alcohol and smoking warnings

I've noticed that movies on Prime often have warnings about alcohol and smoking at the beginning of the movie. Are there really people on the planet that would be traumatized by watching someone light a cigarette or drink alcohol during a movie? I suppose you could make the argument that someone trying to quit cigarettes or booze would get "triggered" by seeing Bette Davis light a cigarette or mix a cocktail, but wouldn't the warnings have the same effect? I was thinking that there must be a statute or something, but that would require someone to advocate for such a thing.

I'm old enough to remember the genesis of the ratings system in the 1960s, and can understand warnings about sex and violence when movies suddenly went from Doris Day and Jerry Lewis to Bonnie and Clyde and Belle du Jour. It is possible that there are folks who still pay attention and appreciate the heads up about excessive sex and violence. It would not mean anything to me, but I respect the point of view.

But I would be very interested in reading the views of those who appreciate movie warnings about cigarettes and alcohol, and heed such warnings. It could be mindless virtue signaling, and I appreciate that some folks are into that, and I would be interested in hearing from those folks, too.

 

Saw this viewer advisory not long ago:
Contains nudity, graphic violence, sexual depravity, drug usage and scenes of smoking.

 

we actually laugh when we see those warnings!

 

come on now didn't that make you laugh?

 

My kind of film.

 

Of course it made me laugh. I'm a smoker( but in the process of quitting).

 

While I'm not big on graphic violence, I like nudity and sexual depravity. Smoking and drinking? They're just along for the ride.

 

you're choice I hope...

 

Where are the warnings about incoherent
plotlines and lousy acting?

 

indeed...entertainment deluxe. ; )

 

I'm quitting because of the excessive cost. The health factors aren't part of the equation.

 

that sure is a reason...: )

 

Don't care either way!

 

Lawyers.

 

Almost all smoking gets a movie an automatic R rating anymore. I don't get it but the mpaa makes no sense. I always default to the movie Orgazmo. X or nc-17 rating from the mpaa for a comedy about the porn industry thet has zero nudity in it. Wtf?

 

There were smoking warnings on the Fran Lebowitz mini-series last year, and she wasn't even seen smoking in it - just talked about smoking in her past.

 

Rango (2011), a CGI animated ostensibly kids' film (though it has plenty of adult winks), has a ton of smoking and was notably controversial for it. Probably the last gasp of that appearing a PG

 

Smoking is bad for you, too much alcohol is bad for you, and a little warning at the beginning of a film or TV show doesn't hurt anybody. Not sure it helps anybody either, of course.

 

You all really need to get over this. The ratings system is ultimately meant to clue in parents on what to let their kids watch. Warning kids away from smoking and drinking is nothing new. Let parents decide if they want their kids watching smoking and drinking. If you're an adult watching an adult movie alone or with other adults, you don't even need to pay attention to the ratings.

Small jokes about this is one thing–it is still a fairly new phenomenon. But a discussion about it is ridiculous.

 

Too much sugar kills you but you can advertise sugar rich products in the breaks!

 

I totally agree that the cost of cigarettes is insane. Quitting smoking would definitely be better for your health as well. So it's a win win .

I don't pay much attention to the viewer warnings on movies and TV shows. Maybe when my daughter was younger but that time is long gone. I think the suggestion posted earlier of warnings for poor content is better than alcohol and smoking warnings.

 

If a warning right at the beginning of the film annoys you, don't go see any Telugu or Tamal language Indian films.

Some will have Western edits, but the ones that don't literally have don't smoke and don't drink messages on the screen in the corner every single time someone smokes or drinks or even if there's a pack of cigarettes or a bottle of alcohol on a table in a scene.

 

Curmudgeonly old men on the internet bitch and moan about a content warning that doesn’t hurt them. Film at 11.

Exactly. Thank you for being a voice of reason.

 

A friend of mine quit because of that, and 2 years later a relly cheaper brand of giggies hit the market, so he resumed where he had left. Pity coz he'd beaten the habit. I thought he was joking, but hey, he HAD quit because of the cost !