TheFamilyBerzurcher

In a year of trilingual Basterds and three-dimensional Avatars, it's easy to miss The Informant! The film stars a bloated Matt Damon, portraying a the real-life price fixing scandal within ADM, a business that manages the sale and distribution of corn product. The subject is nothing short of vital. This type of business dealing has put a dent in our culture over the last decade. Instead of serving up an earnest dish of ironic criticism, Soderbergh throws a pie in our face. He reveals the best comedy of 2009.

Soderbergh reminds me of King Vidor in more ways than one. His visual style isn't intrusive, but there is a steady tendency toward the unexpected in the editing room. He relishes in the most misshapen moments, even if they blow by. Most importantly, Soderbergh seems to engage in the same "one for me, one for them," philosophy that governed Vidor's production schedule. Of course, in these days it's much easier to badger folks for money, but Soderbergh does have a tight list of trusting supporters that aren't likely to keep the pen in their pocket. His visual style bends toward popularity at the same time as being distinctive. His edits have a unique rhythm — offbeat but comprising some sort of pattern that deserves surrender. People aren't slaves inside of their environments, but they are less knowing than we are. Soderbergh loves that type of man — the one that seems in control when they rarely are.

Damon plays Whitacre with dizzy aptitude. We are only exposed to his process one layer at a time. Indeed, The Informant! is a film that deserves multiple viewings if I've ever seen one. Damon is convincing and oblivious at the same time. His capability for perpetual lying is made shameful but not without some understanding. From the beginning of the film, the audience is allowed inside of his head. We hear his streaming ribbon of thought as some kind of bored voice-over. Whitacre continues to interject throughout the film, often distracting us from critical business moments that we're not supposed to catch. It's outrageous and absolutely hilarious in each manifestation. The entire layout of this character banks on amusement and gravity. This doesn't even consider the awake, opportunist score from EGOT recipient Marvin Hamlisch. Soderbergh commits, even when he is uneasy or staggered, to a nuanced approach. Especially here, where he could have accepted any number of straight-faced interpretations of a contemporary tragic hero, the audience is given an amusing sequence of events that, in the end, forces us to reflect on corporate business with more concern and immediacy than any dramatic production. The Informant! passes along a rare type of comedic narration that, in small bites, has worked like a charm for any nominal summer blockbuster. However, when a film carries that naiveté through to the end, everyone becomes frightened and critical.

This film deserved far more praise than it ever received. On subsequent viewings, it holds up as the most original and vital comedy of 2009.

The Ides of March assumes, like the numerous films that form its ancestry, the plausibility of a naive Democrat who will never play dirty. That is something to which many can relate. I remember someone older telling me, as a fifth grader with grand social ambitions pushing for a Gore presidency, that "everyone is a Democrat until they get their first paycheck." Of course, I didn't know what that meant at the time, but there might be some truth to it. This film imagines that same claim. Ryan Gosling portrays a baby Dem with pure wishes who "needs to believe in a cause" in order to make a move. It's a tale of the Incest of the Left. Everyone floats somewhere between idealistic and cynical, usually representing both. Like Primary Colors and The American President did before, The Ides of March tells us little we didn't already know. Instead, it elects to dish out Clooney's political wet dream — a president who mandates two years of military service, has no religious conviction (but he respects yours!!!), and never plays dirty unless he knocks somebody up.

Directed by and co-starring Clooney, it is his predictable political antidote for the American Red/Right Infection from the very beginning. The first words of the film are "I am not a Christian. I am not an atheist." As a whole, the film shares the same non-committal. Every character but Gosling's is little more than a stepping stone. Visually, The Ides of March misses the methodical neatness of Good Night and Good Luck. Clooney's directing and writing styles are capable and wide. He is clearly interested in wordy pictures that search for meaning inside, not on the surface. Luckily for him, he found a balanced talent in Ryan Gosling, who also had a promising year with Drive and this picture. His masculine sensitivity and smoothness recalls the old masters, harnessing the cool charm of Cary or Gary. His quiet charisma also recalls Clint. The sum Dashing-ness of Clooney and Gosling is rich. You'll only need a couple bites of their cake, but it's good.

Unfortunately, Ides does little to advance a committed ideology. The stakes are low and cool jazz is playing in the background while these characters talk. I'm unsure whether Clooney was seeking to make a good movie or a political statement. Either way, it only swallowed half of the glass. Whether it's half full or half empty is your call.