Aaron Eckhart stars as the oh-so smooth spin-doctor for a big tobacco company in Thank You For Smoking, an "ingenious satire" by writer/director Jason Reitman. After opening to rave reviews, it has gone on to earn a Golden Globe nomination for Best Comedy (and Best Actor In A Comedy for Eckhart).
Smoke And Mirrors
"Aaron was born to play this part," gushes Reitman (although this could be considered an insult) in Unfiltered Comedy, a ten-minute Making Of featurette. It asks cast and crew why the comedy works despite treading a fine line between funny and just plain wrong. "It titillates the audience," says Eckhart, "because it's so politically incorrect." But crucially, William H Macy adds, "It's got a good heart - it's not mean-spirited." Reitman also talks about the problems of painting Macy's character as the villain given his worthwhile anti-smoking stance. For those who are interested in the mechanics of comedy, this featurette offers a good few insights. It's a shame though, that there is no direct behind-the-scenes access.
Living In Spin throws the spotlight on (allegedly!) the worst perpetrators of duplicity and doubletalk. Clips of US Presidents George Bush and Bill Clinton recall some of the more outrageous morsels of misinformation ever fed to the American public eg on the Monica Lewinsky scandal ("I did not have sexual relations with that woman..."), and Bush's assertion that, "When we're talking about war, what we're really talking about is peace." Now that's comedy.
Roll Your Own
Thirteen deleted scenes showcase a few of the gags that didn't make the cut. Perhaps the best sees an adman pitching his ideas for a new pro-smoking campaign eg father and son lighting up after a Little League baseball match, and a poster that encourages you to 'Have a nice death!' In an optional voiceover, Reitman explains that while these scenes were some of the funniest in Christopher Buckley's original novel, in the movie they felt "just a little too silly."
In his commentary for the film, Reitman elaborates on the importance of reining in the jokes so as not to break the suspension of disbelief. However, he reveals that his biggest challenge was directing a sex scene between Eckart and Katie Holmes. As he puts it, "To direct two people on how to hump each other is the worst directing job of all time!" On this occasion he turned to his father (veteran helmer Ivan Reitman) for advice. Eugh! Meanwhile, Eckhart reckons that playing air hockey is the best way to establish a solid father-son bond. At least that's how he and onscreen sprog Cameron Bright prepared for their scenes together.
Finally, check out the poster art in a set of three behind-the-scenes galleries. Even the tobacco honchos might draw the line at the cigarettes-as-crucifix imagery! If you've had your fill of homogenous Hollywood comedies and are looking for something a little more edgy, this DVD is for you. But be warned: there is a serious hazard of side splitting.
EXTRA FEATURES
Thank You For Smoking DVD is released on 8th January 2007.
