|
|
|
|
|
|
Written by:
FOREWORD by Professor Kenneth MacKinnon One of the earliest investigations of smoking within film was undertaken by Dr Stanton Glantz, Professor of Medicine at the University of California1. His research into 62 commercially successful movies in 1960 was undertaken 4 years before the general public was made aware of the link between smoking and lung cancer2. Since then, the increasing awareness of the health risks from smoking, the rise in teenage smoking over the last decade3, and increasing studies showing the influence of glamorous images of smoking4 have all lent urgency to the need to quantify the prevalence of smoking in film and to understand its influence. This decade has seen increased academic interest in this area; Dr Terence Wright’s ‘Images of Smoking in Film’, reviewed the top ten films in the UK between January and June 1993 and found that 8 in 10 films across all age categories, and two thirds of films targeted at young people, contained smoking scenes. A later American study accused Hollywood of reinforcing ‘misleading images’ and overstating the normality of smoking5. Another US study by the American Lung Association of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails, ‘Teens Take a Look at Tobacco Use in the Movies’, found that movies displayed 5 times as much tobacco use as TV6. Hillary Clinton has recently criticised Hollywood for its over-use of cigarettes on screen. She believes that depicting stars smoking in certain scenes allows cigarettes to be equated with ‘status, power, confidence and glamour’7. In an attempt to quantify and understand smoking within film into the Millennium this report appraises a new audit of cigarette images in the movies - comparing the prevalence and the context of smoking in the top 10 box office films of 1990 and 1995. A pilot audit of smoking "incidents" in 5 of the top 10 films of 1997 is also included. This study also goes on to analyse the historical significance of smoking in film and ends with an appraisal of its possible meaning with recommendations for the film industry on their policy towards smoking.
SMOKING AND FILM - A HISTORY by Professor Kenneth MacKinnon Introduction The use of smoking in the movies throughout history reflects many different factors - not least the cultural and political attitudes in society at the time. The characteristics linked to cigarettes have remained fairly consistent however. This section tracks the associations that film-makers have wished to imply through their use of cigarette images during this century. Glamour and independence Confidence and glamour were linked to the use of cigarettes at least as early as the 1920s and 30s, when female stars’ smoking in movies and publicity "shots" went far beyond ‘bad-girl’ associations, to suggest female strength and independence. Marlene Dietrich is a prime example of this, as is Mae West, whose potentially negative "ball-breaker" image is somewhat defused by her comedic persona. The promotion of this theme was continued into the 1940s with Lana Turner, who seemed in her movies and publicity photos to have a cigarette ‘forever hanging provocatively from her blood red lips’8. Later the star tried to join legal action against the tobacco industry before she died of cancer in 1995. Other film stars who lit up on screen and died because of the habit include Gary Cooper, Dietrich’s lover in von Sternberg’s Morocco. He died of lung cancer at the age of 60. Humphrey Bogart, whose image is impossible to conceive without a cigarette, died of oesophageal cancer. Sex, eroticism and gender During the Hays Code9 years, smoking practically stood for sex, which was prevented from being directly represented. A key wartime moment for the positive association of cigarettes with romance and desire is the final scene of Now, Voyager (1942), in which Paul Henreid lights two cigarettes between his lips and hands one to Bette Davis. It is a moment which is read by UK film critic, Gus Parr, as marking the heroine’s ‘transition to sexual maturity - and the cigarette’s to gender-parity’10. In this sequence, Davis benefits from associations usually created for male star smokers i.e. dependability and strength under stress. Her ‘bad-girl’ smoking might involve the sending of smoke signals through parted lips or flaring nostrils. The possible ambiguity of male as well as female cigarette use is exemplified in the cynical tale of urban and moral corruption, The Sweet Smell of Success (1957), where the cigarette acts to portray power and status, but also disposability and ephemerality. The ending of the Code11 led to a diminishing role for the cigarette as a prop for sex or eroticism. If Bette Davis’s smoking, particularly in the 1940s, indicates female independent-mindedness, Elizabeth Taylor’s in, for example, BUtterfield 8 seems more readily open to interpretation as her losing, not maintaining, self-control. This perhaps reflects another key gender stereotype - the woman who smokes in times of weakness. By the early 1980s, in movies such as Body Heat, where naked bodies grapple in love scenes generally described as ‘steamy’, smoking seems redundant or to be searching for a role within a screenplay. Smoking rebels What may be emerging during the 1990s is a new role for cigarettes within movie scenarios. Perhaps the germs of the idea were already there in the 1950s. In that decade, the star persona of James Dean or Marlon Brando incorporated the notion of ‘rebel’ against the hypocrisy and repression of small town and family life. Their portraiture with cigarettes suggested healthy revolt against unreasonable and unglamorous stricture. Today, smoking’s image is not just dusted off, its glamour restored, but it can pose as downright virtuous - if refusal to accept a society’s repressive demands is seen as virtue. Clues to this new use of tobacco on screen are provided most succinctly in 1995's Smoke and Blue in the Face, in which Harvey Keitel plays the owner of a smoke-shop. ‘The cigarette is here’, it has been stated12, ‘the essence of human pleasure, of addiction and of the sensuous. It is good and bad perfectly combined.’ Among the stars who have recently helped to restore glamour to cigarettes are; Julia Roberts in My Best Friend’s Wedding, Brad Pitt in Sleepers and Arnold Schwarzenegger in True Lies. In a period when smoking can posture as a liberatory gesture against authority, it is not difficult to understand the most audience-pleasing actors may be once more using cigarettes to augment their charisma.
