"Based on a tattle-tale."
Steven Soderbergh directs this comedy about a whistle blower out to expose anomalies in the corporate world. Based on true events in the early 1970s, Mark Whitacre (Matt Damon) is a biochemist/vice president at ADM, an agri-business firm. He weaves out a fascinating tale of price fixing & kickbacks happening at the company to the FBI.
So the FBI try to gather enough evidence by turning Marc into an informant. This was back in the day when cellphones and computers were non existent so the agents had to rely on bugging devices and wiretapping their informant. But can the FBI truly trust him? Are his accounts/tapes true or based on false pretenses? Has Marc really told the whole truth or did embellish it with his fertile imagination? Watch the film to find out! :D
The beauty of this satire which I'd say could have been written and directed by the Coen brothers (but they didn't) is in the funny dialogue. Most the film is guided by the voice over narration of Marc. Matt Damon as a buffoon out to trick everyone in his path delivers the sharp witted dialogue in the most exquisite manner. His modulation and accent are pitch perfect. Even the trivia parts he narrates are hilarious but witty. For instance this statement really made me LOL (laugh out loud)
The plot is interesting at first. But then as several information are fed to the FBI as well as the viewing public, the storyline borders on the murky side. The film strains to keep the audience interested in the countless and sometimes confusing tale which Mark Whitacre spews out with ease. Nevertheless the brilliant acting from Matt Damon with its funny dialogue saves the film from total confusing destruction!
So the FBI try to gather enough evidence by turning Marc into an informant. This was back in the day when cellphones and computers were non existent so the agents had to rely on bugging devices and wiretapping their informant. But can the FBI truly trust him? Are his accounts/tapes true or based on false pretenses? Has Marc really told the whole truth or did embellish it with his fertile imagination? Watch the film to find out! :D
The beauty of this satire which I'd say could have been written and directed by the Coen brothers (but they didn't) is in the funny dialogue. Most the film is guided by the voice over narration of Marc. Matt Damon as a buffoon out to trick everyone in his path delivers the sharp witted dialogue in the most exquisite manner. His modulation and accent are pitch perfect. Even the trivia parts he narrates are hilarious but witty. For instance this statement really made me LOL (laugh out loud)
"When polar bears hunt, they crouch down by a hole in the ice and wait for a seal to pop up. They keep one paw over their nose so that they blend in, because they've got those black noses. They'd blend in perfectly if not for the nose. So the question is, how do they know their noses are black? From looking at other polar bears? Do they see their reflections in the water and think, "I'd be invisible if not for that." That seems like a lot of thinking for a bear."
The plot is interesting at first. But then as several information are fed to the FBI as well as the viewing public, the storyline borders on the murky side. The film strains to keep the audience interested in the countless and sometimes confusing tale which Mark Whitacre spews out with ease. Nevertheless the brilliant acting from Matt Damon with its funny dialogue saves the film from total confusing destruction!
2 comments:
I'm about half way through this film and I'm slowly losing interest in the plot. Like you said, it gets confusing and I'm starting to wonder if I should like Matt Damon's character.
The last good comedy I saw was THe Men Who Stare at Goats. =D
I was watching it with my hubby and he fell asleep and totally lost interest hehe
"The Men who stare at Goats" is on my films to watch list. :D
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