Product: The Insider [VHS] (1999)
Rating: 5.0
Whistle-blowing, smear-campaigns and the media - A TRIUMPH.
Let me preface this review by saying that "The Insider" is the only DVD in my collection that I purchased WITHOUT having seen the film beforehand. The reasons? Michael Mann, Al Pacino and Russell Crowe. With names like these credited to a motion picture, it's almost a can't-miss situation.I wasn't disappointed. Many people seem put off by the film's overlength. I say if the movie has you in it's grasp dramatically then it's more for your money... Russell Crowe is absolutely rivetting as the flawed protagonist. He expresses more with his facial expressions and subtle eye movements than most actors can by screaming dialogue and flailing their arms about. There is a priceless scene towards the end where a scruffy, pathetic Wigand comes undone in a hotel room - ethereal, haunting and compelling.The always-dependable Al Pacino complements Crowe's implosive performance with his own passionate portrayal of 60-minutes producer Lowell Bergman. Pacino's Bergman struggles hard against forces aligned against journalistic integrity: corporate tobacco's smear campaign against Wigand, the pressures posed by CBS not to air the news segment, not to mention the lack of support by his comrades. Both Bergman and Wigand deal with the pressures differently within their own element and when they clash it is drama of the highest caliber. Outstanding supporting performances by Christopher Plummer as Mike Wallace and Philip Baker Hall as Don Hewitt add icing to the cake.Michael Mann builds an air of suspense and paranoia in ways that few directors can. Scenes such as those of Wigand at a golf-driving range and Wigand being woken by his daughter in the middle of the night provoke tension. As a viewer, I could relate to Wigand's claustrophobia and his fear for his family. Mann accomplishes this with flair and style to spare with arty close-ups and slow motion, hand-held camera shots and an absolutely breathtaking score by Lisa Gerrard and Pieter Bourke (- Any wonder that their music appears on Crowe's next film, "Gladiator"?)I loved this movie. Please see it with an open mind, and not just the "Gee, smoking is bad for you... DUH." attitude. You won't be sorry.