Starring Matt Damon, Scott Bakula, Joel McHale
Score: 6 out of 10
In 1992, executive Mark Whitacre told a lie that snowballed into the collapse of the biggest international price fixing scheme in history.
That sentence describes Steven Soderbergh's The Informant! tells but yet doesn't describe the incredibly true story at all. You see, Whitacre (played by Matt Damon in the film) was an elusive fellow who wasn't exactly in touch with reality, yet by all accounts was one of the most important and effective whistle-blowers of all time. While serving as a top-level executive with the biggest food additives manufacturer in America, Whitacre shared the company's illegal price-fixing practices with the FBI. All the while Whitacre had his own embezzlement scheme going and, somehow, believed the downfall of the company's top executives would secure his place as CEO.
Soderbergh's film is based on the book of the same name by New York Times reporter Kurt Eichenwald and while it follows the basic story there's just too much insanity to pack into a two-hour movie. It feels like pieces are missing and they are. Some of this is made up for by voiceovers throughout the film by Damon's Whitacre--these bon mots provide a view into this very strange man's self-absorbed and not terribly logical mind.
On some level it also helps that Soderbergh and his screenwriter chose to position the story as a comedy: doing otherwise would have clearly put a spotlight on the portions of the story that didn't make it to the screen. Also, it's easier to laugh at the situation (and, to be sure, the story is strange and funny on its own) than dive deeply into the intentions or compunctions of such a curious individual.
Check out Eichenwald's book if you're interested in the whole story. (NPR's "This American Life" also did a great episode about the case a few years back.) But, if you're not particularly interested in the details, The Informant! is a nicely done, watered-down version.
