The Circling Piranha

By Matthew Holley

[1] After receiving a package full of documents that could lead to a story, Lowell Bergman gets a number to contact Jeffrey Wigand as a subject-matter expert that could assist in analysis. The quality and impact of the papers is undeveloped and seems completely unimportant. Michael Mann uses these scenes to shed light on the persistent piranha-like approach that investigative journalists take to pursue a story and also to give us a look at the conflicted motives of a whistleblower.

[2] Deciding to shoot Lowell’s original phone call from a random phone booth while he is out picking up laundry and running errands gives the impression that there really isn’t that much priority in the story. The blunt response by Mrs. Wigand ignites the scene and sets Lowell off. He would go on to make follow-up calls, leave messages, and even send faxes. The journalist isn’t after the analysis anymore; he had begun digging at something that smelled suspicious.

[3] Mrs. Wigand’s response to the journalist’s inquiry into her husband’s whereabouts tells us a lot about the paradigm that Jeffrey was in. We have already seen how his daughter relies on medication and health care that his former employer holds over his head, but his wife also seems to have a great deal of concern for maintaining their current way of life. She doesn’t even think twice before she ignores Lowell’s advances and hangs up the phone. As the scene switches to Jeffrey in his office, you can almost feel the weight of the world weighing down on his shoulders. His former boss is threatening him, his daughter needs the medical coverage, and his wife is completely on board with keeping things under wraps and riding out the severance package.

[4] The correspondence back and forth between Lowell and Jeffrey also advance the director’s desired message. After hearing Lowell’s message requesting his assistance in helping with a story about fire hazards related to people falling asleep smoking, Jeffrey could have simply answered the phone and let him know that he was too busy to be of any help. Lowell is tenacious and unwilling to go away. It is the possibility of a story that keeps him going, not so much just the stack of papers that needed analyzing. Mann positions Lowell in an anxious manner pacing about his apartment, and eventually he starts sending faxes. The viewer feels Lowell frantically pushing forward trying to open up this jar, and at the same time the camera flips back to Jeffrey and we feel his inner resolve to speak out being provoked.

[5] It is easy to relate to the guilt that a potential whistleblower might feel, but these scenes give us the feeling that Mr. Wigand would have remained silent had he not been pursued. We feel for Jeffrey as he tries to subdue his conscience, and part of us wants him to be selfish and protect his family. Lowell seems to be the bad guy here. As long as Jeffrey remains silent, everything will be alright for him, but the director wants the viewer to fear that this pesky investigative journalist could bring to the surface Jeff’s desire to speak out. Lowell seems almost harassing as he over-pursues Jeffrey for mere analysis that could likely have been done by another source. In fact, even after Jeffrey agrees to interpret the work, there is no further mention of him actually doing any analysis on the documents. Lowell in the movie seems to abandon sleeping cigarette hazards and turns his full attention to opening up his big prize, the perfect insider of a Fortune 500 company. In the final voice message attempting to establish contact with Wigand, there is a telling word choice. Lowell details how he will be waiting for Jeffrey at a hotel, and he uses the words “if you are curious to meet me,” which seems like awfully awkward words to use by someone looking to contract out an analyzing job.

[6] On Jeffrey’s part the electronic communication in these scenes show his own inner conflict with wanting to speak out. If he really didn’t want to talk, then he would have unplugged the fax machine or simply stopped responding. Lowell had found a medium that would allow Jeffrey to ease his way into talking just a little bit. There is even a moment when Lowell seems like he is about to give in, and then Wigand sends back a message that re-ignites the journalist’s intrigue. Mann pans in close on each message as they are received, and he highlights Wigand’s face as he reads the messages. In what feels like a final defiant reply Jeffrey sends back a message saying that he can’t, won’t, and doesn’t want to talk with the journalist. That message seems hollow when Jeffrey again leaves the now metaphorical fax machine plugged in and he meets face to face with Lowell to continue their communication. This tells us that Jeffrey was curious to meet Lowell and to further explore the possibility that he might speak out against his confidentiality agreement.

[7] At the hotel we transition with a camera angle far above a seated Lowell, and from a spying bird’s eye position, we peer down at him. A close-up camera angle gives us some insight into who Lowell is. He appears to be a man concerned with the news, but with a closer eye we see that he is looking right past today’s news stories, and he is already looking for the big scoop of tomorrow. Jeffrey arrives obviously nervous, looks at a newspaper stand in the lobby, then he looks at Lowell, then turns slightly back towards the paper as if he can’t decide if he should actually make contact with the news source. Each man’s handling of the newspaper tells us who they are. Lowell is a man with his hands all over the news, but to him he is using the paper as a means to enable him to pursue his passion, which is finding people and making them open up. Wigand is a fidgety man resistant to embrace the news, and we can feel him doubting that any good can come from his indulgence into the paper. Finally, Jeffrey Wigand gives in, as he just barely touches the news and gives a nod towards Lowell, they silently agree to move up stairs and begin the process.

[8] The scene upstairs shifts to a hotel room, which appears to be our focus, but in the script and in that particular room there is an 800 billion-pound gorilla looming in the background. The portrayal of the Brown & Williamson building out the window lets the viewer know that the real issue both men are concerned with is the story that Jeffrey has inside of him. After the awkward exchange is completed and Wigand offers his services, he again goes to an unnecessary length to let Lowell know that he has something he is burning to let out. Unprovoked this time, Jeffrey brings up his confidentiality agreement issue, and in closing he hints at his recent firing from a major tobacco company. With the supposed purpose of the meeting being the deciphering of the technical data, it gives us the feeling that Jeffrey willingly now is trying to push the plot towards his divulgence of critical insider data.

[9] These interwoven scenes encapsulate the entire message of the film, and the direction the characters take in these few minutes outline the rest of the plot. Lowell has committed himself to coaxing and caressing Wigand, and Jeffrey has decided to defy all of his better judgments and follow his heart. The piranha is circling and the whistleblower has sounded his call.