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| Michael Clayton | 
 enlarge | Category: Movie
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Avg. Customer Rating:  203 reviews
Sales Rank: 749
Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: Video On Demand
Running Time: 120
ASIN: B0014B8KSI
Theatrical Release Date: October 12, 2007
Release Date: August 29, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
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| Customer Reviews:
Miracles happen April 3, 2008
17 out of 27 found this review helpful
I expected little. The plot outlines are rather tired: how often did we have this story of the bad big corporation and the class action suit and then Erin Brockovich fighting for the little man? I am not saying it is unreal or wrong, but it is used up.
And how often did we have the hero with his head barely above the waterline, with problems of family, gambling, career, debts... Who suddenly finds himself in the position to do good? or something resembling it? And who does become a hero against the odds?
Not much to expect there. And then, there is Clooney pulling it off. The man is amazing. And he gets great support from Wilkinson and Swinton and together they produce an admittedly slow but always gripping plot.
Say, why not Clooney for President? If you can't make up your mind between race and gender, why not settle for an improved version of a Hollywood actor? You were so taken in by the last one, Clooney would be better.
 A smart, understated thriller October 15, 2007
13 out of 16 found this review helpful
"Michael Clayton" is a truly excellent film, although it wasn't quite what I expected it to be. George Clooney plays the title role of Michael Clayton, an attorney who is a "fixer" for a high-profile law firm. Basically, his job is to make sure that everything goes right for the firm all the time. Michael is obviously very good at his job, but it's also apparent that he's unhappy. In addition to all the stress he deals with at work, Michael is divorced and suffers from financial troubles as a result of a failed restaurant he owned with his deadbeat brother.
Everything starts spiraling out of control when Arthur, one of the firm's top lawyers (Tom Wilkinson), has a complete meltdown while representing a chemical company in various lawsuits. Michael comes to his friend's aid and attempts to minimize the impact that the breakdown will have on the firm. It turns out that there is a huge cover-up to deny payments to people who were injured by the chemical company's products, and Michael tries to uncover the truth in order to put the company in its place and also find a way to redeem himself and every shady thing he's helped cover up in the past. Unfortunately, the chemical company refuses to let anything stand in its way, and its ruthless attorney (Tilda Swinton) will stop at nothing to make sure the conspiracy is kept under wraps, even if it means eliminating people like Albert and Michael.
This is a great, great film. I was pleasantly surprised by how understated it was. Unlike so many movies that feel the need to throw in an action sequence or explosion every 35 seconds, "Michael Clayton" relies on an incredibly smart script that keeps the audience thinking instead of just relying on a bunch of special effects. The cast is amazing, particularly Wilkinson and Clooney, who both deliver Oscar-worthy performances. The film also managed to make me laugh on several occasions, which is quite an accomplishment considering its incredibly grim mood. (The final Clooney/Swinton scene where Michael snaps, "How about a picture to go with it?" is hilarious!)
If you're in the mood for a really smart, chilling film that is so brilliantly unlike any other thriller out there, then "Michael Clayton" is a must-see.
A Man of Unquiet Conscience. February 23, 2008
11 out of 14 found this review helpful
"Dark in color, mood and outraged worldview, "Michael Clayton" is a film that speaks to the way we live now. Or at least, the way certain masters of the universe do, as they prowl the jungle in their sleek rides, armed with killer instincts and the will to power. It's a story about ethics and their absence, a slow-to-boil requiem for American decency in which George Clooney, the ultimate in luxury brands and playboy of the Western world, raises the sword in the name of truth and justice and good. Well, someone's got to do it. MANOHLA DARGIS
I loved this movie. It felt like a throwback to the older films of yore, where truth and decency triumphed. And George Clooney as Michael Clayton is perfect in this role, and he is at the peak of his profession. As Mr Dargis says " George Clooney is a seducer of heavy hearts and troubled minds, the beautiful bearer of our very bad tidings."
How wonderfully the characters and the film move on- it begins with a few scenes of yesterday. We see Michael Clayton looking at a fresh day from the top of a field and then boom, we are brought back to yesteryear and the days before in flashback style. Michael Clayton is a 'fixer, or "janitor" as he states in a high powered law firm. He wanted to be on the inside, but he is looking through the glass ceiling, just out of reach. He is being asked to keep his old friend, Arthur, THE high powered lawyer of the firm in check. It seems Arthur has come undone and throughout the movie we understand why and how and who did it.
Tilda Swinton is the epitome of the "brittle, sexless, friendless, cheerless woman" as Darghas relates. She is a lawyer for a chemical company that Clayton's firm represents. She is a woman possessed by her work, life and death and that is a reality. She dresses in the perfect suit and rehearses day and night her speeches, and after she gives them, runs into the bathroom to fix her dripping armpits.
Each and every character from Sidney Lumet on are perfect in their roles. This is a movie about good and evil, ethics and the lack of them, life and death, justice and the lack there of, the best and the brightest. Tony Gilroy has made a dramatic debut as director and this is one of the best movies of the year. Michael Clayton talking to his son, and his son looking at him with the eyes of a young boy who loves and adores his father, is a tender moment in time. George Clooney should not be overlooked for an Oscar- this is his best.
Highly Recommended. prisrob 02-22-08
Out of Sight (Collector's Edition)
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
 Worst movie I have seen in years. January 23, 2008
10 out of 52 found this review helpful
These two people who rated this movie 5 star must be speaking of a different movie than the one I viewed with two friends. It was the most boring movie I have ever seen. I kept waiting for something exciting to happen which never did. I still haven't figured out exactily what a "janitor" is. As for Clooney's acting I never observed anything that would make it special. If you see this movie I think most of you will agree with me and my friends.
Cut Rate John Grisham Rip Off February 7, 2008
10 out of 31 found this review helpful
"Michael Clayton" is a message movie without a message. The plot is cookie cutter John Grisham style legal melodrama. (Apparently the Producers didn't want to pay for the pricey rights to a Grisham novel. And face it, Grisham ain't no Hemingway to begin with.) George Clooney once again proves he can play George Clooney better than any other actor in Hollywood. Every twist and turn of the plot (and there aren't many) is utterly prdictable. Tilda Swinton, who is a wonderful actress (Try watching her is the far superior thriller "The Deep End".) is totally wasted in the one dimensional role of a big corporate baddie. And (surprise!) Clooney is the somewhat tarnished but ultimately still white knight who must vanquish her and the big, bad corporation. Tom Wilkinson over acts wildly as Clooney's mentor, gone looney due to his moral transgressions in service of an evil law firm. If all of this sounds very familiar, that is because you've seen it all before. Several times in fact. No originality here, just a cliche fest pandering to lovers of Saint George and the evil system he must overcome--whilst still enjoying all the status, money, and power conferred on him by capitalism. Your Average Joe can leave the theatre with the comforting thought that no matter how corrupt corporate America is, there is always a good guy like George Clooney within the organization to put things right. Talk about pipe dreams!
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