The true story of FBI informant Mark Whitacre is probably not as relevant as it would have been in the mid-to-late ‘90s when corporate crime was rampant. But it is a very interesting and outrageous story — one that director Steven Soderbergh (Che), working with Matt Damon for the fifth time, and writer Scott Burns (The Bourne Ultimatum) very wisely tell as a brilliant comedy.
The Informant! follows Whitacre (a slightly heavier Matt Damon, The Bourne Ultimatum), a highly paid executive at an agricultural company called Archer Daniels Midland, as he decides to tell FBI Special Agents Brian Shepard (veteran TV actor Scott Bakula, Chuck) and Bob Herndon (Joel McHale, Community) about his company’s involvement in illegal price-fixing.
After looking into the case, the FBI agents convince Whitacre to wear a wire so he can give them enough evidence to take down the company. But Whitacre’s intentions aren’t as simple as the agents think. He has delusions of grandeur and seemingly aspires to be both a smooth secret agent (0014, because he is “twice as smart as 007”) and the new visionary leader of the company he is working to ruin.
As the FBI and Whitacre inch closer to their goal, it becomes very apparent the “white hat” protagonist isn’t telling the whole truth about his own part in ADM’s illegal practices. A snowball of hidden agendas, blatant lies and exaggerations ensue.
Throughout all the outrageous plot developments and twists, Whitacre narrates the story with a curious musing. He continually talks about things which are scarcely related to the unfolding events. Even as he is chest-deep in allegations of money laundering, kickbacks and millions of dollars in fraud, his only rambling thoughts are of the hunting rituals of polar bears. Or how he thinks his hands are his greatest asset in a meeting. Or why he thinks the metric system failed in the United States.
For this reason, he is a completely unreliable narrator and keeps the audience from ever seeing the whole truth. His thoughts are not only extremely funny, but this style of narrating gives The Informant! an element of surprise that is necessary for any good comedy. The voice-over is like a comedic magic act — it distracts the viewer with Whitacre’s hilarious musing, while all the real fun brews hidden in plain view.
The effect is only intensified by Damon’s brilliant performance. He uses a quiet and curious tone, mixed with exaggerated outbursts to give the main character a truly unique persona. He makes Whitacre believably unbelievable.
This is perfectly complemented by the expansive supporting cast. From Tony Hale’s (of The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard and Arrested Development fame) performance as Whitacre’s overly passionate lawyer to Scott Bakula’s straight-faced portrayal of Agent Shepard, everyone involved makes the movie seem effortless.
This feeling is also a by-product of the movie’s perfect pacing, brought upon by a good screenplay and careful directing. No scene or joke is drawn out for too long — a very common mistake in comedies — and at the end of the movie it is surprising how much has happened. But at the same time, Soderbergh draws enough fun from trivial things (like a scene of Whitacre narrating an FBI tape) to keep the laughs rolling.
The most interesting thing about The Informant! is the fact that it is a comedy. The story of Whitacre is actually a pretty serious affair and could easily be told as a drama. The filmmakers realized this but still decided to tell the story as it is, all while drawing out the irony and insanity it contained.
For this reason, The Informant! is unlike many comedies out there today. It never stretches for laughs. It is simply an interesting and well-told story — one that just happens to be hilarious.
4.5/5 Stars
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