While working on a tobacco segment as a producer for "60 Minutes," Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino) stumbles upon an even more astonishing story. He learns that a consultant he has hired named Jeffrey Wigand (Russell Crowe) has first-hand knowledge that tobacco companies are manipulating the make-up of their cigarettes to make them more addictive. Knowing the significance of this story, Bergman and reporter Mark Wallace (Christopher Plummer) pursue it with vigor but come up against roadblocks in the form of a confidentiality agreement signed by Wigand and CBS lawyers who fear that airing the story would result in a lawsuit that would bankrupt the network. Unwilling to bow to the pressures around him, Bergman engages in tense behind-the-scenes maneuvering to ensure that the story sees the light of day.

Michael Mann is one of the better directors working today. His body of work has been impressive as "Manhunter" (1986), "The Last of the Mohicans" (1992), and "Heat" (1995) all have been wonderfully crafted films that still entertain to this day. "The Insider" is more reflective and insightful than his earlier films, but it still retains the Michael Mann mark of quality. Under a less able director, "The Insider" could have easily been a languid investigative piece, but Mann utilizes passionate performances and his skilled craftsmanship to create a captivating story about the darker side of corporate America. Pacino is his usual dependable self as he turns in another distinguished performance as the heroic and embattled television producer. Yet, the breakthrough performance in this film belongs to Crowe who offers tantalizing glimpses of the great things yet to come in his future. "The Insider" is a stark reminder that good men and women in the investigative reporting field are still diligently at work exposing the evils around us despite the enormous pressures exerted upon them to keep sinister secrets secret. The world is a better place because of their efforts.

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