2008 Woodie Awards
Michael Clayton: not quite meeting it potential
A review
John Boschini
Issue date: 10/23/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment
Michael Clayton gives us a perfect example of how immense talent can go to waste. Despite a cast chock full of A-list actors and a high production value, this film can't escape its poorly written story.
Tony Gilroy, who penned the scripts for the highly entertaining Bourne franchise, wrote and directed the film. I wonder how he could follow up such an exceptional script with such a poor one. The twists are predictable, the second act drags, and the climactic scene is shown first followed by a "flashback." That cinematic device worked 10 years ago but now seems unoriginal and stale.
The story begins with Michael Clayton (George Clooney) witnessing his car explode while he is admiring a band of wild horses. Immediately following the explosion the audience is taken back four days into an out of business restaurant owned by Clayton. As he sits and watches his possessions being auctioned off it becomes clear that money is owed to organized crime and he is nearly 80,000 dollars short.
His main job however, is as a lawyer and his law firm represents the chemical company UNorth in a multi-billion dollar class action lawsuit. When Arthur Edens, the lead attorney in the case (Tom Wilkinson), has a guilt attack and goes slightly nutty, Clayton is then called to "get a handle on the situation." The next 30 minutes of the film contain Clayton giving pep talks and Edens rambling about how he is "Shiva, the god of death." The portrayal of manic depression is nearly laughable and borderline insulting.
In the shadows lurks Karen Crowder, played by Chronicle Of Narnia's Tilda Swinton, legal advisor to UNorth. At her disposal are virtually unlimited financial resources, a duo of ruthless killers, and a willingness to do whatever it takes to protect her company. One can almost guess where this is headed before setting foot in the theater. What follows is a series of twists and turns that are both flat and uninteresting.
The shining light in this film is the acting. Clooney delivers the kind of performance we have come to expect from such a talent. Both Tom Wilkinson and Tilda Swinton deliver award-worthy performances, and were probably the only convincing part of the movie. Individually the actors are brilliant, but there is little to no chemistry between them on screen. It might be because their characters are written to be isolated, or maybe the actors simply do not perform well together.
This is Tony Gilroy's first film as the director and as poor a movie this was, he showed some talent behind the camera. The camera work is first rate and the editing work was adequate. If he had spent more time on the script, which reminds me of a bad John Grisham novel, it might have been an exceptional film. Too many things are going on in the script. The idea of Clayton being involved with organized crime has little bearing on the story and instead of complimenting and adding depth to the story it distracts and causes the film to be bloated.
Michael Clayton has so much potential but left me feeling an incredible sense of apathy. It tries far too hard to be an Oscar contender and the result is forced. The climactic scene lacked weight and the ending credits were a continuous shot of George Clooney riding in a taxi. It was an odd and boring way to end a movie then was odd and boring in and of itself.
Tony Gilroy, who penned the scripts for the highly entertaining Bourne franchise, wrote and directed the film. I wonder how he could follow up such an exceptional script with such a poor one. The twists are predictable, the second act drags, and the climactic scene is shown first followed by a "flashback." That cinematic device worked 10 years ago but now seems unoriginal and stale.
The story begins with Michael Clayton (George Clooney) witnessing his car explode while he is admiring a band of wild horses. Immediately following the explosion the audience is taken back four days into an out of business restaurant owned by Clayton. As he sits and watches his possessions being auctioned off it becomes clear that money is owed to organized crime and he is nearly 80,000 dollars short.
His main job however, is as a lawyer and his law firm represents the chemical company UNorth in a multi-billion dollar class action lawsuit. When Arthur Edens, the lead attorney in the case (Tom Wilkinson), has a guilt attack and goes slightly nutty, Clayton is then called to "get a handle on the situation." The next 30 minutes of the film contain Clayton giving pep talks and Edens rambling about how he is "Shiva, the god of death." The portrayal of manic depression is nearly laughable and borderline insulting.
In the shadows lurks Karen Crowder, played by Chronicle Of Narnia's Tilda Swinton, legal advisor to UNorth. At her disposal are virtually unlimited financial resources, a duo of ruthless killers, and a willingness to do whatever it takes to protect her company. One can almost guess where this is headed before setting foot in the theater. What follows is a series of twists and turns that are both flat and uninteresting.
The shining light in this film is the acting. Clooney delivers the kind of performance we have come to expect from such a talent. Both Tom Wilkinson and Tilda Swinton deliver award-worthy performances, and were probably the only convincing part of the movie. Individually the actors are brilliant, but there is little to no chemistry between them on screen. It might be because their characters are written to be isolated, or maybe the actors simply do not perform well together.
This is Tony Gilroy's first film as the director and as poor a movie this was, he showed some talent behind the camera. The camera work is first rate and the editing work was adequate. If he had spent more time on the script, which reminds me of a bad John Grisham novel, it might have been an exceptional film. Too many things are going on in the script. The idea of Clayton being involved with organized crime has little bearing on the story and instead of complimenting and adding depth to the story it distracts and causes the film to be bloated.
Michael Clayton has so much potential but left me feeling an incredible sense of apathy. It tries far too hard to be an Oscar contender and the result is forced. The climactic scene lacked weight and the ending credits were a continuous shot of George Clooney riding in a taxi. It was an odd and boring way to end a movie then was odd and boring in and of itself.
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