Back in the 1990s, a relentless parade of John Grisham movies pushed the legal thriller genre to its creative limits. At a certain point they all started to look and sound pretty much the same. But now writer Tony Gilroy (the pen behind those superb Bourne adaptations) has built a strong case for a revival with his moody and meticulous directorial debut, Michael Clayton.
The film itself is like a breathe of fresh air, not just because Gilroy works overtime to avoid so many of the clichés that a Grisham movie would have capitalized on, but also because he insists on fleshing out every major character.
Michael Clayton also marks the rare occasion when George Clooney, in the titular role as a high-priced legal “janitor,” has really had to sweat for results. Playing a major law firm’s go-to guy, who specializes in mopping up impending disasters—a corporate tool in a sense—Clooney’s Clayton has no choice but to act as morally and spiritually bankrupt as they come (a space that he inhabits flawlessly).
When we first meet him, Clayton exits a poker game to aid a wealthy and nasty client (characteristics that can’t help but go hand-in-hand in this film) wiggle his way out of a hit-and-run incident. Clooney’s wry smile is not enough to accomplish the task; it actually takes some heavy duty persuasion, which he delivers with conviction.
The real challenge for Clayton comes when an agrochemical corporation called U/North faces a $3 billion class-action lawsuit. The company’s top litigator, Arthur Edens (an immaculate Tom Wilkinson) has seemingly “lost it” when he decides to build a case for the opposition instead (the truth of the matter is he’s the only character who’s gained a conscience). It falls on Clayton to make things right for the defense.
While audiences will most likely know where all of this is headed, Gilroy makes it slightly more challenging by taking the road-less-travelled in getting there. The director keeps fireworks to a minimum by including just one car-bomb (visible only in the background) and an operational kill that is so calculated, efficient, and procedurally drawn out, that it is nothing short of positively chilling.
Also, Clooney’s Clayton, when finally pushed to the good side, doesn’t really do so because he gained some morals. It’s more like he has been evicted from his residence in an unethical world, and has opted to take the only other option on the table.
And while the film can’t help but give Clooney the last word, brandishing that trademark smile that is both a wink to the audience and a “fuck you” to the enemy, at least this time it feels like he’s really earned it.
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