Film

What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases

The Informant! (2009)

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Time Out rating

Average user rating

4 reviews

Movie review

From Time Out London

It may come across like a self-satisfied madcap bauble, but that titular exclamation mark is the key that unlocks the myriad subtextual delights of Soderbergh’s timely latest, a flippant white-collar corporate caper that harks back to his delicious 1996 farce, ‘Schizopolis’. On one level it denotes the lack of delicacy with which Matt Damon’s prodigiously gifted agribusiness exec, Marc Whitacre, goes about blowing the whistle on his own company for being involved in a global price-fixing swindle.

Yet it also suggests a thematic sleight of hand that asks us to be aware that the film’s motivations may not be as cut-and-dried as they first appear. This ambiguity of intention is largely (and successfully) transmitted via Damon’s supremely nuanced central performance (possibly a career best), which manages to plumb the depths of narcissism, idiocy and, eventually, deep-seated psychosis, while miraculously managing to keep us on side. The screwy semantics of his insistently upbeat internal monologues constantly interrupt the bloated technical jargon and subtly hint at the denouement to which Whitacre’s foolhardy endeavour is leading.

The director himself continuously chips in from the sidelines, with screwball devices such as oversized title cards written in purple bubble text, a camera that playfully dances in and out of the innumerable sterile business headquarters and hotels and Marvin Hamlisch’s chirpy, big-band soundtrack. Soderbergh and writer Scott Z Burns have based the film largely on the muckraking thriller by New York Times journalist Kurt Eichenwald, but they are less interested in the particulars of nefarious corporate dealings than in creating a credible psychological portrait of a man driven by… who knows what?

Author: David Jenkins

Time Out London Issue 2048: 19-25 November, 2009

Email Tweet Share

User reviews of this film

Ed said...

Posted on Mar 14 2012 19:36 I don't understand. I thought this was a brilliant film - genuinely don't get how you guys didn't like it. I agree with the reviewer - Matt Damon's career best film (and I speak as a massive fan of Bourne), he is spot on, and as the film unfolds he gets better and better. I'd highly recommend it.

Report as inappropriate
Alyshia said...

Posted on Dec 10 2009 20:33 The film was okay... A total waste of money though. the only bit that made me laugh is when the only other viewer in my screen walked out. This film is rather dull and has too many long winded scenes. If you liked The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button however then you may be abe to stick this film out till the end... just.

Report as inappropriate
ARCHGATE said...

Posted on Nov 24 2009 09:17 The continuous voice-over kills this film.
I lasted 40 minutes (not including a snooze)
total viewing time 30 minutes - then I headed for the exit.

Report as inappropriate
Sutton said...

Posted on Nov 22 2009 15:41 Dull, boring and rambling. Way too long and all over the place. I stuck it as long as I could, then had to walk out. Save your cash.

Report as inappropriate