I love it, too, when Hollywood displays a conscience: Thank You for Smoking, a film now playing in selecting theatres, takes a critical and satirical look at the machinations of the tobacco industry and lobby. As Robert Duvall's character says: "We sell cigarettes... and they're cool, and they're available, and they're addictive... the job is practically done for us!" One of the funnier, albeit politically incorrect, scenes involves the MOD Squad -- that is, Merchants of Death -- lobbyists for the tobacco, alcohol, and gun industry.
One of my favorite actors, William H. Macy found the philosophical, ethical and political questions raised in the film to be among the most engaging elements of the project. "What authority does the government have to protect us from ourselves? I don't know the answer and I think it's constantly changing."
Director Jason Reitman even has his own blog about what it was like tackling these issues and making the movie.
In the meanwhile, one of the lines from the movie, should qualify as the quote of the day:
"99 percent of everything done in the world, good or bad, is done to pay a mortgage...perhaps the world would be a better place if everyone rented."
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