Michael Clayton (2007)

Risky business.

In my opinion, this is a film you must watch more than one time. The first time, you absorb the plot as a whole. The other times you watch it to catch the nuances. I thought George Clooney is really fine in a discreet interpretation of a kind of lawyer specialized in cleaning up the mess from some clients. Unfortunately, he has to dealt with a huge of a problem involving a powerful corporate law firm and a more powerful and dangerous client. Innocent people's lives are threatened and a courageus but tormented attorney (Tom Wilkinson) bring up all the deadly mess. Cloney then chooses the side he wishes to stay with a clever outcome. October 5, 2008

Intelligent Filmmaking, or Subpar Execution?

Without a doubt, I love the film Michael Clayton. A big proponent for me about why I love films is the atmosphere they give off, and Michael Clayton oozes atmosphere. The dark blues, the deep blacks, the lingering almost haunting background music and the few loud, bright explosions make you jump. However, this will mean that some people will find the film boring, slow, dumb and hard to follow. And honestly, I can understand why people have those feelings about Clayton, this isn't a big crime mystery filled with suspense, this is a dialogue driven movie, and one that succeeds with that in mind.

Playing Michael Clayton is the brilliant George Clooney who shows that he doesn't need to be humorous or cunning to make a character come to life. Clooney's portrayal of Clayton works because of the little things; the facial animations and the way he speaks. Clayton is good at what he does, but he's ultimately a wreck for numerous reasons. He hides in his suits and confuses people about just what exactly he is, but beneath we see his life isn't so solid. But that's not the story of the film.

The story - I think, I'm not even actually positive here because the film is a bit confusing at times, even after multiple viewings - is about corporate greed, corrpution and "fixing errors". The company in question is U/North which has a bad habit of killing people will some bad products or reactions from them, and they've hired someone to defend them in court. However, as the story unravels, this man turns against U/North and either goes crazy, or is finally thinking clearly - depending on which side of the story you're on. This character, Arthur, is played brilliantly by Tom Wilkenson.

He's wild, talks fast, loud and a bit of a loose screw and compliments Clooney perfectly by being the opposite of the composed and quiet Clayton.

As the movie progresses, it gets a little blurry about what's happening and why something happens and why someone does what they do or who they even are. But if you give the film a chance to grow and if you can sit through it and pay attention, chances are you'll enjoy it.

Obviously, trying to be such a serious film means it should do everything correctly, and there are numerous glaring weaknesses about crucial points in the film. Without giving too much away, I'll say this; if you've seen any CSI episodes or know anything basic about how police complete crime scene scenarios, you will scoff at 2 major moments in the film.

If I just had to give it a score about overall enjoyment, I would easily give it a 5/5, however, if I was to give a more detailed and cynical analysis of it, I would give the film an 8/10. September 28, 2008

Top-notch cast in rather pedestrian tale of selling out in the legal profession

This is a tough review to write. I am a huge fan of virtually everyone involved in this movie, from George Clooney to Sydney Pollack to Tom Wilkinson to Tilda Swinton to Steven Soderberg to Kevin Gilroy to . . .

"Michael Clayton" tells the story of how the titular character (Clooney, rather more vulnerable than usual) struggles to save his soul, even though he's an attorney. (Ha ha.) He's an admittedly unusual attorney, a "fixer" for a top New York firm. On the firm's website, he's special counsel for trusts and estates. In reality, he's the guy a congressman calls when his daughter gets busted with cocaine or a rich executive is guilty of a hit-and-run.

Deep in debt, struggling with a broken family, Clayton gets thrown into the mix of his firm's soulless representation of a soulless megacorporation that has poisoned hundreds of innocent civilians with its chemical products. If this sounds familiar, it's because we've gone over this ground a gazillion times before ("A Civil Action," "Erin Brockovich" ring a bell?).

So no matter how well-written the story, how solid the behind-the-camera talent, or how great the cast is, one cannot escape the fact that we have been here before. So does "MC" break any new ground?

For all its talent and all the intelligence that went into the movie, not really. This movie does not rise to the level of great courtroom dramas, such as "The Verdict" or even "A Few Good Men."

And so it's a three-star flick. This is a solid line-drive single rather than a home run, if you will. Again, this is tough for me to write because I wanted to fall in love with this movie. Oh well. Back to "O Brother Where Art Thou?" and "Out of Sight" it is. September 20, 2008

Busy but interesting.

Great performance by Clooney, as always. The plot is so convoluted and far fetched that its hard to keep score till nearly the end of the movie.
It ultimately makes sense, but be ready to concentrate before you start to watch this movie. September 19, 2008

A winner.

An evenly paced thriller, and not so much about the corporation against the little guy as you might read in other reviews. Although that was the underlying premise and the envelope within which the story unfolds. It's more about Michael Clayton though than anything else; his morality, his passion, and his ability to cope while dealing with personal events. Mr. Clooney gives a superb performance, possibly his careers best. I'm never happy with getting to a point in the film where it then indicates going pack 4 days to understand how we got to where we are, and perhaps I'm confusing the issue, however, it all comes together and it works. All the characters have substance and are well developed - good acting all around, and the ending ties everything up neatly. I liked it. September 17, 2008

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