Study Shows Bad Guys In Movies Smoke More

smokeing.jpgSomeone has way too much time on their hands. Smoking is becoming a bigger and bigger issue in North America. Me personally… I don’t smoke. I think smoking is as dumb as shoving a fork up your ass for jollies (only the fork up your ass is less bad for your health). However… smoking is LEGAL. So if it’s not illegal… then leave the smokers alone. Let them do what they want to do.

But apparently some folks are accusing the movie industry of promoting smoking. So some scientist said to themselves “we need to do a study on this”. So they watched 450 movies made since 1990 to determine if film really does promote smoking. Here’s what the BBC reports of their findings:

The study in the journal Chest, which examined almost 450 hit US films made since 1990, found 35% of villains smoked compared with 20% of heroes.

It also said smoking was not much more common on screen than in real life. And independent film-makers were more likely to show characters lighting up than the big studios, it found. “Children and adults of all ages can be influenced by what they view in movies,” said Paul Kvale, president of the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP).

“This study emphasises the need for responsible film-making when it comes to portraying smoking.”

Overall, 23.3% of lead characters smoked on screen, it said – compared with 21.8% of people in US society. Men and white people were more likely to smoke in films than women and ethnic minorities – the same pattern as in real life. And 46% of independent movies studied featured a lead character who smoked, compared with 18% of films made by the big studios.

Dr Karan Omidvari of St Michael’s Medical Center in Newark, New Jersey – the lead researcher on the study – said: “Independent movie-makers, who work outside the Hollywood system, are much more callous and ‘guilty’ when it comes to portraying smoking indiscriminately.”

Hahaha… so what’s the point? “Yeah, we have no problem with that guy shooting the hooker in the face with a shotgun… but SWEET MERCY!!!! Make sure he doesn’t have a smoke in his hand when he does it!

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5 thoughts on “Study Shows Bad Guys In Movies Smoke More

  1. I smoke. I hate myself for doing it. However, I stumbled upon this site while looking for the movie with the quote “smoke up johnny”. If you know the movie, please post it on this site. ANYONE?!?!?! Its killing me! Im wasting time at work with one of my buddies by trying to stump each other with movie quotes… im losing. I need a cigarette. DANGIT!!!!!!!!!!! Please hurry… before I die. Or before I kill someone else with second hand smoke.

  2. Hey scientist buddies…How about more useless studies?

    -Do bad guys run and trip more than good guys?

    -Do actors have more lines in independant movies?

    -Do actresses show more skin than actors?

    -Is Legolas gay?

    My study shows scientists who ran this study are 95% more stupid than cancer-curing scientists.

  3. ok i don’t smoke, but i have to say the best thing about it that comes to mind is the fact that it provides the idea for “the smoking room”, love that show. it’s a great bbc3 comedy. i urge anyone wh cn, to check it out, although i’m sure mny won’t find it tht great. just as i wasn’t over the moon with “the office” or “the extras”. still think ricky’s great though, esp on his radio show.

    back on track, i think this study is just an excuse to waste some money. yes people smoke in films, so wht? i’ll bet the amount hs been decreasing though the decades though.

    re cybermike: i quote

    “The fact that it tends to be the ‘bad guys’ who smoke in films doesn’t make smoking any less appealing,” she said. it goes on to say that producers and directors have a responsibility to think carefully whether smoking is needed in the scene/film. for god’s sake! by this logic, anti-gun campaigners would force no guns, the humane society would force no violence, anti-meat protesters would ensure only vegatarins are featured in films, the list goes on and on. give it a rest.

    as a matter of fact, why is this such big issue, i would think tht violence is far more impressionable, yet no-one is trying to legislate tht are they?

  4. If we go by these numbers we can assume that the movie industry is not promoting smoking. They are actually anti-smoking because as you know the bad guys, who are more likely to smoke, die young.

  5. I don’t smoke. I have never really cared about smoking or any other thing that is shown in the movies. It is part who that person is being in the movie. Good or bad guys that smoke or drink…no big deal.

    That including product placements. I could care less. It makes more a reality if these things are part of the movie. Why do I feel we are getting closer of loosing our rights and heading for a one world order. Is this how Russia and China got started?

    Donna A.

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