Movie Review: The Informant!

THREE THINGS I LIKED:

1. THAT MATT DAMON'S ONE LOVABLY GOOFY BASTARD — After alternating between three performances in the Bourne series (with a fourth installment likely) and three performances in the Ocean's series (with a fourth installment hopefully not being likely), we get to see Damon take advantage of the opportunity to try something decidedly different from those two recurring roles that he inhabited for the last decade. In The Informant!, Damon is reunited with Steven Soderbergh once again, adding a bushy mustache and some extra 30 pounds in taking on the role of Mark Whitacre, the real-life Archer Daniel Midland whistle-blower who learns of his company's involvement in an international price-fixing scheme. He proves to be remarkably good at playing what is essentially a bad actor, and Melanie Lynskey is equally effective as Whitacre's loyal albeit clueless wife.
2. AT LEAST IT'S A LITTLE PLAYFUL WITH THE "BASED ON A TRUE STORY" BIT — Keeping in mind how I generally feel about that phrase's use, I took Steven Soderbergh's opening disclaimer that while most of the story is fact-based, the filmmakers also had no problems changing a few things for dramatic effect. The warning concludes with, "So there," and at the start it's hard not to smirk at Soderbergh effectively flicking off his entire audience right from the get-go about how faithful he's going to be that phrase. 
3. I HAD A FEW LAUGHS ... — The movie includes a hit-or-miss stream-of-consciousness series of random inner thoughts from its main character such as wondering why the German word for pen has so many syllables or how polar bears can tell their nose is black.

THREE THINGS I DIDN'T:

1. ... BUT NOT MANY WERE VERY MEMORABLE — Jeez, even those two particular jokes I listed there don't even really sound that funny. Although there's a surprising number of comedic performers in this cast, The Informant! withdraws amused chuckles from its audience, but hardly any laughter of the gut-busting variety.
2. THIS IS WHY THE OLD-TIMERS DESPISE VOICE-OVER NARRATION — While the joke here seems to be taking pride in using the inclusion of every one of Whitacre's most mundane and random observations, it barely holds up as a stylistic gimmick and almost deliberately avoids being a genuine storytelling tool. 
3. IT'S NOT AS ENJOYABLE AS ANY OF THE FILMS IT REMINDED ME OF — You wouldn't be wrong for saying that The Informant! reminds you of The Insider, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, or even Catch Me If You Can. You also wouldn't be wrong if you felt all three of those aforementioned films were ultimately more entertaining.

25 WORDS OR LESS:

The Informant! feels like an overly long joke on its audience that concludes with an unsatisfying punchline.