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Not since The Boiler Room (2000) in which Vin Diesel showed he could act, has there been a film detailing the psychology behind selling. In this case, it is the selling of cigarettes and Aaron Eckhart turns out to be a master at it. With his rugged good looks, Eckhart claims attention whenever he walks into a room and uses this to good measure as a lobbyist for the cigarette industry. Such is the idea of writer/director Jason Reitman as he skewers lobbyists and their businesses, not only tobacco, but also alcohol and gun control.

The story has Aaron Eckhart divorced from Kim Dickens, but sharing custody of their son, Cameron Bright. Aaron has an uncanny knack of knowing just what to say at the right time. You would not want to debate this man. He is riding high in his lobbyist job, as are his friends, Mario Bello (alcohol) and David Koechner (gun control) at theirs. They call their group, “The Mod Squad,” which means “merchants of death.” Aaron has a soft side for his son, though, and tries to teach him good ideals.

One of the things Aaron has to do is to bribe the former Marlboro Man (played by Sam Elliott) to stop protesting the smoking industry, even though the Man has been diagnosed with cancer. Aaron’s visit turns from frightening to salesmanship and his esteem rises in the eyes of his son. Alas, anti-lobbyists are stalking Aaron and he will find that being involved in this industry could result in kidnapping.

Tom Cruise’s girlfriend, Katie Holmes is here as a reporter who uses the ego-laden Eckhart for her own purposes. Rob Lowe makes an appearance as a Hollywood “facilitator” who knows who is right for what job, as long as they like Japanese culture. By the way, the word “facilitator” must be the “in” word now, as that is Jodie Foster’s job in The Inside Man.

The soundtrack by Rolfe Kent takes classic songs of the Thirties and Forties that glorified smoking and uses them as highlights in the film. In fact, there is even a montage of old cigarette ads and it is a game to see how many you can remember. Whether you smoke or not, you will enjoy the satire as it is used against the pomposity of Senator Finistirre (William H. Macy) from Vermont, who bites off more than he can chew. Why can’t the U.S. have an ambassador like Eckhart’s character? There doesn’t seem to be a problem he can’t solve.

Thank You For Smoking shows that a cad might have a tender side, too, and perhaps a wisp of loneliness for the life he could have had. How to mold his son’s mind? Teach him to think for himself and not follow the crowd. Good advice, if he can do it. Aaron Eckhart takes the smarmy quality associated with his past film roles (In The Company of Men 1997) and puts them to good use here. He shines as Nick Naylor, who always comes up smelling like the proverbial rose. Those in his wake never knew what hit them. Humor comes from the pokes at gun control to David Koechner’s personal arsenal that shows up at every checkpoint to the commentary at the weekly meetings of “The Mod Squad.”  Senate hearings turn into a personal rout and even the Marlboro Man has his price. Debate teams, take notes.

Copyright 2006 Marie Asner
Submitted 3/29/06