History YMMV / ThankYouForSmoking

* MagnificentBastard: Nick Naylor is a slick Washington D.C. lobbyist speaking on behalf of the tobacco industry. As part of his job, Naylor frequently makes televised appearances to discredit anti-smoking activists--even managing to convince the LittlestCancerPatient to come around to his point of view--by confusing them with a ChewbaccaDefense, bribes a disgruntled ex-tobacco mascot from speaking out against big tobacco, and schemes with Hollywood executives to introduce new ProductPlacement of cigarettes in film. Nick gets into a fling with a reporter who releases a stinging exposée on Naylor and his associates in the "Merchants of Death" group that results in Nick being let go by his boss, but Nick manages to turn the situation to his advantage by discrediting the reporter with veiled comments about her tactics to the press, and facing down [[MoralGuardians Senator Finistirre]] in a subcommittee hearing by advocating for the right to choose over moral policing while simultaneously exposing the Senator's hypocrisies. Nick manages to avoid the fall-out of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, opting to start a consulting firm for new industries peddling potentially dangerous products.

* FridgeLogic: Will a "POISON" label on cigarettes ''really'' discourage teens from smoking? Wouldn't that be... [[ForbiddenFruit cooler]]?
** They actually do make a brand like this in the book with this line of thinking, and there's also a mention of brands in some European countries that had been doing this for a long time. They didn't want every brand to carry it, but in the book and in a deleted scene in the movie, Nick works with the marketing teams to make it work in their favour as much as possible, [[RefugeInAudacity including an idea to have the skull match that of]] [[Series/MisterRogersNeighborhood Mr. Rogers']].
** In RealLife (as mentioned below), Australian law mandates that every cigarette pack has something similar, only with a disgusting image to go with the warning (and since 2012 all are in a plain pack). Unlike in the movie, the law focuses on making smoking look unappealing.

* HarsherInHindsight: The sophistic "Vanilla vs. Chocolate Ice Cream" method of debate has [[https://twitter.com/raffysoanti/status/1403093629086965760?lang=en gotten really popular in as bad a way as you'd expect since around 2015]]. Incidentally, Elon Musk is listed as an executive producer which probably would cause some collar pulling circa 2023 if not earlier.

* AcceptableTargets: Politicians and lobbyists, naturally.

* DesignatedHero: Nick. A lot of his speeches revolve around the fact that smoking is a choice, yet it's been stated within the film itself that cigarettes are addictive, making his statement come across as trivialising. There's also his argument that consumer products such as chocolate and cheese are also unhealthy, yet smoking can still be considered worse as it causes cancer and produces second-hand smoke that's harmful to asthmatics who don't get a say in the matter.

** Packs in India now carry photos of damaged lungs. Nothing has changed there either.

* CrazyAwesome: Jeff, the movie producer. Best shown by this quote, in response to Jeff calling Nick at four in the morning:

** When a controversial heterosexual affair comes out in the open, the man can take advantage of the societal DoubleStandard that the woman will face more scrutiny from others as well as repercussions in their career. It's also RealityEnsues that Nick reveals Heather used sex to get her story and violated his trust, which turns the tide as people get an EveryoneHasStandards moment on seeing the interview.

* RefugeInAudacity: Again, Nick, by virtue of fervently arguing positions that his opponents presume he'd completely back down from.

** Packs in India carry photos of damaged lungs. Nothing has changed there either.

* MagnificentBastard: Nick Naylor is a slick Washington D.C. lobbyist speaking on behalf of the tobacco industry. As part of his job, Naylor frequently makes televised appearances to discredit anti-smoking activists--even managing to convince the LittlestCancerPatient to come around to his point of view--by confusing them with a ChewbaccaDefense, bribes a disgruntled ex-tobacco mascot from speaking out against big tobacco, and schemes with Hollywood executives to introduce new ProductPlacement of cigarettes in film. Nick gets into a fling with a reporter who releases a stinging exposée on Naylor and his associates in the "Merchants of Death" group that results in Nick being let go by his boss, but Nick manages to turn the situation to his advantage by discrediting the reporter with veiled comments about her tactics to the press, and facing down [[MoralGuardians Senator Finistirre]] in a subcommittee hearing by advocating for the right to choose over moral policing while simultaneously exposing the Senator's hypocrisies. Nick manages to avoid the fall-out of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, becoming a spokesman for new industries peddling potentially dangerous products.

-->'''Jeff:''' Sunday.