trailer break: ‘The Informant!’

Wow... I think maybe you're pinning this one up a little high on the wall of socioeconomic expectations. Why does this film need to be about "holding criminals accountable"? Why can't it just be about whatever it wants to be about, and then we judge it based on how well it succeeds (once we see it)?

In short: *sigh*

movies have to be about *something*, don't they? and this is a topic on a lot of minds these days.

and what's with the sighing...?

MaryAnn (Mon Aug 17 09, 7:00PM):

I wasn't suggesting that it is, or should be, about that. I was suggesting, or trying to, that the fact that this kind of movie would get made at all, and would get a wide release, might indicate that *as a culture,* we're ready to start talking about holding corporate criminals accountable...

I just don't get the distinction you're touting here, between this film's trailer and the dozens of Corporate Crime Movies that have come before, some funny, some not (does Trading Places count?). And, more on point: I don't quite understand the burden you're placing on the shoulders of The Informant! — it almost seems like you are kinda miffed that it has the nerve to be a comedy in these trying economic times.

The sigh just seems a little misplaced, is all I'm saying. Am I reading too much into it?

I think I heard this story on "This American Life."

Yep, show #168, "The Fix is In." And unfortunately, he kind of was that crazy. Definitely what another blog I like calls a "lolsob" moment.

This trailer still made me laugh, but... I think I understand what you're getting at.

I've had the "This American Life" episode saved on my hard drive ever since I first heard it in about 2002 -- that's how compelling it was (You can listen to the whole episode on the TAL website). It's mainly narrated by Kurt Eichenwald, the NYT reporter who wrote The Informant, which was a non-fiction bestseller.

The comedic tone of the trailer has left me a little apprehensive.

** Alert - possible minor spoilers re: theme, characters, etc. **

The thing about the (true) story that I found so engrossing was the multi-layered moral ambiguity of it all. The path of events included unexpected switchbacks of deception (pardon the metaphor), and each one made you have to re-evaluate your perception of Mark Whitacre (the Damon character). It reached a point where there was no way to know for sure what motivated him to act as he did. Indeed, my impression was that Whitacre himself didn't know.

In the previous renditions, if there was one thing that was clear about the Damon character, it was that he was NOT a fool. He was extremely clever. He was the brilliant young executive skyrocketing to the top of the company. And as an informant, I remember one of the FBI agents saying something to the effect that he was by far the best "cooperating witness" any of them had ever seen, or heard of. His downside was that he was a hotshot, and could be reckless. And... some other things that I won't reveal. The preview makes him look like an overeager puppy, and a bumbler of almost Inspector Clouseau proportions.

** End of spoiler **

However, I don't have a problem giving Soderbergh et al. the benefit of the doubt. Hollywood is, after all, notorious for cutting together trailers that egregiously mis-characterize the movie they are meant to promote. And moreover, I think it's possible that The Informant could work as relatively broad comedy if it were skillfully adapted as such. I think it would be a shame, given how strong the plain, unvarnished story is. Who knows, maybe Warner Bros wanted it to be more Ocean's Eleven than Michael Clayton.