Michael Clayton

Tony Gilroy, USA, 2007, 119 mins

Had Daniel Day-Lewis not turned in one of cinema’s greatest performances in There Will Be Blood, the 2007 Academy Award for Best Actor would have been George Clooney’s to lose. Though Michael Clayton as a final product relies on many factors, including Tony Gilroy’s impeccable direction and flawless screenplay, Clooney’s performance at the titular character is the heart and soul of the film. As an indefinable mixture of cop and lawyer working for one of New York’s most prestigious law firms, his subtle performance is a wonder to behold. While seemingly at the top of his profession, holding a large measure of respect amongst his peers, Michael Clayton is a man carrying considerable demons on his shoulders.

When Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson), defending the agricultural conglomerate U-North against a lawsuit filed by farmers poisoned by their products, has a nervous breakdown during a deposition, the plot is set in motion. Brought in to mend the situation, Michael Clayton discovers that Edens has been hiding information that would force his client, into admitting that they deceived the public. What follows has all the components of a corporate malfeasance thriller. U-North counsel Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton, in an Oscar-winning performance) puts it upon herself to end the situation before Edens can divulge the information. Eventually, Clayton is forced to act in a way he never would have thought possible.

To avoid divulging too many plot points, it must be said that this film is primarily about Clayton and the circumstances of his life. Though a powerful attorney, he has a gambling problem, massive debt as the result of a failed restaurant, problems seeing his child as the result of divorce, and a drug-addict brother who he views as a constant liability. Clooney’s Clayton is a man wracked with guilt and stress, who can barely stand the details of his job. Fixing other people’s problems has left him unable to fix his own, nearly rendering him little more than a symbol of how corporations view employees; not as people, but as names on a pay sheet. Michael Clayton is ultimately a searing indictment of corporate culture: money conquers all. Though the film certainly stood out upon its release three years ago, it is perhaps more relevant now in the climate of mass recession and economic fraud. Intricate, but never confusing, downbeat, but never oppressive, Michael Clayton is one of the decade’s essential viewing experiences.

Review by Derek Leafgreen
Taken from EUFS Programme 2010-11