Rating: R
Genre:
Drama
Theatrical Release: 11/05/1999(USA)
Release Date: 04/11/2000
SubTitles: English
Dubbed: English
Sound: 5.1/2
Run Time: 158 Minutes
Flags: Adult Situations, Not For Children, Adult Language
Distributor/Studio: Walt Disney Video
The Insider tells the true story of a man who decided to tell the world what the seven major tobacco companies knew (and concealed) about the dangers of their product. Jeffrey Wigand (
Russell Crowe) was a scientist employed in research for a tobacco firm, Brown and Williamson. Not long after he was fired by Brown and Williamson, Wigand came into contact with Lowell Bergman (
Al Pacino), a producer for
60 Minutes who worked closely with journalist
Mike Wallace (played here by
Christopher Plummer). Bergman arranged for Wigand to be interviewed by Wallace for a
60 Minutes expose on the cigarette industry, though Wigand was still bound by a confidentiality agreement not to discuss his employment with the company. Despite Wigand's willingness to talk, CBS pulled his interview from at the last minute after Brown and Williamson threatened a multi-billion dollar lawsuit. The staff of
60 Minutes and CBS News were soon embroiled in an internal struggle over the killing of the story, and Wigand found himself the subject of lawsuits and a smear campaign, without his full story reaching the public.
The Insider was directed by
Michael Mann and also features
Diane Venora,
Philip Baker Hall,
Debi Mazar,
Colm Feore, and
Rip Torn.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
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