Thank you For Smoking Movie Review
Friday, February 24, 2006
Thank You For Smoking is a wickedly funny book.
I know this because I read it about three years ago. And, being ever the struggling screenwriter cliche, I instantly thought this would make a fabulous movie, if I could only pull it off. Well, as is par for the course, my hopes and dreams were crushed once I found out that a feature film version was being produced. I can take comfort, however, in knowing that not only did director Jason Reitman (son of legendary comedy director Ivan Reitman) do an adequate job, but he did an outstanding job.
I'm going on a limb here, but I'm willing to say that Thank You For Smoking is the first great film of 2006. It holds your attention from the clever opening title sequence (all the names are the brands of cigarettes on boxes) and it maintains this energy until the end credits roll. It's perfectly cast, sharply written, and terrifically acted, anchored by the glorious Aaron Eckhart. He OWNS this movie, and deserves any and all praise thrown at him. More on this later.
Thank You For Smoking tells the story of Nick Naylor (Eckhart), chief lobbyist for the tobacco industry in Washington D.C. When the film opens, Nick is on a talk show, along with a cancer stricken boy and several members of anti smoking groups. Naylor knows that he's the most hated man in the room, but he manages to turn the audience on to his side through methods both sleazy and ingenious. It's all downhill from here, as Naylor talks his way in and out of pretty much everything that gets sent his way, in a series of wonderfully comic scenes.
Whether he's meeting with a big Hollywood agent (played by Rob Lowe) about the merits of putting cigarettes back into movies (the film they decide would be perfect for this strategy is quite brilliant) or if he's trying to pay off the cowboy legend cigarette spokesman who's been diagnosed with lung cancer (Sam Elliott, again perfectly cast) Nick manages to know what to say and how to say it. What makes Naylor such a brilliant character, and this is very much to Eckhart's credit, is that you're fully aware what he's doing is pretty much reprehensible. But you go along with him.
By the end of the movie, you're actually rooting for him. The man can talk.
Throughout the film, he's actually trying to be a role model to his young son Joey (played by Cameron Bright, who was the creepy little kid from Birth and Godsend, but he's a little less creepy now), and I'll be damned if he isn't a good father. He's not exactly the greatest father, but he actually takes a vested interest in his son's life, and tries to teach him the ways of the world without sugar coating it.
There are large, multinational conglomerates that will always profit off of human loss and addiction, and people will always be speaking on their behalf, using dirty tricks to distract the public from the truth. But it's how you win an argument. It plays a lot better on the screen than how I just described it here.
As I mentioned earlier, this is Eckhart's film. He is ably supported by a seasoned cast, including William H Macy, Robert Duvall, J.K. Simmons, Rob Lowe, Maria Bello, David Koechner, Sam Elliott, Rob Lowe, and even Katie Holmes, who manages to hold her own (much like her turn in the recent Batman film). But they're sole purpose is to support Eckhart, who's on screen for almost every frame. And he holds his own.
Watch him as he turns a talk show crowd who hate him into some sympathetic folk who can't wait to hear what he says next. Then watch as he ably slips into his son's class for career day, to dispense valuable life lessons. He owns every scene, and you can't take your eyes off him. The cast is terrific, but without Eckhart, this film would fall apart like a house of cards.
The adaptation of the book is done rather well, keeping in key plot moments, while making a cohesive narrative. Reitman stumbles a little bit with a few unnecessary first time directorial flourishes, but since the whole damn package is so bitingly funny, you're willing to forgive him. Here's wishing him much success in the future. A solid first time outing.
The film is quite satirical, and it helps to understand this as you watch it. I fear people might not understand that bit going into this movie, and might be shocked to see such a sleazy character touting the virtues of smoking. The film is wise in that it doesn't take sides on the debate, but merely presents the story. Yes, the tobacco industry is full of horrible people who want to sell you death, but that's common knowledge. This movie is about making you laugh at the situation, and watching a true master at work.
Everything about this film worked for me. The tone, the pacing, the acting (you might have guessed I liked Aaron Eckhart), the cinematography, the score, everything.It's a well done film, and well worth your time and money. And it keeps you from smoking for 90 minutes. Far more effective than any of those obnoxious Truth.com ads on the TV these days. Thank You For Smoking is very funny, and quite intelligent, which is pretty much more than expected when you go to a movie these days.
FUN FACT: I don't recall seeing a single character, even one in the back ground, lighting up a cigarette. Interesting choice for a movie about the tobacco industry.
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posted by Evil @ 4:44 AM,
