Thank You for Smoking (R)

Making humor out of a serious topic is a risky and difficult endeavor. The potential to offend a portion of the populous is always a possibility, but crafty directors, good writing, and stellar performances can extinguish the politically correct flames and result in a cinematic work of art.

Smoking has been one of the most controversial topics over the past thirty years, and a 1994 satirical novel by Christopher Buckley entitled, “Thank you for Smoking” was first to broach the subject, and in 2005, was made into a movie with the same name.

Director Jason Reitman (“Juno,” “Up in the Air”) mans the helm and, with the help of leading man Aaron Eckhart (“The Dark Knight,” “Rabbit Hole,” “Olympus has Fallen”) and a horde of cameos by such major names as Rob Lowe, Katie Holmes, Sam Elliot, and the great Robert Duvall, “Thank You for Smoking” provides a delicious blend of humor, mild drama, and great acting – to go along with the perils of tobacco smoking and the power of government lobbyists.

The focal point of the film is Nick Naylor (Eckhart) a charismatic, smooth talking spinster lobbyist who is employed by the “Academy of Tobacco Studies.” Naylor narrates the opening by comparing himself to Genghis Kahn and Attila the Hun in describing just how unlikable a character his career has made him. “Few people on this planet know what it is to be truly despised,” he advises, before explaining that 1,200 deaths a day are attributed to cigarette smoking.

The story follows Naylor on his daily activities of defending smoking from the legion of those opposed to it, while he attempts to be a good role model for his twelve-year-old son. “The beauty of argument” he teaches young Joey (Cameron Bright) is that “if you argue correctly, and if it’s your job to be right, then you are never wrong.” Though Joey knows his father represents the smoking industry, he loves and admires him. Naylor teaches Joey the way any father would bestow wisdom upon his son.

Naylor also meets for weekly drinks with his friends and fellow lobbyists; Polly (Maria Bello) who works for the alcohol industry, and Bobby Jay (David Koechner) who works for the firearm industry. Affectionately nicknamed the M.O.D. Squad (Merchants of Death), the three friends joke over various news stories and bicker over which represents the more egregious vice.

As Naylor begins a romantic dalliance with a local reporter (Holmes) he prepares for battle with his biggest opponent; the tree-hugging and devout anti-smoking Vermont Senator Ortolan Finistirre (William H. Macy), who brings back his humorous persona from his character in “Fargo.”

“Thank You for Smoking” is pure comedy at its finest. Even scenes that would normally be taboo to humor, like Naylor dealing with a teenager stricken with cancer from second hand smoke, or his secret meeting with the Academy’s boss (Duvall) in a seedy lounge in the bowels of Winston-Salem, are so well done you will understand the satire completely. “Thank You for Smoking” pokes fun at the United States lobbyist and big industry system, along with those that are for and against tobacco.

Eckhart does a brilliant job of bringing the character of Nick Naylor off the pages and to real life. He has great interactions with his boss BR (J.K. Simmons) – a man known only by a nickname he received in Vietnam – with everyone else who knows the origins having perished on the battlefield. Business aside, Naylor is just a normal guy, who also has issues with his ex-wife and her new lover, and his friends and flings. Eckhart shows that Naylor is just a regular guy doing a job – the job just happens to be one viewed more unfavorably than that of a hooded executioner.

“Thank You for Smoking” will make you laugh and is a ride that flows smoother than a menthol light. And when all is said and done, it may even change your mind about how things are done, and the way you think.

by – Matt Christopher