The movie is based on real life events involving tobacco whistle-blower Jeffrey Wigand’s controversial 60 Minutes interview about Brown and Williamson’s tobacco manufacturing malpractices.

It is one of the good films I’ve seen in a while. All the acting is believable and there are no loose ends anywhere.

The movie makes you bring forth all of your opinions related to law, corporate culture, freedom and whether you really have a choice when dealing with such things.

The first part of the movie focuses primarily on Jeffrey Wigand’s dilemma of whether to expose Big Tobacco or safeguard his family. The mental torture by the corporation’s proxies is very frightening given that this has actually happened and that corporations can effortlessly wield this kind of power.

The second part of the movie focuses on 60 Minutes journalist Lowell Bergman’s efforts to get the controversial interview aired against CBS’s wishes. He must deal with corporate bureaucracy who perceive the interview as a threat to the company’s value in an impending sale.

Lowell, during his forced vacation also investigates the Unabomber case. This crosscutting plot adds a bit of noise to the already delicate situation in the movie and seems a bit unnecessary.

The events of the film lead up to the landmark Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement.

Rating: ★★★★☆ (Good)