There was a time when it was considered cool to smoke in films, but now it 
is to be censored along the same lines as sex, violence and swearing – suitable only for over 18s in America where it will be R-rated.
As the non-smoking film maker Marshall Merskovitz points out, the world is filled with terrible things that can influence children, but should every terrible thing warrant an R-rating? We are surrounded by many of these terrible things.
“The problem is that excess drinking is a terrible thing and also kills millions of people a year. And influences young people. Driving automobiles irresponsibly is a truly terrible thing and kills tens of thousands of people a year and influences young people. Guns are terrible things. Sexual harassment is a terrible thing. Robbery is a terrible thing. War is a terrible thing. Being mean to other children is a terrible thing.”
The film industry said the move demonstrates its growing commitment to reducing teenage smoking. If Lois Lane lights up, for example, a movie that previously would have earned a PG-13 rating, based on its levels of sex, violence, and vulgarity, might now get an R –rating and a warning to parents that the film glamorises smoking.
The cynic might say that Mersckovitz knows his films will lose money if they can’t be shown to wider audiences. Will it mean the kiss of box-office death?
While not wishing to promote teenage smoking, I think this censorship is going too far, that children’s main influencers are in the home, their school and neighbourhood.
I took up smoking as an act of teenage defiance.
I still smoke twenty a day.
Fact is, when I took it up I knew it wasn’t clever. But I still did it. And still do.
They are pushing it too far.
This kind of uber-sensitive politically correct agenda is hardly the recipe for artistic film-making, is it? Sounds like a perfect fit for Hollywood then! 😉
NB: That photo is of Scarlet Johanssen in ‘The Black Dahlia’ (trust me, I’m a big Scarlet fan!). Now, notwithstanding the fact that this wasn’t a very good movie, it was a film noir set in late 1940s LA. It would be an absurd contrivance to make this type of movie, set in this era, in which the characters are all non-smokers.
I would like to see a film categorization based on tastelessness and vulgarity, rather than smoking, boozing or sex. I find so many contemporary films cringeworthy in their grossness.
Watched a 1953 vintage film last evening starring Bob Mitchum. I don’t think he was ever without a cigarette. And, as unhealthy as smoking might be, it somehow was a fitting prop. Can you imagine a Bogey film without Bogey smoking. We’ll just disregard the fact he died prematurely of throat cancer.
Cheers,
Ian
Personally I can’t stand cigarette smoke because I’m asthmatic. But banning smoking in films seems ridiculous: as you and some of your commenters are saying, there are worse things to worry about in films, such as gratuitous violence. I can’t imagine Robert Mitchum or Bogey without a cigarette either.
Maybe films should be classified depending on how good they are. So R could stand for rubbish and we’d all save our time and money.
I think that smoking in films should reflect real life – so if it is appropriate that a character smokes, so be it.
Tell me they won’t go back and edit out smoking from the old classics.
If drinking were ever banned from British TV screens before the watershed, it would spell the end of the TV soap. So even cendorship has its good points!
Ellee, you like to ask the curly ones. I’d love to see smoking stamped out but not with a jackboot. Don’t know what to think here. Ian Lidster and others make good points above.
How hypocritical to try and ban smoking, yet the movie are keen to promote sex, violence, drug taking and all sorts of others.
I think this is an another example of “political correctness” going overboard! So stupid. Movies, in the most part are about life…people smoke in real life! People drink in real life…people have sex in real life…and so on and on…I abhor these “do-gooders”…I really do!
The PC Police are everywhere. I’ve long said that it won’t be long before DIY stores will soon only be selling grey paint, all clothes will be grey and all attempts at being different will be punished.
“We don’t need no thought control…All in all it’s just another brick in the wall”
Yes I think this is ludicrous- the example of the Black Dahlia is a good one- its the kind of film which requires smoking in it for it to have the realistic portrayel of the period that you would want. Society in general has become much more prudish about cigarettes and about drink- if you look say at the ammount that Bogie drinks in Casablanca, the man could barely stand up by the end- that’s all to the good but it doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t drink or smoke in movies.
Having said that have you seen Thank you for Smoking its about a lobbyist for the tobacco industry and part of it of course is about the way that movies can sell cigarettes- so Lauren Bacall smoking for example gives you an image of cool sexy cigarettes which makes you want to smoke- worth thinking about perhaps.
Overall though I think there are more serious things in the world- smoking shouldn’t be as prominent as it was in the forties and fifties in films and I’d worry if it were- but it strikes me that if its appropriate for the story it shouldn’t have an R in front of it.
My own general principle is would you be happy to see something go on in public places where kids can see it every day- smoking no question- now violence and sex are more objectionable and that’s why we should give them ratings on the screen.
Nothing is censored here: Let’s get that straight. This is not a government agency giving out ratings and no movie is required to submit to the voluntary ratings system (although, of course, any movie that is not submitted is guaranteed minimal distribution). Nor is smoking banned (as it has been banned in public places in Chicago — even for actors on stage!) Showing people smoking has just joined the list of certain things that can not be said or shown without ‘earning’ an R rating.
Mind you, I don’t agree with it for a second — but let’s make certain we’re calling it what it is. And it’s not censorship.
And I agree that the most important influence on a child comes from home — but don’t you think the language has coarsened considerably since profanity became standard in all movies and (seemingly) most TV shows?
I think this is all ridiculous – really we had the same debate when smoking ads were banned and that helped!
I don’t think that’s fair to say – we should debate these things otherwise you don’t have freedom of speech in society.