HEFE'S REVIEW OF:
THE INFORMANT! (2009)

OPENING THOUGHTS

    I really wanted to see this movie from the time that I first saw the previews for it. Matt Damon and his porn-star mustache was reeling me in faster than you could say "that is a creepy thing to say". The Golden Globe nomination for Damon was a nice boost too, but it also left me wondering if the movie would be kind of a let down since it wasn't nominated for Best Musical/Comedy as well.

ACTING

    MATT DAMON was nothing short of awesome in this film. Everything from his look, to his mannerisms, to his speech was completely in character, and the best part is, it was an awesome character. I loved everything that he did with this part, and I know he is not personally responsible for the costumes and the glasses, but he used all of those things to his advantage and he really managed to carry this movie on his back.
    SCOTT BAKULA in a movie, that blows my mind. Let me just take this opportunity to talk about how much I love Quantum Leap since I will probably never get another chance to do this on website dedicated to movies. Quantum Leap was the height of television. There I said it, that was probably the best and most interestingly conceived show in the history of the medium, and each week Scott Bakula's very human character ran me through the history of America in a very relatable way. I credit that show with sparking my interest in history and it holds a very special place in my heart. That being said, Scott Bakula was not at all that great in this film. I found him to be kind of bland, and his character was too similar to his character in Quantum Leap. All it did was make me upset that I wasn't watching the show.
    JOEL MCHALE was the second TV surprise to show up in this film. I enjoy McHale on The Soup, and the show Community is good for a few laughs, but not once have ever thought that it would be a good idea to put him into a feature film, let alone a larger supporting character. He is just not a very good actor, he has good comedic timing, and a rapist wit, but none of those things were needed for this part, and so he kind of flopped I am sorry to say.

DIRECTION AND SCRIPT

    STEVEN SODERBERGH has always been a kind of overrated director in my opinion. Usually at best I think he is average, but I actually thought he did a pretty good job with this film. First of all the attention to detail in capturing the early nineties office feeling was spot on. It felt like I was transported back in time to the lamest place in the world. That being said he also simultaneously managed to create his own unique and stylized world. The music chosen in this film was completely awesome and off the wall and helped add to this quirky time trip and really set the tone. In fact the music hmade you understand that this was a farce, in many cases more than the script itself did.
    SCOTT Z. BURNS did a pretty good job with the script. I liked the idea of taking a true story about some serious shit and turning it into a comedy. I read on the internet that the book itself was not written to be funny but was more a fact based account of what actually happened. The character he created for Matt Damon was awesome, and I loved that he kept referring to John Grisham books like they were gospel when it came to the legal system. The film definitely got off to a slow start, in fact I didn't really start enjoying this film until about half way through when I understood what was actually going on. Some may say that means the movie was not written well as a whole, but I think it made me appreciate the latter part of the movie all the more.

THE VERDICT

    You have to be patient with this film, this is not going to draw you in immediately, it will take time, but for me at least by the time the end of the movie came around I appreciated the film as a whole. Seeing Matt Damon's character in this movie alone is worth the watch. This movie is not perfect, but it is definitely a good time.
 
 

RATING: B

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