"Thank You For Smoking" --date unknown

I first saw Aaron Eckhart in Neil LaBute's "Your Friends and Neighbors" and will never forget his opening statements about love and sex; I'm paraphrasing but it basically went, "You know, the best sex I've ever had, is with myself. I am the best lover I've ever had." Am I too young to be asking myself that question? I've seen films with Aaron Eckhart subsequently, "Nurse Betty," the only minutes of "Erin Brokovich" I have ever seen featured Eckhart, and now "Thank You for Smoking" comes along. He is wonderfully cold and funny. This title alone entices any self-loathing smoker. The opening scene begins with Eckhart's character, Nick Naylor, addressing a talk-show crowd, representing the evil tobacco industry, defending and promoting tobacco to the mediocre, uneducated audience of middle-Americans, or even Americans in general, this film continually targets as its prime suspect. Isn't this movie really exploiting the American psyche? Scenes among the three legal industries which can be argued as the most detrimental to American society, tobacco, alcohol and firearms, take advantage of a patriotism toward America that maintains a status quo for certain wealthy persons. And isn't that just what this movie is saying, that anything goes with a price? Mocked in this film is the original Marlboro man, riddled with cancer, yet willing to fold over a suitcase of money. Whoopee, I'm fucking proud to be an American. Worthless, junky-like products, acceptable in lawmaker's eyes, because , fuckin A, they make money off it. I don't have to repeat myself. The beauty of a social comedy such as this is that it raises awareness to those who acknowledge the problems that make this film funny, the tragedy is the awareness is provided to those who are already aware, though still shackled with the narcissistic, materialist, competitive insecurities each and every American is brought up with, be them black, white, Latino, whatever. We all want more, and this film dedicates itself to the greed inherent in us, and any one who says different can kiss my ass.