Michael Clayton

Michael Clayton (2007) George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack

George Clooney as Michael Clayton is dark and edgy.

Coming attractions and film trailers often do not live up to their hype. Clooney's Michael Clayton does. The film opens with a voiceover and brings back memories of those old noir tough-guy movies we love so much. Michael Clayton is a fix-it man for his law firm. That's not his title, but it is what he does. He does not sit in courtrooms, instead he makes things right for his firm and its wealthy clients. On the surface Clayton looks as if his life could not be better, but he is in over his head with gambling debts and he owes a large sum of money to some people after a restaurant deal turned sour. Still he looks good. He has all of the power trappings, great clothes and a great car. And, he walks the walk. Again, think noir, blink an eye and you can almost see Michael Clayton wearing a hat pulled down over one eye, with the style of actor Robert Taylor (1911–1969), who has been called the man with the perfect profile.

Everything comes to a head when Clayton's boss Marty Bach (Sydney Pollack) calls him in to clean up the firms latest disaster. Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson) a friend and a partner of the firm seems to have lost it. While attending a deposition hearing he tears at his clothes, strips naked and runs outside. Unfortunately this shocking and pathetic scene was captured on videotape; the fallout can damage the case and the firm.

Much of the film focuses on Clayton trying to get to the cause of Edens breakdown and eventual suicide, while trying to keep his own life from imploding. Clayton appears weary as he delves into his friends' sad life, knowing his own not much better. You get a glimpse of Clayton's personal life when he takes his son to school, when you meet his needy brother and when you see him gambling.

You also sense that Clayton is already tired or getting tired of the firm and what it stands for in his life. When he discovers that Edens held proof that could bring down the firms most important corporate client and his firm as well, his life takes another path. Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton) the client's top legal staff knows the truth about her company but is determined to win anyway. Swinton is as cool and calculating as Clooney is here, they are well paired. Actor Sydney Pollack is so right for his man-at-the-top, man-in-charge role. When his character talks to Clooney's 'Clayton', he is persuasive, without being manipulative. Will and Grace television fans will remember Pollack as Will's philandering dad. Pollack directed the legal thriller The Firm with Tom Cruise in 1993.

Michael Clayton is an excellent film and the casting is perfect. You continue to think about the film long after you have left the movie theater. One of the best and most telling scenes in the film is when Clayton parks his car and wanders into an open field.

Others in the cast are Michael O'Keefe, Ken Howard, Sean Cullen and Denis O'Hare.

Highly recommended.

Visit the Michael Clayton Official Site.

-Vanette Ryanes

Vanette Ryanes is a true movie maven. She has been an avid movie fan for more than 35 years and has a video library of 200 plus movies. She has a vast knowledge of classic black and white, noir and vintage color movies. If you have questions about movies contact Vanette, (Vannie to her friends) for answers, advice and recommendations. 

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