Steven Soderbergh’s “The Informant!” is a somewhat misleading film in the way it presents itself. However, we soon find out that this is a very appropriate way to present it as the main character is one who is misleading to just about everyone he meets, even himself.
Mark Whitacre (Matt Damon) is a VP at a large company, ADM, where they produce corn-related goods. A virus has somehow gotten into their supply, contaminating the entire batch, causing them to lose profit. He is given the job of finding out what happened. Mark tells his superiors that he has been in talks with someone at a Japanese plant who, as Mark claims, told him that there is a mole in their company who introduced the virus.
ADM brings in the FBI to investigate and two agents, Brian Shepard (Scott Bakula) and Bob Herndon (Joel McHale), are assigned the case. After Mark is caught in a small lie, he comes clean and admits that he made the part about the mole up and that he wants to come forth with evidence that ADM is participating in the illegal activity of price-fixing. To investigate further, Mark helps the agents obtain tapes and audio evidence to support this. When the case blows open, everything seems to be going well, until we find out that there was much more that he wasn’t telling the FBI.
The first half of the film starts out very interesting, as we are not quite sure what is going on. We don’t have the full picture, so we are left to wonder what Mark is making up and what he’s being truthful about. It’s the mysterious atmosphere that the first half sets up so well that makes it work. Already we are suspicious of Mark. He’s just that shady of a character from the start.
When the second half of the film roles around, where it is discovered that Mark has not told the whole truth about his activities at ADM, it takes a bit of a dive. It starts to feel as though we are watching an episode of “Law and Order” or another procedural as everyone tries to come down on Mark as the bad guy.
What saves the second half from this fate is the character of Mark himself. He sets up such an intricate maze of lies for himself that it becomes fascinating to watch as he tries to wiggle his way out of it. He continually tries to point his finger at ADM, the company that was doing all the price-fixing, despite the fact that he was involved as well. Then there was all the money that he embezzled.
This was the little fact that he neglected to tell the FBI when they were helping him bring down ADM. What was so interesting about the fact that Mark embezzled money was not that he did it (though how could he think it would not be found out when the FBI got involved?), but the fact that the amount of money keeps changing.
At first, the amount he says he stole is about $2.5 million, which he gave to various people, including lawyers. This amount gradually increases to $5 million. Then, during another meeting with lawyers, he says that all in all, he stole about $7.7 million. In the end, the total is around $9.5 million, but it doesn’t even end there. Before the film ends, he will quote a figure of $11.5 million that he stole from ADM.
Which of these numbers is the truth? Who knows? Mark is so deep in his own lies that we can never quite be sure of anything he says. This stems from the fact that he is so desperate not to get in trouble, all the while thinking that he is the good guy for bringing down ADM for their price-fixing operation. There is a scene involving some forged paperwork that truly shows his desperation. It doesn’t matter that he has been caught red-handed in one of his lies. He keeps pushing it, hoping to make it work.
Matt Damon’s performance is awkward, yet at the same time, it is appropriate to the mood of the film. There are times when he almost seems schizophrenic as he begins to tell the truth, but moments later, adds another layer to his pile of lies. Going back to the scene in the previous paragraph, we hear as a voice in Mark’s head tells him exactly what to say. It is almost as if there are two Mark’s who are at odds as to what to do.
“The Informant!” is a strange film, but, given the chance, it proves to be an interesting puzzle, most notably because of its main character, Mark. It just goes to show how being caught in one little lie can blow up into something major. It’s interesting to note that this is based on a true story, but as to how true is hard to say. It’s intriguing to think that Mark does exist. He is a real character, in more than one sense of the term.
3/4 stars.