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The Informant! is like a much less funny, and much more sad version of Burn After Reading.  Matt Damon gives a great performance in his portrayal of Mark Whitacre as he trips his way through several years of FBI investigation as an informant against the company he works for.

I want to write more about this film, but all I can think about is just how disappointing the film was.  There were a few funny moments throughout the film, but most of the humor centers around the idiocy of the entire situation, and how deep of a hole Mark can dig for himself.  Ultimately you just end up feeling sad for Mark and his situation after the humor wears thin.

Also, the cinematography is just terrible to look at.  It’s not bad or poorly executed, I just think that the choices are all wrong.  Given that the film is set in the early 90′s, it’s lit and shot to kind of resemble the color and tone of video from back in the day.  Unfortunately, it just doesn’t look good.  I actually began to feel disgusted by the lighting in the film, but that may be just me and my background in cinematography.

Regardless, the disappointing elements in the film are too detrimental to it as a whole, and really weigh down the humor as opposed to letting it shine.  I think the story and situation could be rife with great material and entertainment, but ultimately it all feels very convoluted, boiled down, and simplified which cheapens the experience.

The Informant! provides a few laughs and is still an interesting story despite its flaws.  I’d recommend waiting for it to come to Netflix on DVD and not Bluray (because it’s just really really ugly looking).

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