Insider, The

RATING: R

STARRING: Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, Christopher Plummer, Diane venora, Philip Baker Hall, Lindsay Grouse and Det Mazar

DIRECTOR: Michael Mann

DISTRIBUTOR: Touchstone Pictures/Buena Vista Pictures Distribution/Waft Disney Company

GENRE: Drama

INTENDED AUDIENCE: Adults

SUMMARY: The Insider is a well-produced, acted, directed, and photographed movie about a '60 Minutes" producer who helps a scientist blow the whistle on some nefarious activities in the large tobacco companies. Harassed by the scientist's former company, a large tobacco firm, both the producer and the scientist fight to expose the truth behind the chemical makeup in tobacco products. The scientist becomes a key figure in the federal and state government lawsuits against "Big Tobacco," but CBS lawyers briefly put the kibosh on a scheduled interview with the intense scientist This leads to interesting questions about journalistic ethics and corporate machinations.

Playing like an edge-of-your-seat poW cal thriller, The Insider nevertheless has a mild socialistic, humanist worldview with politically correct elements and a tone of historical revisionism, despite its positive moral qualities, For instance, it fads to reveal the Marxist past of the "60 Minutes" producer's college training. It also fails to consider the dangers of letting Big Brother government harass legal businesses in order to exton money from them, money that will be used to pay for huge social programs. Such social programs seem to be just as addictive as the nicotine in any cigarette.

CONTENT: Mild socialist humanist worldview of leftist journalist manipulating humanist scientist into becoming a whistleblower on large, controversial smoking companies, plus some politically correctness, historical revisionism and moral elements regarding truth, product liability and ethical issues about TV journalism and business practices; 62 mostly strong obscenities including many "f" words, I strong profanity JGD) and at least I mild profanity (for God's sake), no violence, but implied and depicted threats of violence; no sex; no nudity, alcohol use; smoking; and wife fails to support husband who takes a principled stand against corruption and deceit.

Copyright Human Events Publishing, Inc. Nov 19, 1999
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