The Infiltrator (2016)

A U.S. Customs official uncovers a money laundering scheme involving Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.

Director:

Brad Furman

Writers:

Ellen Sue Brown (screenplay) (as Ellen Brown Furman), Robert Mazur (based on the book on)

Stars:

Bryan Cranston, John Leguizamo, Diane Kruger

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bryan Cranston	...	Robert Mazur
Leanne Best	...	Bowling Alley Waitress
Daniel Mays	...	Frankie
Tom Vaughan-Lawlor	...	Steve Cook
Niall Hayes	...	Scott Mazur
Lara Decaro	...	Andrea Mazur
Juliet Aubrey	...	Evelyn Mazur
Olympia Dukakis	...	Aunt Vicky
Amy Ryan	...	Bonni Tischler
John Leguizamo	...	Emir Abreu
Joseph Gilgun	...	Dominic
Jason Isaacs	...	Mark Jackowski
Richard Katz	...	Attorney
Fred Furman	...	Federal Court Judge
Juan Cely	...	The Informant

Storyline

During the 1980s, U.S. Customs Service special agent Robert Mazur uses his undercover alias "Bob Musella" to become a pivotal player for drug lords cleaning their dirty cash. Later, he infiltrates the world's largest cartel, and helps expose the money-laundering organization of drug lord Pablo Escobar and take down the Bank of Credit and Commerce International, which had secretly taken illegal ownership of First American Bank shares in Washington, D.C. He survives the deception and has a long and productive career..

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Plot Keywords:

undercover agent | money laundering | corruption | drug cartel | based on true story | 

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Taglines:

The true story of one man against the biggest drug cartel in history

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, language throughout, some sexual content and drug material

Details

Official Sites:

Mongrel Media Official Facebook

Country:

UK

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

13 July 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

El infiltrado

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$28,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,303,775, 17 July 2016, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$15,425,870, 25 September 2016

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$14,805,854, 5 August 2016

Company Credits

Production Co:

George Films,Good Films,Lipsync Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Color:

Color Black and White Color (archive footage)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The tagline for the 2016 movie tie-in edition of Robert Mazur's source book "The Infiltrator: My Secret Life Inside the Dirty Banks Behind Pablo Escobar's Medellín Cartel, first published in 2009, and which has now been re-titled with the shorter name of just "THE INFILTRATOR", as with this feature film's title, changed for the release of this movie, reads: "Undercover in the World of Drug Barons and Dirty Banks".

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Goofs

The song, "I Can't Wait", by Nu Shooz, plays during a strip club scene in the film. The film is set in 1985, but this song wasn't released until 1986.

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Quotes

Robert Mazur: Roberto, I am glad you are here. But there is a part of me that wishes you hadn't taken that risk.
Roberto Alcaino: Without family or friends what kinda world it is be. There will be no reason to be alive. Hmm? It's a good day.

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Connections

Referenced in The Infiltrator: The Three Bobs (2016)

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Soundtracks

Santeria
(uncredited)
Performed by Chris Hajian

User Reviews

Breaking Good

Bryan Cranston is not your typical movie star, although he seems like it. Underneath the cool-high-school-dad exterior, there's an actor of great depth and unexpected power. You'll know it when you see a scene involving his character, said character's wife, and a restaurant on their anniversary dinner. Cranston seems to have benefited during his years as Walter 'Heisenberg' White on TV's Breaking Bad. And it has contributed greatly in this biographical crime thriller, about as straightforward and predictable as a stab in the gut.

Yes, Brad Furman's (The Lincoln Lawyer, Runner Runner) directorial efforts here will not be known for their signature riffs, as there is none to speak of. It's standard thriller fare, the kind that would do well had it been released between the late 1980s and early 1990s; pure genre fare that caters to mostly adult film-goers that aren't interested in seeing computer-generated superpowers or rubble. In other words, unoriginal yet mature, grown-up stuff.

The Infiltrator, however, is textbook example of how great casting can elevate shopworn genre material into solid entertainment, as the always-reliable Cranston has proved here. Sure, he is strongly supported by a bevy of intriguing cast members including Benjamin Bratt, John Leguizamo and the lovely Diane Kruger; but in portraying real-life undercover agent Robert Mazur shimmying his way up through Pablo Escobar's criminal empire, Cranston's understated but strong everyman presence confidently carries the movie solely. That quality alone replaces the tediousness often found in similar true-crime movies with an intense amount of uneasy suspense and grounded credibility, providing lots of fun for Cranston fans as long as they do not expect anything groundbreaking.

Breaking Good, indeed.