The Insider

The Insider is a cinematic treat for people who spend their evenings in front of the TV watching political talk shows like "Hardball" or "Rivera Live" on cable. At 160 minutes, The Insider might be a tough movie to sit through unless you’re the consummate political junkie.

The Insider is an account of tobacco industry whistleblower Jeffrey Wigand. He’s the former Brown & Williamson executive who spilled the beans about spiked up cigarettes and nicotine addiction to "60 Minutes" reporter Mike Wallace. Not only does the poor guy get fired, he’s threatened by corporate goons and loses his family in the process.

The movie focuses on Wigand’s story, but it also looks at the behind-the-scenes action at CBS and the corporate decision to kill the nicotine story. The network, fearful of a major lawsuit by the tobacco company, does not want to kibosh a pending acquisition by Westinghouse. Several corporate bigwigs with sizable stock options stand to lose millions of dollars if the takeover falls through.

That scenario places the muckraking network news division on a collision course with the corporate lawyers and top management. There’s an old saying that you know you’re going to have a bad day when there’s a "60 Minutes" camera crew out in the lobby waiting to interview you. Based on how the show’s executive producer, Don Hewitt, and even Mike Wallace come across in this film, you can lay that fear to rest.

What makes The Insider an excellent film is the Oscar-worthy performance by Russell Crowe as the anxiety-ridden Jeffrey Wigand. Al Pacino also stands out as Lowell Bergman, the producer who convinces Wigand to break his silence and sing like a canary. Christopher Plummer does a dead-on impersonation of Mike Wallace. You’ll also see Philip Baker Hall in the role of Don Hewitt. Both Hewitt and Wallace will be less than flattered when they see how they are portrayed in this film. Based on news accounts this past week, I think both men have a legitimate grievance.