BACKGROUND TO SMOKING AUDIT by Dr Lesley Owen, Health Education Authority
Smoking prevalence has declined in this country over the last 50 years. Young people seem to have resisted this trend, however, and over a third of 16-24 year olds now smoke13. Smoking prevalence in this group increased by 5 per cent between 1994-199614. The numbers of young women who smoke is a specific cause for concern. The reasons underlying this rise are complex and multifactorial but the role of glamorous imagery in the media - and especially in the movies - could be playing a key role in promoting positive associations with cigarettes. As US media researchers William J Brown and Arvind Singhal have commented: "The past 50 years of communication theory and research have demonstrated that entertainment media has a profound and measurable influence on the attitudes, beliefs and behaviours of media users."15 Research conducted by the Health Education Authority16 has reinforced this theme. The young people interviewed in the study stated that they were influenced by glamorous images of stars and models smoking and they associated cigarettes with positive characteristics such as power, individuality and self assertiveness. In conclusion, the appraisal of images of smoking in the movies is certainly an increasingly important area of study - especially in the context of:
METHODOLOGY By Dr Lesley Owen, Health Education Authority Objectives
Method The top 10 grossing films at cinema box offices during 1990 and 1995 were taken as the study sample. The information on these films (shown below) was provided by Screen International. A pilot study using the same methodology has recently been undertaken into a random sample (5) of the top 10 grossing films of 1997. A questionnaire was drafted based on previous models used in research of this nature18. It sought to identify the number of times smoking or cigarettes appeared on screen. A smoking "incident" was defined as the presence of a cigarette on screen (whether smoked or unsmoked). If a character was smoking and their hand (and cigarette) disappeared off screen - then came back into shot moments later - this was counted as two incidents. If two people were smoking on the same screen this was also counted as two incidents. For each smoking incident, the questionnaire sought to identify (from a list of options) the following about the characters who smoked:
For each smoking incident, the questionnaire also sought to identify (from a list of options) the following about the scenes in which characters smoked:
In addition to this:
To view the films and complete the survey, two independent researchers were recruited. The films were evaluated on video and at the cinema to reflect the different settings in which people now watch movies. Films audited The films viewed as part of the survey, with the company who distributed them and their box office takings during the year in question were: 1990 1. Ghost (UIP) £17,269,748 2. Pretty Woman (Warner Bros) £11,990,862 3. Look Who’s Talking (Colombia TriStar) £10,117,000 4. Honey, I Shrunk The Kids (Warner Bros) £9,395,091 5. Total Recall (Guild) £8,508,181 6. Ghostbusters II (Colombia TriStar) £8,301,000 7. Back to the Future: Part III (UIP) £7,996,334 8. Gremlins 2: The New Batch (Warner Bros) £7,419,354 9. Back to the Future: Part II (UIP) £7,252,153 10. When Harry Met Sally (Palace) £7,000,000
1995 1. Batman Forever (Warner Bros) £20,015,001 2. Braveheart (Fox) £11,022,738 3. Apollo 13 (UIP) £10,516,077 4. Interview With The Vampire (Warner Bros) £10,515,385 5. Die Hard With A Vengeance (Buena Vista) £10,181,784 6. Stargate (Guild) £9,781,482 7. Dumb and Dumber (First Independent) £9,511,120 8. Waterworld (UIP) £8,359,793 9. Muriel’s Wedding (Buena Vista) £7,999,217 10. Disclosure (Warner Bros) £7,857,594
