Oscar Klavier has been a smoker since his mother introduced him to cigarettes as a schoolboy. As a middle-aged man, the women he loves gives him an ultimatum: she will only marry him if he gives up smoking. To help him quit, a therapist encourages him to discuss the 20 most emotionally important cigarettes of his life.<ref name=":2"> Marlowe, Sam. [https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/20-cigarettes-m0sfvmhj3sr "20 Cigarettes"], ''The Times'', London, 22 August 2007. Retrieved on 03 November 2018.</ref><ref name=":1"></ref>