hate this film, or just downright despises it(I know some politicians who would really dislike this film). For those who are not politically opinionated will love this film in its entirety with its Delightfully unscrupulous characters, witty and intelligent dialogue and abundance of laughs this is the right ticket for anyone who likes to see people make fun of other people make fun of the people who run the country. I love this film, I love everything about this film I love the characters, the cynical sense of humor and the gloriously unscrupulous cynicism that this film unleashes on the anti- smoking issue. "Thank you for Smoking" is one of the best political satires I have seen since Stanley Kubrickâ
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It's got a bust-out performance from Eckhart that's worth remembering.
This is the kind of comedy that gives you two meaty underhanded jokes for every big obvious guffaw. It doesn't add up to much more than that, but there's no earthly reason why it ought to.
Glibly funny and eager to please.
A laudably amoral and superbly caustic comedy for those who like their satire strong and unfiltered.
For a film that's ostensibly about modern American society's love affair with addictive behavior – sex, drugs, rock & roll – its bark is much worse than its bite.
I absolutely love the message presented by the film. Think for yourself but even in the end, the main character notes at times that can really be detrimental in situations. And even despite his turn around, that leaves you with a firm understanding of how many people in this country, politics and all, can come to different conclusions than us. well-scripted and camera shots were great. Wish the score was a little better, or more prominent but overall a great movie to enjoy as well as "learn from"
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This is a good movie that is worth the watch. The only reason I give it 9/10 is that the viewer was reduced to a 13-ish old kid who sometimes asked a complicated well-constructed question and receives a short expected answer. Everybody played masterfully though. Some of my favorite actors played in this movie - William Macy, Rob Lowe, J. K. Simmons and David Koechner.
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to walk over that fine line between humor and drama..
Thank You For Smoking
Reitman's comedy satire about smoke and ashes is a home run for him since it achieves to walk over that fine line between humor and drama, something that great filmmakers have failed to do so. And he has done it in here with such fluidity that it leaves you in an awe of it. The story itself demands lots of monologues, arguments and logistics that are not statistical but social. And to write dialogues and conversations whilst delivering all of that is like climbing a slope against the wind. But Reitman has done it, and that sweetens his victory more.
One of the best bits of the feature is of course the relationship of the protagonist with his son. Since he has to explain all his higher ideal concepts in the most literal and simple way, this is the window where the writer is basically speaking with the audience in Layman's terms to advance the storyline. And yes it does get mechanical very quickly along with the structure of the script, but this corporate world that you are about to explore endorses it before you even go in, hence it is mandatory to feel like such.
And with bits of humor, one liners and sensational point of view through which Reitman argues with you, it is literally hard to argue back. Now amidst all these superness of the feature, the plot gets rusty within first few minutes as it practically screams the entire trajectory out on a podium before it even hits the screen that extracts the heat from the soul. Eckhart is convincing just as his logics are and along with him rides an amazing supporting cast like Simmons, Macy, Holmes, Elliot and Duvall and they all stand up to their caliber and deliver unflinchingly. Thank You For Smoking feels more like a sitcom than a picture, but hey, it works either way.
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This slickly produced movie tries hard to seem impartial - with a dig at both sides of the ‘for and against’, health and moral aspects of the cigarette game. While it’s smart (at times maybe too smart for its own good) like the ‘Spin’ Drs themselves, it falls between the impossible task of trying to please everyone (a sure formula for failure, and pleasing no-one). Performances are mostly good and its rough-edged script is both crude and acerbic. With several perverse situations (there’s not one decent person to be found) making it mostly suitable for those trendy types, who feel they have all the answers to anything. It’s like an advertiser’s handbook on how to sell everything to people who virtually need nothing – or a politicians guide at how to say everything while committing to nothing.
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Lobbyists represent everything that is wrong with our country. Instead of voting for the common good of the people, they are paid in voters and campaign contributions, to vote the way big business wishes them to vote. The result is laws that benefit the few and hurt the many. Thank You For Smoking takes an in depth look at one of these lobbyists, who works for big tobacco. In a satirical way, the film shows how this man is able to achieve his companies goals through bending the facts, bribery, and out right lying in a way that is completely legal under our system of government. Aaron Eckhart is terrific, which will come as little surprise to many, however the film was anything but. Like most films, Thank You For Smoking has it's moments, but overall the film is one short scene that just repeats it's self over and over again. The situations are different and the players are different, but the arguments and agendas are always the same. After watching two hours of the same thing over and over again, I was more than done with this film. No matter how charismatic the actor may be, the fact is that what lobbyists do isn't terribly interesting. It's one meeting and argument after another and the film just completely runs around in circles. The film was critically acclaimed for Eckhart's performance, but nothing else. Some critics think that one outstanding performance makes a film worth seeing, but I don't. Aaron Eckhart is an outstanding actor, who has been great in many other films that are worth seeing. Thank You For Smoking is nothing more than an insult to the American people, that runs forty minutes too long, and just goes around in circles, it's not something I'd recommend wasting your time on.
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Awards
Golden Globes, USA
• 2 Nominations
Golden Trailer Awards
• 1 Win & 3 Nominations
Golden Schmoes Awards
• 3 Nominations
