Flip the Script
‘The Informant!’
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Matt Damon, Scott Bakula, Joel McHale, Tony Hale
Grade: B+
The altogether unique presentation of Steven Soderbergh’s new comedy, with its cheesy taglines, orange-yellow posters and ironically punctuated title, is both provocative and oddly endearing. Photographed with a heavy emphasis on corn, the film’s advertisements highlight a doughy and bespeckled Matt Damon’s oddball enthusiasm and incompetence.
Based on the serious non-fiction thriller by Kurt Eichenwald, it’s hard to imagine the truly bizarre account of this corporate exec-turned-informer as anything but a comedy, and a sterling one at that.
Set in 1992, but photographed to suit a trendier period, the titled informant is Mark Whitacre (Damon), an executive at food services conglomerate Archer Daniels Midland, who rolled over to the FBI despite rapidly climbing the company ladder. Claiming invaluable insight into the company’s price-fixing schemes, Whitacre is recruited by Bureau agents Brian Shepard (Scott Bakula) and Bob Herndon (Joel McHale). They promise that his whistle blowing will not only serve the American people whom ADM has deceived, but will aid him in his lifelong goal of becoming a CEO.
Fancying himself a regular James Bond (or ‘0014,’ his self-proclaimed label), Whitacre proves to be hilariously inept, fumbling the simplest assignments with a gracelessness that borders on charming. As Whitacre further commits to his controversial endeavor, he tests the patience of his supportive wife, Ginger (Melanie Lynskey), and weaves a profoundly complex web of lies that ultimately leads to his downfall.
Perhaps due to its eccentricities ‘The Informant!’ is a sweet film, a sympathetic portrayal of a man who might have otherwise dwelled in the depths of stupidity for all time. Damon infuses the tale of Whitacre’s clumsy mishandling of his role as an FBI informant with vibrant energy, commanding the screen with a flamboyant spark we haven’t seen from him in years. The funny character he fashions from a serious text is nothing short of brilliant, a concoction that is no doubt also due in part to his teaming with ‘Oceans’ collaborator Soderbergh, whose 20th film might just rank among his very best.
Like legendary filmmaker John Ford, the most honored director in the history of the Academy Awards, Soderbergh’s career trajectory is guided by a ‘one for them, one for me’ mentality, meaning he alternates studio-pleasing commercial projects with more personal works, using the profit from the former as leverage to finance his passion projects. It is not at all uncommon for Soderbergh to follow a major hit, such as ‘Ocean’s Eleven’ (2001), with a less than $2 million budget comedy such as ‘Full Frontal’ (2002), or $58 million epic like ‘Che’ (2008) with a minimalistic drama like ‘The Girlfriend Experience’ (2009), which he shot in 16 days.
‘The Informant!’ blurs that line. Working cooperatively within the system in order to finance his more esoteric projects has not only afforded Soderbergh tremendous admiration from critics and audiences, but has allowed him to exercise his creativity: He has directed 12 films this decade, just one fewer than the great Stanley Kubrick made in his illustrious 46-year career.
What initially comes off as a quirky and eccentric comedy quickly evolves into something more substantial: an astonishing story, masterfully spun and defined not by imbecility but rather a genuine interest in the follies of a man with a plan.
Published on September 22, 2009 at 12:00 pm
