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The Insider

1999 · directed by Michael Mann · 158 min
23,635 feet · Prominence
1,059th of 24,106 films scored
The Rewatchables‘The Insider’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Sean Fennessey →

How this film scores

Draw56

Lifetime worldwide gross $60m, re-releases included; about $119m in 2026 money.

Rank2,593 of 11,051In 199956 of 196

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise94

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics91 baseAwards77 signal → +4 lift

Oscars7 nominated Picture, Director, Actor, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Sound
Golden Globes3 nominated Best Picture, Lead acting, Screenplay
BAFTAs1 nominated Lead acting
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy40

Judged directly: Admired whistleblower drama, culturally quiet.

Verdict40 of 100IMDb7.8 from 191kWikipedia34k views a monthAge27 years

Scored beside it · 1,727 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 56 praise 94 legacy 40averages 63, placing it at23,635 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

In these careers — elevation for this film

Al Pacino20,045 ftRussell Crowe20,045 ftChristopher Plummer18,862 ftDiane Venora18,104 ftPhilip Baker Hall18,081 ftLindsay Crouse17,874 ftStephen Tobolowsky17,807 ftMichael Gambon17,650 ftRip Torn17,642 ftCliff Curtis17,638 ftBruce McGill17,633 ftBill Sage17,632 ftRoger Bart17,632 ft