Thank You for Smoking

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

D-Dad and I caught a matinee of Thank You for Smoking today. I really enjoyed it. It's well written and well paced and entertaining, without being preachy or insulting anyone's intelligence. Aaron Eckhart, William H. Macy, Maria Bello and the rest of the cast are engaging and entertaining. OTOH, it kind of feels like Arli$$ meets lobbying, so I don't think that this will lose anything if you wait to catch it on the small screen. Still, if you're looking for intelligent humor, this is a good choice.

[Guest OlerudOwned]

I want to read the book first, which I've been meaning to do since I read Buckley's "Little Green Men" last year.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

The book was hilarious. Looking forward to the flick.

[Guest sharpie]

Yes, the book was great. Lenny Harris is currently reading it. "Little Green Men" was also very funny.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

I didn't like LGM nearly as much as TYFS.

[Guest sharpie]

Saw it this weekend. Very funny. Book was better but a good adaptation and the guy who played Nick Naylor was very good.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Johnny Dickshot wrote: I didn't like LGM nearly as much as TYFS.

This reads like he's comparing cheers at Shea.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Hey I just watched this. Yes, the book was better -- partly because it came out before the huge settlements -- but the adaptation was very good in spite of that. I guess the rest -- good cast/acting, intelligent, etc -- was said above.

However for all the talk of "incredible tits," the fact that what was shown was inconclusive at best on that front costs it one star in my ranking.

[Guest OlerudOwned]

OlerudOwned wrote: I want to read the book first, which I've been meaning to do since I read Buckley's "Little Green Men" last year.

I said this on April 1st.

I still haven't bought the damn book.

[Elster88]

Not bad. I like movies like this because they are more than the standard flick that you feel like you've seen a hundred times before.

I'll give it a 7.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Yeah, the style had a unique feel, both different from most, but different from Buckley's as well, more drawn from the cover art of the book than from the book itself. It had a pre-1965 flip feel to it, evoking a period where a clever guy had nothing to be ashamed of if people weren't as clever as him, and also Nick's dream world of when doctors were (seemingly, at least) on the cigarette industry's side.

A few big failings, (1) including Katie Holmes, (2) cutting out the plotline about the kidnapping being faked, and especially (3) being afraid to depict any actual smoking in the film.

The gun industry lobbyist was well-drawn.

[RealityChuck]

Decent, if not great satire.

[Willets Point]

I spent most of the movie just wanting to smack that guy.

Although it had some humorous moments, mostly this movie was one of those Hollywood-look-at-how-funny-we-are movies.

[Vic Sage]

one of the best of an admittedly weak movie year. Sharp, well drawn, touching. Eckart pulls off an amazing trick of making that character sympathetic.

But Katie Holmes is almost always a bad idea.

And what was that JD said about "incredible tits"?
Where? When? Was I napping? shoot. I really hate missing incredible tits.

[Frayed Knot]

Katie's girl-next-door cuteness def wasn't right for that part.