Fight Back (2009)

NHS Birmingham East and North were not holding back with this violent anti-smoking campaign. The takeaway point “smoke and your body takes a beating” is illustrated perfectly in just over a minute, when after lighting up, a man is beaten to the point of being bruised and bleeding by an invisible force. The effects of smoking cigarettes are not immediately visible and the most serious happen slowly over time. Photos of the consequences of smoking are printed on cigarette packets, but equating the consequences to a vicious beating gives the audience a more immediate metaphor for the damage your body goes through. By the end, the poor man is on the floor. The screen goes back, and we are called upon to fight back against the symbolic violence by quitting smoking. A very tense anti-smoking campaign, but very effective in how it presents dangers which aren’t as visible in real life.