Smoking increases in Movies

Smoking is increasing in movies (also in TV). A report last year showed movie scenes portraying smoking had increased thus reversing a 5 year trend. They seem shocked at this but surely anyone with a braincell could see it coming?

Movie makers have been handed the easiest way ever to portray a character as a bad ass, rebel, devil may care, etc. All they have to do is light up a cigarette. They then take this further by getting the character to light up where they shouldn't. Job done!

Take the film where the above pic is from. It's 'Killing Them Softly' starring Brad Pitt as a hitman. In one scene Pitt is in an expensive car driven by the guy that's hiring him. Pitt gets out a cigarette but the owner of the car asks him not to smoke in his car. Pitt glances at him, says nothing ... and then lights up his cigarette.

No dialogue is necessary, the act of simply lighting up the cigarette says it all!

l've noticed smoking used in many new films like this and l predict there will be a lot more to come. Expect more scenes where characters light up in places where smoking is banned. Expect scenes where  anyone who objects to the character smoking is humiliated or suffers violence. When will we get the first scene showing one of the Health Police trying to issue an on street fine and getting beat up or worse? It will come and l have no doubt about that.

Movies love to shock and now they've got such a ready made prop to do it with. No longer do you need guns or knives ... a cigarette more than does the job. Worse still for the anti-smoking zealots is that many of the characters are portrayed as 'cool' AND played by stars such as Pitt.

The anti-smokers have created their very own Frankenstein monster .... except unlike Shelley's monster, they can't kill it!