A follow up audit has recently been undertaken of a random sample (5) of the top 10 grossing films of 1997. The films audited are noted in brackets in the following list: 1997 1. Men In Black £35,400,000 2. The Full Monty £32,300,000 3. The Lost World (reviewed) £25,300,000 4. Bean £17,400,000 5. Star Wars £16,300,000 6. Batman & Robin (reviewed) £14,600,000 7. Ransom (reviewed) £12,700,000 8. The English Patient £12,300,000 9. Liar Liar (reviewed) £11,600,000 10. Space Jam (reviewed) £11,400,000
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
~ |
Films in 1995 featured almost four times as much smoking as those in 1990:
|
There were 83 incidences of smoking in 1990 films and 298 incidences in 1995 films. In 1995, five out of the top ten films featured more than ten incidences of smoking, four of these featuring over 50 incidences, and in 1997 two of the five films had more then ten incidences. In 1990 only one out of the ten films featured more than ten incidences. ~ |
More stars are smoking in movies. Twice as many smokers were primary characters ("stars") in 1995 than in 1990 (8 in 1995, 4 in 1990):
|
The influential "stars" who smoked in the 1995 sample include Bruce Willis in the action thriller Die Hard with a Vengeance , Christian Slater in Interview with a Vampire, and Kurt Russell in Stargate. Over a fifth of all smoking incidents (21%) were due to primary characters in 1990. This figure rose to 48% in 1995. ~ |
There were six times as many cigarette brand names featured in 1995s films than those in 1990; the overwhelming majority of these brands were Malboro.
|
The increased prevalence of cigarette brand names may illustrate the continued influence of the tobacco industry within mainstream film. ~ |
Scenes featuring smoking were likely to be more intense and stressed than romantic or sexy.
|
A well worn use of a cigarette in film is to portray a stressed or intense scene. The depiction of mission control in Apollo 13 is a classic example of this. The use of cigarettes to denote a "sexy" scene is declining. Film makers now have a range of other props to show eroticism, and can be more explicit in their portrayal of sexual activity than earlier this century. ~ |
Smoking baddies" return -
|
Characters were more likely to be unsympathetic than sympathetic in both sets of years. This finding may bear out the assumption that smoking is being used as a narrative shorthand for the archetypal "bad guy" or "bad girl". 1997's films certainly reinforce this finding. Ransom provides a prime example, with the kidnappers being the only characters who smoke during the film. ~ |
Many more smokers were male in 1995 than in 1990.
|
The significant rise in the proportion of male smokers may be attributable again to the kinds of associations film makers wish smoking to imply - assertiveness and physical prowess; traditionally "male" virtues. This is exemplified by Bruce Willis in Die Hard With a Vengeance, Kurt Russell in Stargate and Ed Harris, playing Mission Controller Jene Krantz, (at NASA mission control) in Apollo 13. Ransom featured five times as many men smoking as women. In Space Jam the male "baddie" is rarely seen without a cigar. ~ |
Three times as many smoking characters were seen to be "rebellious" in the 1995 sample than in 1990.
|
This is a significant trend and shows how film-makers are increasingly using cigarettes to further define characters who have a "free spirit" or an anti-establishment attitude. Many of the "rebellious" smoking characters were pivotal to the plot in 1997's sample. The smoking in Muriel’s Wedding seems to be linked to the primary characters’ desire to be different - embodying the virtues of individuality, freedom and the "shedding" of inhibitions. The "baddie" characters in Waterworld and Ransom virtually all smoke - their excessive cigarette-use seems to denote a mixture of rebellion and wickedness. ~ |
Positive verbal references to smoking/cigarettes in film have increased.
