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-winner Al Pacino gives a powerful performance as producer Lowell Bergman and Academy Award Winner Russell Crowe 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 as anchor Mike Wallace and Gina Gershon, THE INSIDER will chill you with its cold, hard edge — and thrill you with its unbelievable twists and turns.
Its an excellent movie based on a true story. The movie is filled with so many great scenes that are good like the scene where Lowell confronts Kluster for deciding not to air the interview or the scene where Ron Motley blasts the tobacco lawyer or the scene where Lowell blasts Don for not airing Dr. Wigand’s interview or the scene where Mike Wallace blasts Helen Caperelli for editing his interview. The best scene of the movie is the scene where Dr. Wigand asks Lowell “Whose life, if you look at it under a microscope, doesn’t have any flaws”.
Russell Crowe was excellent and he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor. He was spot on with his impression of Dr. Wigand. His acting is similar to his acting from Beautiful Mind which came after this. Al Pacino was excellent and he should have been nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Christopher Plummer was also good as Mike Wallace.
Michael Mann’s direction was excellent – taking a story like this and turning into a interesting thriller requires some talent. The movie was nominated for 7 Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematograph, Best Film Editing and Best Sound.
Highly Recommended
