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Movies / Upcoming / Thank You For Smoking
Thank You For Smoking

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Thank You For Smoking (2006)

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86 %
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Reviews Counted:174

Fresh:149

Rotten:25

Average Rating:7.3/10

Consensus: Delightfully unscrupulous characters and searing cynicism prick all sides of the anti-smoking issue with hilarity and intelligence.

Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins

Genre: Comedies

US Box Office: $24,627,629

Synopsis: Jason Reitman has learned well. The son of director-producer Ivan Reitman (STRIPES, GHOSTBUSTERS) makes a strong impact with his debut feature film, the hysterical THANK YOU FOR SMOKING. Based on... Jason Reitman has learned well. The son of director-producer Ivan Reitman (STRIPES, GHOSTBUSTERS) makes a strong impact with his debut feature film, the hysterical THANK YOU FOR SMOKING. Based on the wry novel by Christopher Buckley, THANK YOU FOR SMOKING is set in the fascinating world of Washington spin, where, more often than not, money trumps politics and morals. Aaron Eckhart (IN THE COMPANY OF MEN, ERIN BROCKOVICH) is outstanding as Nick Naylor, the public spokesman for Big Tobacco. The blond pretty boy has no problem whatsoever going on television and telling people that smoking can actually be good for them. He meets regularly with the M.O.D. Squad -- fellow Merchants of Death Polly Bailey (Maria Bello), who represents the alcohol business, and Bobby Jay Bliss (David Koechner), who defends firearms -- where they fight over who has the more difficult job based on the number of deaths their respective industries are responsible for. The smooth-talking Naylor's next big adversary is Vermont senator Ortolan Finistirre (William H. Macy), who is calling for the government to place a skull and crossbones and the word "Poison" on all cigarette boxes. At the same time, Naylor is sent out to Hollywood to make a deal with high-powered agent Jeff Megall (Rob Lowe) to get more stars to smoke in movies, like in the good old days. All the while, Naylor is trying to establish a better relationship with his young son, Joey (Cameron Bright), without playing down his highly questionable job. The strong cast also includes Kim Dickens as Naylor's ex-wife, J.K. Simmons as his boss, Katie Holmes as a sexy reporter, Sam Elliott as the former Marlboro Man now dying of lung cancer, and Robert Duvall as the Captain, an old-time tobacco chief who takes Naylor under his wings. THANK YOU FOR SMOKING is a very funny satire that will leave audiences gasping for breath from laughing so hard. [More]

Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Maria Bello, Cameron Bright, Adam Brody

Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Maria Bello, Cameron Bright, Adam Brody, Sam Elliott, Katie Holmes, David Koechner, Rob Lowe, William H. Macy, J.K. Simmons, Robert Duvall

Director: Jason Reitman

Director: Jason Reitman
Screenwriter: Jason Reitman
Producer: Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, Max Levchin, Mark Woolway
Composer: Rolfe Kent
Studio: Fox Searchlight Pictures

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Reviews for Thank You For Smoking

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81 - 100 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
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When it is funny, it is really funny.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
04/01/06
Peter Sobczynski
Peter Sobczynski
eFilmCritic.com

Reitman, still in his 20s, knows something that many more seasoned directors never figure out: how to make audiences laugh along with a film that's laughing at itself.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment Comment
03/31/06
Moira MacDonald
Moira MacDonald
Seattle Times

Watch it and light up, mentally.

Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | comment Comment
03/31/06
David Elliott
David Elliott
San Diego Union-Tribune

It's filled with nice little moments of trenchant drollery, kind of like a really good political humor blog.

Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
03/31/06
Shawn Levy
Shawn Levy
Oregonian

Literate and smirky in its assault on liars and fools across the map.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
03/31/06
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle

In the end, Nick and the world in which he traffics ends up a comic interpretation of a serious situation, and while the amoral ambiguity of the entire film is intriguing for a while, in the end you realize this patient has no pulse.

Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment Comment
03/31/06
Tom Long
Tom Long
Detroit News

To Reitman's credit, the director does not allow Thank You for Smoking to take the turn we would expect.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
03/31/06
Terry Lawson
Terry Lawson
Detroit Free Press

Enjoyable not only because it shows the duplicity of spinning but because it allows its characters to revel in the joy they experience as contemporary con artists.

Full Review Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News | comment Comment
03/31/06
Robert Denerstein
Robert Denerstein
Denver Rocky Mountain News

The book had a fearlessness that the movie version so lacks.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
03/31/06
Michael Booth
Michael Booth
Denver Post

A fun, smart film. But you can't help but wish Thank You would bare its fangs a little more.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
03/31/06
Chris Vognar
Chris Vognar
Dallas Morning News

Funny enough movie but not much there there.

Full Review Source: Denton Record Chronicle (TX) | comment Comment
03/31/06
Boo Allen
Boo Allen
Denton Record Chronicle (TX)

To watch the film is to feel the delicious discomfort of being seduced by a devilish charmer.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
03/30/06
Colin Covert
Colin Covert
Minneapolis Star Tribune

If anyone tries to tell you that Thank You for Smoking is a scorching satire of Big Tobacco, just tell them, well, that they're blowing smoke.

Full Review Source: Boulder Weekly | comment Comment
03/30/06
Thomas Delapa
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

A smart-aleck satire with something on its mind is always welcome.

Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
03/30/06
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Intelligent and witty from start to finish and by far the best satire comedy of the year.

Full Review Source: ReviewExpress.com | comment Comment
03/29/06
Michael Black
Michael Black
ReviewExpress.com

Though it soft-pedals the venom and comes across more as adolescently smart-*** rather than truly abrasive, it's still amusing.

Full Review Source: One Guy's Opinion | comment Comment
03/29/06
Frank Swietek
Frank Swietek
One Guy's Opinion

Cute, clever, and quirky. The film's makers seem so much more interested in making fun, than choosing sides.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Report Card | comment Comment
03/28/06
Ross Anthony
Ross Anthony
Hollywood Report Card

Eckhart, in a sure-handed performance, holds the picture together.

Full Review Source: New Yorker | comment Comment
03/28/06
David Denby
David Denby
New Yorker
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Writer-director Jason Reitman, here adapting Buckley's 1994 lampoon of the tobacco lobby, understands that the author's verbal slapstick and pyrotechnical plot turns are both smart and broad.

Full Review Source: Premiere Magazine | comment Comment
03/28/06
Glenn Kenny
Glenn Kenny
Premiere Magazine

... a sly, smart and very funny caricature of corporate politics and image culture.

Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
03/27/06
Sean Axmaker
Sean Axmaker
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
 
 
81 - 100 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
all

Latest News for Thank You For Smoking

May 07, 2008: Buckley's Boomsday Getting Film Treatment Opens in new window
Ron Bass is adapting Boomsday, a satirical novel by Thank You for Smoking author Christopher Buckley, for GreeneStreet Films and Das Films. More...

March 26, 2008: Jason Reitman Knows How to Sell Movie Tickets
Juno director Jason Reitman may have an Oscar nomination under his belt, but establishment success hasn't spoiled his taste for subversive fun. More...

December 06, 2007: Box Office Guru Preview: Golden Compass Sets Course For #1 Debut
New Line hopes to breathe some life into the North American box office with the launch of its pricey adventure film The Golden Compass which stands as the frame's only new wide... More...

May 14, 2007: Maria Bello to Replace Rachel Weisz in "Mummy 3"
A few weeks back I expressed some skepticism that Universal would re-cast Rachel Weisz's "Mummy" role with a new actress. Looks like I was wrong. More...

See All

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