650 Words - Glamorising Smoking

Lauren Bacall

Since watching the film, I reviewed the other day Atomic Blonde I am still annoyed with the glamorising of smoking. Mentioning I, was going to blog about this everyone smoked in the eighties, I disagree. The film was based in the eighties but it is pushing the point a bit saying everyone was smoking.

First, some history passive smoking aside I was around eleven when I had my one and only puff on a cigarette it was around by the end bench in our local park. My mate Peter Owen R.I.P egged me on, under a bit of pressure to look cool I had a puff and instantly disliked it that was the end of that. I do think youngster saw smoking as cool and made you think you were older. My mum R.I.P died too early in her life due to smoking and she was a heavy smoker telling me it was the glamorisation of smoking on the silver screen that turned her into a smoker.

It was regarded cool, cheap, and socially acceptable and on the screen actresses like Lauren Bacall made it cool. She ended up living longer than my mum and died after suffering a massive stroke. Back then, there were no health warnings and by time there were being talked about it was too late for mum and any of her age they were addicts.

Today there is no excuses have you seen the shock tactics on the packaging and the cost now I laugh to myself every time they swing open the cabinets where this filth is now kept.

Forget the film being 1980s based. Here and now, the actress Charlize Theron was smoking like a trooper and after watching the movie my thoughts drifted to why was it because she did it for the role (method acting) or she was a regular puffer. Not just her, many actresses, and models are picture puffing away on a cigarette and many others but this is about the so-called beautiful people and you will see why soon.

They talk about being healthy they eat the right things look after the body and are happy to sell books, DVDs, and themselves in TV and newspapers. I find it a bit laughable they sprout healthy with a packet of 10 or 20 in their purse and pocket and the same goes for pretty men who trade on health.

Possibly one of the most iconic film posters ever but

would it but just as good without the cigarette

Take Natalie Portman she was only 12 when she starred in Léon and her role called for her to smoke but her parents were worried about the smoking scenes. So they worked out a contract with the film’s director saying Portman could only have five cigarettes in her hand throughout the entire film, she would never be seen inhaling or exhaling smoke, and her character would give up smoking during the course of the film.

A friend once told me he thought smoking is wrong but watching women smoke turns him on I fired back you may has well kiss an ashtray. I like the idea I read a while ago the French were of a mind to ban smoking in French films but Hollywood would never follow. Why not go further and make films run a graphic anti-smoking ad, and I mean shocking if there is smoking in the film. How can some with a black lung inside their body be healthy?

While looking into some of my favourite actress I was shocked to see Keira Knightley in a list of heavy smokers but in her more modern films, she does like a puff or two as a kid she could smoke and in front of her mother. In film, look no further than Domino although she is now a mother maybe so has stopped. It is simply you can tell people of your healthy living with a cigarette dangling out of your mouth you have a charcoal lung.