The Infiltrator

Yaron (Oliver Platt) is a Jew journalist assigned for a matter about Neo-Nazis in German. He poses of Neo-Nazi and the skinheads believe he is the representative of a wealthy American, who wants to sponsor a German Neo-Nazis groups.

This film is very scary, since it is based on a true story. It is almost unthinkable that, in 2004, there are persons having such a feeling of rage in their hearts against other human beings, just because of their religions or ethnicity. Oliver Platt has a great performance as a brave and audacious man. "The Infiltrator" is a very disgusting, but also a very important and highly recommended film about intolerance and racism. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): 'Infiltrator – Em Busca da Verdade' ('Infiltrator – Looking For the Truth')

I'm not sure why the other reviewer found the movie so hard to believe as it is a true story based off of Yaron Svoray's life and his book, "In Hitler's Shadow". Yaron is an undercover writer who was able to 'infiltrate' a Nazi party and have them believe he is writing to support their cause. Working with the Simon Wiesenthal Center they attempt to setup Nazis in order to give concrete proof to the German government that the groups exist and who their leaders are.

The acting was superb, and Oliver Platt, as usual, delivered a genuine performance. You truly felt for the characters in the movie. The movie did a great job of showing the Nazi influence in all levels of the public and government. They made it a point to show that not all Germans are Nazis with a few German citizens criticizing the Nazis in public. The movie shows the situation from all sides (Nazi, Jew, immigrants, etc) without trying to hide facts or issues.

There are several lessons to be learned from a well done movie like this, I wouldn't want to ruin it for everyone, see the movie, its well worth a rental.

Based on the true story of Yaron Svoray, an Israeli freelance reporter living in the US. "The Infiltrator" recounts Svoray's infiltration of Nazi-sympathizers in Germany and beyond.

Oliver Platt plays Svoray, and does a good job in a very serious role. But Svoray's self-imposed mission, with the cooperation and support of the Wiesenthal Center is a Bunyonesques task, and, he is somewhat ill-equipped. If the film initially is to show us how direct exposure to the atrocities of Nazism might fuel unbridled fire within a person, Jewish or otherwise, then it fails in act one.

It's exposition regarding the state of Nazism today, is important, somewhat startling, and much more dramatic. That a Jewish reporter could infiltrate this infra-structure is somewhat unbelievable, but it serves to validate Svoray's passion.

All in all, the film struggles in no-man's land between documentary and thriller, battling to fill time between real life events. Curiously, actor Arliss Howard takes a major role as an Israeli agent-he will go on to play Mossad operative Peter Malkin in the bio-pic 'The Man Who Captured Eichmann (1996)".

Svoray's story is compelling, sadly the film gives us a less than satisfying conclusion. A worthwhile watch, nonetheless.

Apparently that's the moral of this movie. The movie could have been an interesting depiction of a true story, but it isn't. Mainly coz the screenwriters and director have done such a messy (and in one instance, downright vulgar) job, that a child wont believe the ludicrous goings-on in this braindead movie. The guy meets his ethnic friends in broad daylight while working undercover as a proNazi. He tells the Nazis he represents rich people interested in the cause, and the Nazis believe him straight out without even asking for any credentials. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. All this is explained, in a not-so-subtle case of begging the question, by a dialogue about the Nazis which goes "These guys believe anything.. Greed has made them blind". Or shaving the head has made them stupid.

This film was exciting and very suspenseful. It kept my interest throughout. If you like Nazi-related films, you will want to see this one. I found it thought-provoking also in how it portrayed human emotions and sensibilities. It was a worthwhile view. When I originally saw it scheduled on cable, I intended NOT to watch it; I ended up catching a glimpse of it as I was switching the channels and became mesmerized.

The topic of Neo-Naziism has been dealt with ad nauseum. I originally felt that this would be another predictable re-hash of the subject matter. A few things attracted me: 1) the acting was really good; 2) the graphic visual images left no room for debate; 3) it was very well written.

It's definitely worth an inspection.