|
Although there are not many verbal references to smoking in any of the films, the study shows a significant change between 1990 and 1995. In 1990 all the references to smoking were negative while in 1995 there were an equal number of positive and negative references. The increase in positive references may be partially explained by the increase in smoking characters who may be more likely to extol the virtues of the habit. |
|
DISCUSSION OF RESULTS by Professor Kenneth MacKinnon
Issues 1. Nature of films It ought to be conceded that none of these films is ‘about smoking’ in the way that Trainspotting is ‘about heroin addiction’. The plots of films are rarely, if ever, purely related to the issue of smoking. It is difficult then to undertake comparative studies with confidence on the meaning and influence of different health issues within film (i.e. drugs, smoking and alcohol). The nature of the films in each year’s sample may also have determined how much smoking was featured, i.e. there were more adult-orientated films in 1995 than 1990. 2. Historical realism Film-makers may argue that, as some of the films in the sample have their plot located in a period of history when smoking prevalence was higher than it is today, then historical realism is vital to the story. This historical realism combined with the extreme tension experienced within mission control in Apollo 13, for instance, can partially explain the frequency of cigarette-smoking. At the same time it is significant that smoking is simultaneously being used as a form of stress relief; and, in context, an indication of "commendable masculinity". Despite these arguments smoking does seem to have been used excessively. Discussion of the key findings Following is an exploration of the major points emanating from the audit:
1. Increase in prevalence of smoking The near-quadrupling of smoking incidences in the 1995 sample surely indicates a significant and worrying trend. What the increased frequency of smoking scenes seems likely to achieve is a relative normalisation of cigarette use, so that it becomes as unremarkable as other standard features in popular movies, naturalised into virtual invisibility. Research by the HEA into TV soap operas in the UK also found that cigarettes were used as a background prop, where smoking for the most part was irrelevant to the flow of the narrative. It served mainly to bring an "everyday" feeling to both the characters and their settings19. This virtual invisibility of smoking represents a considerable advance, whether planned or not, for the tobacco industry. 2. Smoking by primary characters The most significant aspect of the predominance of primary characters’ smoking is that it gains more attention and possibly more implicit approval than that of secondary or background characters. The crucial element is, though, that primary characters in top-grossing Hollywood movies are usually played by "stars". The worrying feature of stardom and "stars" lighting up is the intensity of identification that stardom can inspire, particularly in the young. The influence of stars on young people’s behaviour has been documented - but needs further study 20. It is a short step from fan worship’s uncritical emulation of the star’s attributes - physical appearance, hairstyles, walk, facial expressions - and acquisition of the accoutrements of, say, (similar) dress and footwear, to imitation of the star’s love of speeding, fondness for defying parental authority, smoking and so on. Not every star draws such attention to his or her smoking in role as Bette Davis did in the 1940s. Yet, that may be the point. If smoking is so seamlessly part of the star’s standard behaviour in role, then the imitation of the smoking habit may be less a matter of conscious decision than just another element within fans’ fascination with a favourite star. 3. Increase in proportion of male smokers Despite the fact that the definition of masculinity is continually evolving in society and in film (ie to embrace more feminine qualities such as emotional understanding) smoking continues to accentuate the positive aspects of the male characters. When female characters smoke, the less positive notion of inability to cope with stress replaces the common attribution of assertiveness, confidence, physical prowess of the male smoker. And these characteristics, surprisingly, could be held true of even the less ‘approved’ characters, or of outright villains. 4. Identifiable brand names News stories of the payments to stars to use a particular brand of cigarette, together with the tobacco industry’s well-documented interest in product placement21, would suggest that the presence of identifiable cigarette packs and brand names in films equates with promotion (positive advertising) of tobacco products in the industry’s minds. For that reason alone, it would be foolish if an investigation of images of smoking in movies were to downplay this aspect. Particular stimulus is given by the research finding that six times as many identifiable brand names are in the 1995 films than in those of 1990. It may well be that one brand, Marlboro, acts generically to suggest ‘cigarette’, much as Coca-Cola acts in movies to suggest ‘soft drink’. This, though, surely demonstrates the power of the brand name. If it can lay claim to generic status, its advertising battle has been, by that token, won. 5. Smoking rebels The three-fold increase by 1995 in the number of smoking characters being described as "rebellious" indicates the need felt by the film industry to give these characters a further prop to define their anti-establishment, libertarian nature. The aristocratic character played by Ralph Fiennes in The English Patient is an "upper class" rebel, who, because the piece is a period drama, is seen smoking in a large number of scenes. The social graces of the era imply that smoking is the norm, but had the film director taken away the cigarettes from Fiennes’ character it might have made little difference to the audience’s views and interpretation of him.
CONCLUSIONS by Professor Kenneth MacKinnon and Dr Lesley Owen, Health Education Authority
This study has shown that movie-makers are now using far more smoking scenes. The reasons for this are complex and open to speculation. What this study does suggest, however, is that cigarettes are often being used as an artistic shorthand to portray: The increase in Hollywood stars (usually primary characters) smoking combined with the fact that tobacco use is often used at key points of the screenplay are findings which can only promote smoking’s image and influence. The trend of smoking being used to promote characteristics such as arrogance and rebellion is also significant. The tendency for especially younger smokers to model themselves on "cool" film-stars, linking their smoking habit to a feeling of rebellion can be strong. This association can help to counteract health warnings and health education messages regarding the real risks of smoking. The results of this audit, combined with previous studies which have shown that young people are influenced by glamorous images of smoking, imply a need for more responsibility on behalf of film makers.
RECOMMENDATIONS
REFERENCES
|
