BEIJING'S tobacco control association recently published an open letter criticizing the movie Mr Six, which stars well-known director Feng Xiaogang, for glamorizing smoking. It asked the producer to apologize and to add a warning at the beginning of the film about the risks of smoking. The producer said the film, instead of encouraging smoking, just reflected the lives of ordinary people. The Beijing News says:

The movie lasts two hours and has 102 smoking scenes. Given the story and characters that number may not seem excessive. Besides, it was approved by the authorities for release.

However, do such films need so many shots of the characters smoking to reveal their personalities?