Michael Clayton (2007)

Director:

Tony Gilroy

Writer (WGA):

Tony Gilroy (written by)

Release Date:

12 October 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

The Truth Can Be Adjusted

Plot:

A law firm brings in its "fixer" to remedy the situation after a lawyer has a breakdown while representing a chemical company that he knows is guilty in a multi-billion dollar class action suit.

Plot Keywords:

Law Firm | Fixer | Attorney | Debt | Lawsuit

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 12 wins & 51 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Tom Wilkinson	...	Arthur Edens
Michael O'Keefe	...	Barry Grissom
Sydney Pollack	...	Marty Bach
Danielle Skraastad	...	Bridget Klein (voice)
Tilda Swinton	...	Karen Crowder
George Clooney	...	Michael Clayton
Wai Chan	...	Chinese Dealer
Alberto Vazquez	...	Player #1
Brian Koppelman	...	Player #2
Thomas McCarthy	...	Walter (voice) (as Tom McCarthy)
Denis O'Hare	...	Mr. Greer
Julie White	...	Mrs. Greer
Austin Williams	...	Henry Clayton
Jennifer Van Dyck	...	Ivy
Frank Wood	...	Gerald

MPAA:

Rated R for language including some sexual dialogue.

Runtime:

119 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

UK:15 | Ireland:15A | Norway:11 | Finland:K-11 | Australia:MA | Canada:14A (Alberta/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Germany:12 | Denmark:11 | Netherlands:6 | Hong Kong:IIB | USA:R (certificate #43163) | Sweden:11 | Argentina:13 | Taiwan:R-12 (original rating) | France:U | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | South Korea:15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Brazil:12 | South Africa:13L | Portugal:M/12 (Qualidade) | New Zealand:M | Norway:10 (TV rating) | India:A

Filming Locations:

1345 Ave of the Americas, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Samuels Media

Trivia:

The film's director Tony Gilroy grew up about 65 miles north of New York City in Orange County, New York and did not forget where he came from in his directorial debut. It is mentioned that Michael Clayton attended Washingtonville Central High School; graduating in 1977. Gilroy, himself, graduated from Washingtonville High School in 1974. The home of Michael Clayton depicted in the film is actually in Blooming Grove, NY. The airport where Michael boards a private jet was filmed at Stewart International Airport in New Windsor/Newburgh, NY. And the pivotal moment of the film involving an incident with a main character's automobile was filmed at the Moodna Viaduct in Salisbury Mills, NY. All of these locales are within 7 miles of his hometown.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Michael Clayton asks Marty for a loan, a crew member can be seen in the reflection of a wooden door over Michael's left shoulder. The crew member moves back and forth during the scene, making it clear it's not one of the actors, who are standing completely still.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Arthur Edens: Michael. Dear Michael. Of course it's you, who else could they send, who else could be trusted? I... I know it's a long way and you're ready to go to work... all I'm saying is wait, just wait, just-just-just... please hear me out because this is not an episode, relapse, fuck-up, it's... I'm begging you Michael. I'm begging you. Try and make believe this is not just madness because this is not just madness. Two weeks ago I came out of the building, okay, I'm running across Sixth Avenue, there's a car waiting, I got exactly 38 minutes to get to the airport and I'm dictating. There's this, this panicked associate sprinting along beside me, scribbling in a notepad, and suddenly she starts screaming, and I realize we're standing in the middle of the street, the light's changed, there's this wall of traffic, serious traffic speeding towards us, and I... I-I freeze, I can't move, and I'm suddenly consumed with the overwhelming sensation that I'm covered with some sort of film. It's in my hair, my face... it's like a glaze... like a... a coating, and... at first I thought, oh my god, I know what this is, this is some sort of amniotic - embryonic - fluid. I'm drenched in afterbirth, I've-I've breached the chrysalis, I've been reborn. But then the traffic, the stampede, the cars, the trucks, the horns, the screaming and I'm thinking no-no-no-no, reset, this is not rebirth, this is some kind of giddy illusion of renewal that happens in the final moment before death. And then I realize no-no-no, this is completely wrong because I look back at the building and I had the most stunning moment of clarity. I... I... I... I realized Michael, that I had emerged not from the doors of Kenner, Bach, and Ledeen, not through the portals of our vast and powerful law firm, but from the asshole of an organism whose sole function is to excrete the... the-the-the poison, the ammo, the defoliant necessary for other, larger, more powerful organisms to destroy the miracle of humanity. And that I had been coated in this patina of shit for the best part of my life. The stench of it and the stain of it would in all likelihood take the rest of my life to undo. And you know what I did? I took a deep cleansing breath and I set that notion aside. I tabled it. I said to myself as clear as this may be, as potent a feeling as this is, as true a thing as I believe that I have witnessed today, it must wait. It must stand the test of time. And Michael, the time is now.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Strictly Courtroom (2008) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Midnight Cocktail

Slow burner but high quality movie

After seeing "Superbad" last weekend, I needed a grown-up antidote and this movie is certainly that. A slow moving, adult, serious movie with a message.

The movie has a number of themes including ageing, corruption, principles and truth. The movie's message is that there is more to life than making money.

The acting is uniformly good but Clooney is outstanding. His character is complex and he's pretty unhappy with what he has become. But it's all done very subtly. There are no obvious messages in this movie. As another reviewer wrote, you have to pay attention.

Don't read too much into my "slow moving/slow burner" descriptions. This movie is not boring. It just doesn't whiz along with one implausible twist after another. It's evenly paced with an almost complete lack of silly plot lines (there was no need for the lawyer in crisis to remove his clothes during a trial).

Everyone involved in this movie deserves praise for producing a challenging, grown-up, movie-with-a-message in the face of a torrent of mindless nonsense.

Highly recommended.