The Informant! is a comedy about a price-fixing investigation in the feed additives industry. Yes, that sounds impossible. But it works -- brilliantly.
Matt Damon stars as Mark Whitacre, a senior executive at Archers Daniels Midland (ADM), who becomes an FBI informant in connection with investigations into ADM's business practices in the early to mid-1990's. Whitacre believes that if he blows the whistle against the bad guys at his company, it will help his career. Needless to say, things don't go exactly as he planned.
Damon's superb acting truly makes the film. As a stocky Midwesterner with a cheesy moustache, Whitacre is, physically, the exact opposite of Damon's action hero Jason Bourne. Rather, Whitacre is square and nerdy, an intense player on the corporate battlefield, and prone to lying to almost everyone. There is something terribly wrong with this dude, but we are not sure what it is.
The real-life Whitacre has actually praised the film, and has even accepted the fact that his ordeals at ADM were turned into a comedy. He acknowledges that his conduct during that time was basically ridiculous, therefore, conducive to being portrayed in a comic light.
In addition to Matt Damon's brilliance, The Informant! also features smaller roles from comedians such as Tom Papa and Patton Oswalt. However, it should be made clear that the comedy is extremely subtle. I am sure that many viewers won't even recognize it as "funny". However, I personally savored the deliciously uncomfortable feelings of almost every scene, as this quietly manic executive gets himself in deeper and deeper trouble.
The only thing I question about this film are the music and titles, which evoke a cheesy 1970's feel. Sure, the goofy music helps turn a potentially boring anti-trust investigation into a light-hearted and wacky affair, however it comes across as anachronistic, considering the events took place in the 1990's. But this is a very minor complaint, outweighed by the amazing writing, acting and directing of this exceptionally intelligent film.
Matt Damon stars as Mark Whitacre, a senior executive at Archers Daniels Midland (ADM), who becomes an FBI informant in connection with investigations into ADM's business practices in the early to mid-1990's. Whitacre believes that if he blows the whistle against the bad guys at his company, it will help his career. Needless to say, things don't go exactly as he planned.
Damon's superb acting truly makes the film. As a stocky Midwesterner with a cheesy moustache, Whitacre is, physically, the exact opposite of Damon's action hero Jason Bourne. Rather, Whitacre is square and nerdy, an intense player on the corporate battlefield, and prone to lying to almost everyone. There is something terribly wrong with this dude, but we are not sure what it is.
The real-life Whitacre has actually praised the film, and has even accepted the fact that his ordeals at ADM were turned into a comedy. He acknowledges that his conduct during that time was basically ridiculous, therefore, conducive to being portrayed in a comic light.
In addition to Matt Damon's brilliance, The Informant! also features smaller roles from comedians such as Tom Papa and Patton Oswalt. However, it should be made clear that the comedy is extremely subtle. I am sure that many viewers won't even recognize it as "funny". However, I personally savored the deliciously uncomfortable feelings of almost every scene, as this quietly manic executive gets himself in deeper and deeper trouble.
The only thing I question about this film are the music and titles, which evoke a cheesy 1970's feel. Sure, the goofy music helps turn a potentially boring anti-trust investigation into a light-hearted and wacky affair, however it comes across as anachronistic, considering the events took place in the 1990's. But this is a very minor complaint, outweighed by the amazing writing, acting and directing of this exceptionally intelligent film.
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