You don’t smoke at the movies like you used to. Partly because in fewer and fewer films you see characters with a cigarette. In America, movie ratings (the age at which they can be seen by viewers) jump every time tobacco is brought to the mouth.
You no longer smoke like you used to, because literally since the 90s your attitude towards these kinds of scenes has changed. Today, cigarettes are considered special effects.
What do cigarettes look like in movies?
This is a prop, a prop made specifically for the cinema. However, even 30 years ago, when cigarettes were needed, it was enough to call the manufacturing companies and ask them to send a pack so that the actors really smoked. Even those who have never done it or were not going to start.
Not exactly the best for health, as scenes often take many takes. The cigarettes in the movies are not fake, but different. In fact, herbal cigarettes without nicotine or tobacco are used today. They can be identical copies of the originals, causing much less harm to the user.
Apparently, they are not even unpleasant to smoke, as you can choose from different flavors, including vanilla, mint, and strawberry. If any actor should have a certain type of allergy, the content may vary, but also according to preference. For example Liam Neeson is especially fond of chamomile tea.
There are other cases, for example, when children have to smoke in a movie theater. It uses extinguished cigarettes, which are then shortened from shot to shot, adding smoke in post-production. Natalie Portman was only 12 when she starred in Leon.. To prevent her from developing a smoking habit, her character was only seen holding a cigarette.
To make sure you’re healthy Portman was not in danger, her parents made some decisions. First, during the film, she was seen with a cigarette in her hand only five times, but she never took a puff. In addition, his character also quit smoking at some point during the film.
This was done to protect the actress’s health and send a positive message to children of that age who could easily idolize Portman and follow in her footsteps. To make it look realistic, the cigarette is cut to the required size in several places.
Why are there so many smokers in movies?
According to a WHO report, 44% of all films made in Hollywood contain scenes with actors smoking. Percentages are rising in Europe: in Germany, 5 out of 6 films produced in the top 10 most viewed country featured cigarettes, in France 5 out of 7, and in Italy 4 out of 4.
The WHO recently sounded the alarm about scenes in films with smoke and cigarettes. In Hollywood and beyond, smoking scenes have become a way to circumvent tobacco advertising bans, according to a World Health Organization report.
What do you think of this data? Is this the right choice for cinema? Let us know what you think with a comment.