Customer Reviews
Brilliant satire - By: Mr. D. Woods, 28 Aug 2008 
Jason Reitman should be pleased as punch with his superb directorial debut about a spokesman working for the American tobacco industry. The script simply bursts with wit, rich dialogue & snappy satirical shifts & it is anchored by a fabulous performance from the excellent Aaron Eckhart as Nick Naylor, a disarming spin doctor who defends his amoral employers against the most damning of odds.
I hugely enjoyed this film & it is piercingly funnyin places, often cutting quite close to the bone. As morally ambiguous as Naylor is, Eckhart plays him with such consummate charm that you almost find yourself cheering him on, as he campaigns for people's right to smoke (incidentally, the film has some very insightful things to say about free speech & our right to choose our pathsin life that help you empathise with Naylor's cause). There are also delightful supporting roles for William H. Macy, J.K. Simmons, Rob Lowe & Adam Brody, though I felt Maria Bello was a little underused & Katie Holmes had a slightly one-dimensional role as a duplicitous journalist. Also, & this is a minor niggle, Reitman's direction, as polished as it was, did sometimes veer close to smugness, particularly when presenting Macy's liberalist senatorin debate. But, with a script this good, the pace never slowed dramatically and, as I have to mention again, Eckhart was simply outstanding.
A fine satire on a contentious topic and, generally, a terrific film. Reitman has a bright future & I look forward to seeing more of his work.
The Yuppie Nuremberg Defense - By: Bentley, 17 Jun 2008 "I just need to pay the mortgage. Aside: The Yuppie Nuremberg Defense."
- Nick Naylorin Thank you for Smoking
Because of a fellow reviewer's comment, I decided to watch THANK YOU FOR SMOKING. Aaron Eckhart plays Nick Naylor who is a VP & "chief talking head" for the Academy of Tobacco Studies.
The Academy is supposed to research the link between nicotine & cancer. Who would have thought that they would never find any connection?
Nick gets himself into trouble with his "flexible morals" & his errant lobbying ways; but never loses the support of his young son Joey, played by Cameron Bright (despite what his ex wife calls his "dependency issues").
This is a great satirical piece; it was based upon a novel by Christopher Buckley & was the first full feature film directed by Jason Reitman (of Juno fame).
In terms of sensitivities, the film has little. This is not an endorsement of the cigarette industry; but it still does present a callous view of the deep sufferings of many (all caused by nicotine). If this does not hit close to home for you, the satire is well done & Naylor learns a lesson about the emancipation of those enslaved by nicotine himselfin a not so presidential manner.
Nick swaps horses; but doesn't seem to have lost any of his stripes by the end of the flick. A very funny film about a not so funny addiction.
Recommended: B+ (A biting satirical study)
Bentley/2008
High Quality satire - By: Jazzman, 04 Dec 2007 
Thank You For Smoking isn't your usual desperate laugh-a-minute movie. It's reserved, intelligent & sometimes brutal. The humour here is dark & brooding, the kind of stuff you'll smile aboutin the moment, & laugh about later.
I think what I liked most about this film is the way it walks a very tight-line. I mean, it really does make you care about quite an arrogant, immoral jerk who doesn't seem to care about anyone beyond himself & his boy. This is purely because Eckhart's character is so damn likeable! He appeals to the rebelin everyone, & I know, at timesin this movie, I sat there thinking, "damn, I wish I could be that f***ing cool all the time!"
The movie does a great job of exposing hypocrasy without resorting to clumsy preachiness, or leadin you by the hand. Does a great job of being funny without having to make you laugh all the time, & delivers one of the best bad-ass screen characters we've seen on film - who doesn't have to kick someone's ass every 15 minutes.
An under-rated movie, that definitely deserves your attention.
Americans do understand satire after all - By: Mr. Matthew Dickson, 05 Nov 2007 Wow, a genuinely funny satire. I honestly didn't think that any studio was interestedin making films like this any more. Talented cast, excellent script, treats it's audience with a modicum of intelligence.
One of my favourite films of 2007. Watch it!
Pure unadulterated wit - By: Mrs. A. S. Wince, 09 Oct 2007 In brief, The film follows the goings on of Nick Naylor, the spin doctor of big tobbaco as he argues & debates with anti smoking politicians & activists.
sounds dull right? wrong!
From the get go this film will captivate you & hold you undivided attention with its extraordinary wit & intellegent humour as a man of very flexible morals, teaches his son the art of argument & all without a single cast member smoking a ciggerette. Genius!
On the of chance that I need any more reitteration- watch this film, watch it right now!
