The Informant!
Matt Damon as whistleblower Mark Whitacre in The Informant!
Monday, 16, Nov 2009 11:55
Directed by Steven Soderbergh, out November 20th in cinemas, starring Matt Damon, Melanie Lynskey, Scott Bakula, Thomas Wilson, running time 108 mins.
What's it all about?
The highest-ranking corporate whistleblower in US history (Damon) finds his well-intentioned bid to reveal price-fixing in the agricultural industry undone by his own delusions...
As an example.
"7:30 am, I am approaching the office... Good morning! [aside) Liz Taylor, secretary." - Mark
"You guys are gonna take down the bad guys, but I'll be ok, right?" - Mark
What the others say
"It sets out to be less pompous than similar films, which inevitably means it feels less substantial. While amusing rather than hilarious, it ought to establish Matt Damon as a star character actor." - Kim Newman, Empire
"The Informant! says that people who do good or ill have complex motives for their actions and that not everyone is knowable, instantly or ever." - Richard Corliss, Time
So is it any good?
That exclamation mark should tell you everything you need to know about The Informant!, Steven Soderbergh's account of the highest-ranking corporate whistleblower in US history. This is no ordinary espionage drama, with a chunky and moustachioed Matt Damon leading a hilarious cast, revelling in the absurdity of a incredible but undeniably true story. Don't expect the dry back-and-forths of Michael Mann's The Insider from this story of agricultural executive Mark Whitacre's (Damon) clandestine work for the FBI - you're likely to find far more similarities in The Pink Panther.
From Whitacre's unhinged and digressive inner monologue to the casting of stand-up comedians as federal agents and corporate executives, Soderbergh and writer Scott Z Burns (with Kurt Eichenwald's book as source material) have mined every drop of humour from Whitacre's outlandish exploits and will provoke far more audience laughter than might be expected from a whistleblower thriller.
But as well as being supremely funny and shot in glorious early 90s soft focus, with some wonderful period couture, The Informant! could also land Matt Damon a best actor Oscar. He'll have been robbed more blatantly than the customers of agri-giant Archer Daniels Midland if he misses out on a nomination, as this is a simply outstanding performance. Aside from the easy comedy of offering viewers a chance to see what Jason Bourne would look like if he put on 30lbs and shopped exclusively in the Blue Harbour section of Marks and Spencer, Damon also brings huge pathos to the role. Good-hearted yet supremely deluded, Whitacre's a dream part and Damon seizes the day entirely, with brilliant line deliveries during the whistleblower's mindless inner ruminations and a touching portrait of mental disintegration when Whitacre's fantasies and half-truths get the better of him.
With a lead character whose imagination is wilder than that of Dr Parnassus, a master craftsman behind the camera and a script which combines goofy comedy and some uneasy truths about lies and the lying liars who tell them, The Informant! is a smart and gleefully silly retelling of an amazing story.
7/10
Lewis Bazley