The Insider: Of Smoke, Mirrors...and Truth

VIEWER WARNING: The Insider contains graphic and explicit scenes of truth-telling, acceptance of responsibility, putting public duty before private interests, and demonstrating moral courage in the face of public vilification. Viewer discretion advised for those who do not demonstrate the above named admirable qualities.

I love a well acted and well written movie, especially if it’s a true story, and most especially if the story is based upon a newsworthy event. For me, The Insider delivers on all accounts! I found myself completely captivated by this film from start to finish. It combines a compelling true story, sparkling performances by an all-star ensemble cast, an outstanding screenplay filled with sharp, crackling dialog, a beautifully haunting musical score, and cinematography which is darkly brooding. All add up to a taut and suspenseful real-life thriller.

This is the true story of a modern-day American hero, albeit a reluctant one. The Insider masterfully chronicles three critical years in the life Dr. Jeffrey S. Wigand, a former top executive with the Brown and Williamson tobacco company, and the man who "blew the whistle" on his former employer with his now famous interview with Mike Wallace on the CBS news show 60 Minutes.

This is the riveting tale of how the lives of two men become suddenly entwined in the maelstrom of one of the most controversial political and social issues of the mid-1990s: the conspiracy by American tobacco companies to enhance the addictive properties of cigarettes, and then cover up that conspiracy. It's the story of how a lone "whistle blower" publicly exposed the secret actions of "Big Tobacco," and how one of America’s greatest and most respected news organizations, when confronted by the truth of that "whistle blower’s" information, betrayed its own journalistic principles in the face of a threatened lawsuit by the tobacco industry.

The story begins with Lowell Bergman, an executive producer of the CBS news magazine 60 Minutes. He becomes the first person drawn into a looming legal war with the tobacco companies. He receives leaked scientific documents from an anonymous source inside Philip Morris. He doesn’t understand what the documents mean, so he asks for a referral to someone inside the tobacco industry who can explain the documents to him.

Enter Dr. Jeffrey Wigand. A biochemist with impeccable credentials, Wigand has recently been fired from his job as a corporate vice-president and head of research and development at Brown and Williamson, America’s third largest tobacco company. As part of his severance package, Wigand has signed a confidentiality agreement, promising not to divulge any of his employers’ secrets. By chance, it is Wigand who is referred to Bergman to explain the leaked Philip Morris documents.

At first, Wigand refuses to talk to Bergman, but, after much persuasion, he finally relents. Bergman quickly senses that Wigand has a lot more to say about Big Tobacco than just a simple explanation of a bunch of scientific documents. Wigand appears torn between his responsibility to adhere to the provisions of his confidentiality agreement (thereby maintaining his family’s medical benefits, promised in his severance package) and his duty to reveal information about the public health hazards inherent in the secret doings of his former employer. After much more cajoling by Bergman, Wigand agrees to divulge what he knows, first as a witness for the state of Mississippi in its now famous lawsuit against the tobacco industry, and then in an interview with Mike Wallace on 60 Minutes.

Once the interview between Wigand and Wallace is "in the can," the story takes an unexpected... and ugly... twist. Fearful of a lawsuit which could ruin the network, CBS corporate executives begin exerting pressure on Bergman, Wallace, and CBS News managing editor Don Hewitt to sanitize the interview, removing any reference to Wigand, the details of his allegations, and even Brown and Williamson itself! How Bergman, Wigand, and Wallace each react under this inexorable pressure is the test of each man’s character and courage, and forms the great climactic event of The Insider.

This film abounds with superlative acting. Al Pacino delivers yet again a stunning performance (has Pacino ever failed to deliver less than a top-notch performance in any of his films?!) as Lowell Bergman, the self-assured, still idealistic-after-all-these-years executive producer. Russell Crowe, nominated for a Best Actor Academy Award for his portrayal of Jeffrey Wigand, richly texturizes his character – in part a tormented soul, in part an easy to dislike cynical tough guy, and in part a dreamy idealist. Christopher Plummer brings a perfect blend of "stuffed shirt" arrogance and pomposity to the character of Mike Wallace. Other performances of note include Diane Venora as Liane Wigand; Philip Baker Hall as Hewitt; Michael Gambon as Brown and Williamson CEO Thomas Sandefur; Colm Feore as attorney Richard Scruggs; and, in a cameo appearance, Mississippi Attorney General Michael Moore (who delivers his lines with surprising competence) as himself.

The Insider does not pretend to present an objective look at either the controversy surrounding the tobacco industry or the internecine strife at CBS News. Both Jeffrey Wigand and Lowell Bergman are seen as heroes in their respective professions, and the tobacco industry is pretty much vilified without mercy. Wigand, although certainly not a paragon of virtue as a family man (he is frequently portrayed as cold, insensitive, and centered more upon his own feelings than on the feelings of his wife and daughters), is still relatively easy to sympathize with. It is difficult to even begin to appreciate the tremendous pressure he must have undergone during those dark years. It is to his great credit that he was able to put his shattered life back together after enduring the relentless public calumny of Big Tobacco.

Lowell Bergman, on the other hand, seems the perfect hero in this film. Supremely dedicated to his profession, he views his word as his absolute bond. He seems genuinely to care about Wigand and how he is being treated by both the tobacco industry and his colleagues at CBS News. He was perhaps guilty of manipulating Wigand at the outset of the unfolding "whistle blower" drama, but, once the tobacco industry began its smear campaign against Wigand, Bergman's Herculean efforts to set the record straight on Wigand's behalf make him a genuinely admirable character.

If you enjoy an intelligent, fact-based movie, one that is unafraid to confront real and controversial issues, and one delivers a powerful message, you will most definitely enjoy The Insider . It is a movie that I will view and savor...over and over again!!