New Soderbergh Film Gets Laughs at Venice Film Festival

One possible upcoming hit of the fall is Steven Soderbergh's new dark comedy, "The Informant!" According to Silvia Aloisi of Reuters.com, the film was met with laugh-out-loud audiences at the Venice Film Festival.

The film is based on a true story, familiar territory to Soderbergh, who directed Julia Roberts in her Oscar winning role as Erin Brockovich, the real-life single mother who challenged a major corporation. Matt Damon is Mark Whitacre, a promising corporate employee turned informant to the FBI.

It was certainly a shift for Damon from his famed role as Jason Bourne; the actor put on 30 pounds and wore a mustache. The material is a little lighter than "Erin Brockovich," though still a possible criticism of the recent corporate scandals. Perhaps the lighter note is due to Soderbergh's lack of communication with the real-life characters, though Whitacre himself said the film was very accurate.