Director: Michael Mann
Stars: Russell Crowe as Dr. Jeffrey Wigand, Al Pacino as Lowell Bergmann, Christopher Plummer as Mike Wallace
The Insider is the story of the struggle of 60 Minutes to bring a story regarding tobacco company Philip Morris to light and on the air. Lowell Bergmann is a producer for the show, and upon returning home from Israel, he receives an anonymous package regarding goings-on at Philip Morris. He seeks out someone who can translate the contents into layman's terms, and contacts Dr. Jeffrey Wigand.
Wigand, at this point, has just been fired from another tobacco company, and as part of his departure, signs a confidentiality agreement. He refuses to talk to Bergmann, but Bergmann persists, and he agrees to speak to Bergmann regarding his time at Philip Morris. Subsequently, his previous company orders him to sign an expanded confidentiality agreement, in which he would lose his severance package and benefits if he continued to speak, so he struggles with that decision, but finally gets angry enough that he agrees to tape the interview, and he and Bergmann battle through the tobacco industry's efforts and CBS's doubts about airing the interview.
Overall, I really enjoyed The Insider and recommend it. I'm always wary of movies that run as long as it did (over two and a half hours), but the film moves at a brisk pace. I thought the film made the viewer an insider as to what happened at CBS during this time period- the fears of the legal department of getting sued by the tobacco companies. I particularly enjoyed the depiction of the relationship of Bergmann and Mike Wallace. Pacino gives a gritty performance as Bergmann- he fights for his story but also the integrity of not betraying his source, and Crowe is (in my opinion) rightfully nominated for his performance as a man who has a lot to lose and yet stands by his ethics.
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