The Informant!

Rating

Director

Steven Soderbergh

Screenplay

Scott Z. Burns (Book: Kurt Eichenwald)

Length

108 min.

Starring

Matt Damon, Lucas Carroll, Eddie Jemison, Rusty Schwimmer, Tom Papa, Rick Overton, Melanie Lynskey, Tom Wilson, Scott Bakula, Scott Adsit, Ann Dowd, Allan Havey, Howie Johnson, Joel McHale

MPAA Rating

R for language.

Review

There are many stories out there to be told and each one has a unique element that sets it apart from others. At least, that’s what most film directors and screenwriters hope. The Informant! has a large number of unique and interesting elements, but it’s the execution that makes this one feel like old hat.

Based on the true story of Mark Whitacre (Matt Damon), an executive at ADM during its price-fixing scandal of the 1990s, becomes the whistleblower whose own twisted personality manages to land himself in just as much hot water as that in which his superiors find themselves.

This film is simply a showcase for Damon’s talents. When his first major Oscar-nominated role came out in 1997 with Good Will Hunting, his strengths as an actor had been limitedly applied in a handful of mediocre features. Since then, in roles as diverse as The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Bourne Identity, Dogma, The Brothers Grimm and The Good Shepherd, Damon has quickly established himself as a talented thespian. His performance in The Informant! further pushes those boundaries, giving him a chance to bathe in the absurd, creating a character as detailed and manic as Mark Whitacre.

And like most one-man shows, the cast around him in the film pales desperately in comparison. Scott Bakula and Joel McHale as his straight-laced, mixed-up FBI handlers are merely adequate and the many actors appearing as Whitacres associates and superiors fail to distinguish themselves. Melanie Lynskey gives probably the most interesting performance of the supporting cast, but her appearance in so few scenes doesn’t aid the film much.

As for the style of the film, director Steven Soderbergh has clearly decided that this film belongs squarely in the realm of ‘60s action capers. Choosing an effective musical score by classic composer Marvin Hamlisch, Soderbergh attempts to evoke every visual and aural cue of the era he can without seeming to realize that his story takes place in the early nineties. From the opening frame, the film looks very much of the period, but its timeliness and content don’t sit well with that interpretation.

I love the score. Listening to it separately, it’s not hard to enjoy its evocative chords and remember back to a period in film history where action flicks often had smarts as well as panache. But times have changed and so have tastes. Watching this film while remembering a long-past era makes for a convoluted message and adds immeasurably to any level of confusion the audience might have.

Although younger audiences might not even recognize the musical influences or the photographic comparisons, perhaps remembering Austin Powers more readily than Peter Sellers’ The Pink Panther, they aren’t likely to warm quickly to this pastiche.

The Informant! is told fairly well, at least in terms of communicating the major plot elements without getting too confusing, but it still feels a bit passé. It reminds me of all those jokes I’ve tried to re-tell over the years. Although the content is as amusing as ever, the execution doesn’t always convey the boldest humor. Soderbergh’s film at times feels like one of those improperly relayed jokes. It’s not nearly as funny as it probably should have been.

Problems aside, when going into The Informant!, it’s imperative that you realize what kind of film you’re getting yourself into. This isn’t your slapstick, situational comedy that will have you rolling with laughter in the aisle. If you realize that and understand that it’s a fascinating character study of a disturbed, conflicted man portrayed vigorously and effectively by Matt Damon, then you might just enjoy the end results.

Review Written

December 8, 2009