Romance & Cigarettes

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Romance & Cigarettes

R

2005

1h 45m

Musical

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

53%

Tomatometer

59 Reviews

56%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

In this musical that features characters lip-synching to classic songs, Nick (James Gandolfini), a Queens, N.Y.-based ironworker, lives with his wife, Kitty (Susan Sarandon), and three daughters. When Nick meets a significantly younger woman, Tula (Kate Winslet), he starts an affair with her, much to the chagrin of his wife, and his life is thrown into upheaval. Kitty kicks Nick out of the house, and he is forced to make some difficult decisions.

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Critics Consensus

This movie musical aims for fun and modern, but Romance and Cigarettes is too scattered and uneven to achieve either.

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David Fear

Time Out

Nov 17, 2011

3/5

Turturro's attempt to mix working-class magical realism and MGM romanticism is wildly uneven.

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Kimberley Jones

Austin Chronicle

Oct 18, 2008

2/5

Romance & Cigarettes wears thin, like a moral for the titular addiction: Sure, there's the sweet dream of that first drag, but a whole pack'll do a body bad.

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Amy Nicholson

I.E. Weekly

Jan 29, 2008

A-

It shouldn't work, but there's something beautiful in Turturro's non-judgmental, almost affectionate, exposure of human love as the courting dance of clueless primates

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Bullz-Eye.com

Oct 18, 2008

1.5/5

Jenny Peters

Hollywood.com

Oct 1, 2008

2/5

David Cornelius

DVDTalk.com

Feb 18, 2008

4/5

When it succeeds, it soars with great abandon, and when it fails, it fails so grandly that we still want to applaud it. This is a madhouse of a movie.

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Johan V

@RT27219576 10 hrs ago

I feel this one is underrated for superficial reasons. It's just a story, a fun, musical and melancholic take on the human condition. It's a very well made movie with a stellar cast. I greatly enjoyed it. I'm not sure if this qualifies as a musical - I can't stand musicals - but this might be the only one I really enjoyed.

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Sandie L

@SandieRRTX Sep 18, 2026

This was thoughtful, quirky, and touching. The soundtrack is amazing. I generally am not a fan of the characters bursting into song and dance, but this is so unassuming, and the music was cool and eclectic and evoked so many memories, I can forgive the format. James Gandolfini breaks my heart every time. This is a winner.

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Deb M

@RT53779641 Sep 8, 2026

Hilarious, fun, entertaining. Great cast of characters. Lots if laughs.

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Evelyn X

@yiyi1111 Apr 3, 2026

I watched this film featuring Susan and Kate. It’s a bit weird, as characters suddenly burst into song and dance without any smooth transitions. The plot follows a man who regrets his affair with a provocative red-haired girl, only to discover he has terminal lung cancer from smoking. It left me feeling that people often marry just to escape loneliness, and turns out they just forget how they appreciate one another.

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Alain E

@AlainE Feb 22, 2026

For those who can accept this movie on its own terms, it provides a very satisfactory experience. There is love, lust, dancing and a lot of smoking which undoes the protagonist. Ironically, Gandolfini’s premature death was related to smoking that caused heart disease instead of cancer. There are many well known actors in supporting roles, which elevate the ultimate result. Good cinematography and good choreography.

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thiago s

@Thiagostone Jun 14, 2025

Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom.

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John Turturro

Director

James Gandolfini

Nick Murder

Susan Sarandon

Kitty Kane

Kate Winslet

Tula

Steve Buscemi

Angelo

Christopher Walken

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Synopsis

In this musical that features characters lip-synching to classic songs, Nick (James Gandolfini), a Queens, N.Y.-based ironworker, lives with his wife, Kitty (Susan Sarandon), and three daughters. When Nick meets a significantly younger woman, Tula (Kate Winslet), he starts an affair with her, much to the chagrin of his wife, and his life is thrown into upheaval. Kitty kicks Nick out of the house, and he is forced to make some difficult decisions.

Director: John Turturro
Producer: John Penotti
Screenwriter: John Turturro
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: United Artists, Icon Entertainment International, GreeneStreet Films Inc.
Rating: R (Sexual Content/Dialogue|Language)
Genre: Musical, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 6, 2005, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 16, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $540.1K
Runtime: 1h 45m
Sound Mix: Surround

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