Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- ironic
- sardonic
- adult movie night
- crime comedy marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film to be a quietly funny, consistently ironic corporate satire elevated by Matt Damon’s charismatic performance.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Mark Whitacre’s increasingly absurd secret-agent self-image contrasts with the serious price-fixing investigation and the collapse of his credibility.
Whitacre repeatedly lies while acting as an FBI informant, making his account of events unstable and forcing the audience to reassess his motives.
The central conflict begins with Whitacre reporting ADM’s illegal price-fixing activities to the FBI and then becoming entangled in the consequences.
The film draws its premise from Whitacre’s real FBI informant role while emphasizing the surreal, comic accumulation of lies and surveillance.
Films like The Informant!, and why
Erin Brockovich
shares a true-story corporate wrongdoing premise, an ordinary protagonist confronting institutional misconduct, and a witty dramatic tone
Michael Clayton
shares corporate crime, moral ambiguity, investigative tension, and a grounded adult thriller sensibility
Catch Me If You Can
shares deception, escalating lies, law-enforcement involvement, and a lightly comic true-crime atmosphere
Movie Details
- Director
- Steven Soderbergh
- Release Date
- 2009-09-18
- Runtime
- 108 min
- Rating
- 6.2 / 10 (1018)
Cast
- Matt Damon
- Scott Bakula
- Joel McHale
- Melanie Lynskey
- Tom Papa
- Rick Overton
- Thomas F. Wilson
- Clancy Brown
- Tony Hale
- Richard Steven Horvitz
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Apple TV, Apple TV Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Informant! about?
- A corporate insider recruited to expose price fixing becomes trapped inside his own increasingly elaborate mythology as an FBI informant.
- What is The Informant! like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Informant! as measured, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Informant! violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Informant! as mild.
- What did critics think of The Informant!?
- Critics broadly found the film to be a quietly funny, consistently ironic corporate satire elevated by Matt Damon’s charismatic performance.
- Which films are like The Informant!?
- Films with a similar feel include Erin Brockovich, Michael Clayton, and Catch Me If You Can.
- How long is The Informant!?
- The Informant! runs 108 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Informant!?
- In United States, The Informant! streams on Apple TV, Apple TV Amazon Channel.
