Hackademy Awards Recognize Smoke-Free Hit 'Inception' as Thumbs Up! Movie for 2010

SACRAMENTO, Calif., March 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Teen movie reviewers in Sacramento, California faced a tough challenge in picking the smokiest movie for 2010, but decided "Remember Me" could have easily afforded to forget about promoting America's leading cause of preventable death. That made the romantic drama the latest Thumbs Down! Movie recipient in this year's annual Hackademy Awards, presented by Breathe California of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails.

According to one Thumbs Up! Thumbs Down! reviewer, the movie's star Robert Pattinson was "barely seen onscreen without a cigarette in his hand and a plume of cigarette smoke framing his face." And while the film contains a few anti-tobacco messages, those messages are lost when Pattinson's character is seen smoking in front of his 11 year-old sister and lighting up in a designated non-smoking area. Overall it was another example of Hollywood's enduring fascination with tobacco use. This is despite years of conclusive evidence that consequence-free depictions of smoking in movies influence many young people to pick up the habit.

However, there was some good news to report, along the way awarding "Inception" its Thumbs Up! Movie award for a dream come true — a great movie with no tobacco use that ignored the hackneyed habit of tying smoking to film noir.

In the actor categories, youth reviewers sorted through a list of more than two dozen Hollywood celebrities and picked the following:

• Jason Bateman for Thumbs Up! Actor. In "The Switch," Bateman's character snatches a cigarette away from Jennifer Anniston's character.
• Ellen Page for Thumbs Up! Actress, for her role in the tobacco-free hit "Inception."
• Michael Cera for Thumbs Down! Actor. "Youth in Revolt" seems dedicated to the revolting myth that smoking is somehow cool.
• Mila Kunis for Thumbs Down! Actress. In "Black Swan," Kunis adds cigarettes as a needless prop for her character's dark role.

The 16-year-old Hackademy Awards raise awareness of the impact of tobacco use in films on pre-teens and young adults. Studies have established a direct link between smoking depicted in films and an increased willingness by teens to try smoking.

For more information about the Hackademy Awards, visit www.scenesmoking.org. The Hackademy Awards is made possible by generous sponsors, including Presenting Sponsors Western Health Advantage and Sierra Health Foundation.

SOURCE Breathe California of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails