Review – The Insider

Fascinating. Absolutely fascinating. Of course, if you don’t have an interest in investigative journalism, you may not get anywhere near the kick I got from this movie. But even if ethics, reportage and corporate dirty tricks don’t exactly get your motor running, you may still enjoy the excellent cast and well-written script. The story here is the sad tale of Jeffrey Wigand (Russell Crowe), an ex-tobacco executive turned whistle blower for CBS’s 60 Minutes. Al Pacino plays Lowell Bergman, the producer who persuades Wigand to come forward and turns out to be his only ally when his former employers go after him in just about every way possible. The result is an unflinching, unflattering portrait of a large network news division caving in to corporate pressure and turning its collective back on its source, its producer and its integrity. A must-see for members (and aspiring members) of the profession, and a good show for anyone else. Worth seeing