The Insider
by Michael Mann
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Al Pacino, Christopher Plummer, Diane Venora, Philip Baker Hall, Russell CroweDirector: Michael Mann
Brand: PACINO,AL
Producer: Michael Mann
Writer: Michael Mann
Producer: Avi Kleinberger
Producer: Gusmano Cesaretti
Producer: Kathleen M. Shea
Writer: Eric Roth
Writer: Marie Brenner
DVD: 2 Layers, Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: Anamorphic Widescreen, 2.35:1
Running Time: 157 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2000-04-11
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Walt Disney Video
Movie Reviews of The Insider
Movie Review: One of the Best Political-Thrillers I've Ever Seen
Summary: 5 Stars
Whether you care about the politics of The Insider or not, as far as sheer entertainment goes this film will hook you instantly.
The film is directed by Michael Mann, with a script by Mann and Oscar-winner Eric Roth. Mann is a talented director with just a few failures under his belt. The Insider is one of his strongest directorial efforts and also one of his most overlooked (despite being nominated for 7 Academy Awards in 1999).
The film is based on a true story with some added content for dramatic effect. Russell Crowe plays Dr. Jeff Wigand, recently fired from his job at one of the biggest tobacco companies in America where he worked as a tobacco scientist. Al Pacino plays "60 Minutes" producer Lowell Bergman, who sees the ultimate insider in Wigand. The problem is, Wigand has a confidentiality agreement with the company and with an asthmatic daughter he doesn't want to lose his medical coverage that was part of his severance package. Of course, the more Wigand discloses to Bergman, the more the truth comes out about corruption in the tobacco industry.
And it wouldn't be a political-thriller without Wigand being follows and receiving death threats.
I doubt much of the talk about the harmful effects of nicotine and cigarettes will be entirely new to viewers, yet this doesn't keep both the film and Wigand's testimony from being riveting.
In a film that's already very well-made, the stand-out was the acting. Pacino, Crowe, and Christopher Plummer (as "60 Minutes" anchor Mike Wallace) are all at the top of their form. Al Pacino is, of course, one of the most highly-regarded actors of all time so this statement isn't too profound. But Pacino is fascinating here, keeping you glued to your screen. The man has a screen presence that is unmatched and delivers some truly Oscar-worthy work here. Crowe plays the conflicted everyman very well. His performance is much more subtle than Pacino's flamboyant one but equally satisfying. Finally, Plummer comes out of left field with his performance, easily one of his best. He just about steals the show from Pacino and Crowe.
First class entertainment with a powerful agenda, The Insider is quite simply a great film. Not only that, it's one of the best films I've seen in the political-thriller genres (in which I'd include films like Syriana (Widescreen Edition) and Michael Clayton (Widescreen Edition)). This is great filmmaking, with a powerful script, explosive acting, and terrific dialogue (made even better by the intense delivery). The awe-inspiring performances of Pacino, Crowe, and Plummer are reason enough to see the film. It might be 2 hours and 33 minutes long, but as you'll see...It flies by.
GRADE: A
Summary of The Insider
THE INSIDER recounts the chain of events that pitted an ordinary man against the tobacco industry and dragged two people into the fight of their lives. Academy Award(R)-winner Al Pacino (1990 Best Actor, SCENT OF A WOMAN; THE RECRUIT) gives a powerful performance as veteran 60 MINUTES producer Lowell Bergman and Academy Award(R) Winner Russell Crowe (2000 Best Actor, GLADIATOR; A BEAUTIFUL MIND) co-stars as the ultimate insider, former tobacco executive Dr. Jeffrey Wigand. When Wigand is fired by his employer -- one of the largest tobacco companies in America -- he agrees to become a paid consultant for a story Bergman is working on regarding alleged unethical practices within the tobacco industry. But what begins as a temporary alliance leads to a lengthy battle for both men to save their reputations, and much, much more. As they soon find out, Corporate America will use all legal means at its disposal to save a billion-dollar-a-year habit. And as the corporate giants soon find out, Bergman and Wigand are honorable men, driven to smoke out the evidence. Also starring Christopher Plummer (MALCOLM X) as anchor Mike Wallace and Gina Gershon (FACE/OFF), THE INSIDER will chill you with its cold, hard edge -- and thrill you with its unbelievable twists and turns.As revisionist history, Michael Mann's intelligent docudrama The Insider is a simmering brew of altered facts and dramatic license. In a broader perspective, however, the film (cowritten with Forrest Gump Oscar-winner Eric Roth) is effectively accurate as an engrossing study of ethics in the corruptible industries of tobacco and broadcast journalism. On one side, there is Jeffrey Wigand (Russell Crowe), the former tobacco scientist who violated contractual agreements to expose Brown & Williamson's inclusion of addictive ingredients in cigarettes, casting himself into a vortex of moral dilemma. On the other side is 60?Minutes producer Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino), whose struggle to report Wigand's story puts him at odds with veteran correspondent Mike Wallace (Christopher Plummer) and senior executives at CBS News.
As the urgency of the story increases, so does the film's palpable sense of paranoia, inviting favorable comparison to All the President's Men. While Pacino downplays the theatrical excess that plagued him in previous roles, Crow is superb as a man who retains his tortured integrity at great personal cost. The Insider is two movies--a cover-up thriller and a drama about journalistic ethics--that combine to embrace the noble values personified by Wigand and Bergman. Even if the details aren't always precise (as Mike Wallace and others protested prior to the film's release), the film adheres to a higher truth that was so blatantly violated by tobacco executives seen in an oft-repeated video clip, lying under oath in the service of greed. --Jeff Shannon
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