DVD Release Date:  February 19, 2008
Theatrical Release Date:  October 5, 2007
Rating:  R (for language including some sexual dialogue)
Genre:  Drama
Run Time:  119 min.
Director:  Tony Gilroy
Actors:  George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack

The last time we saw Tony Gilroy’s name, it was as screenwriter of The Bourne Ultimatum, a fast-moving conclusion to the Bourne trilogy that suggested the U.S. government exploits the best intentions of younger men and women who desire to serve their country. Effective as an action vehicle (helmed by director Paul Greengrass), the message at the heart of Ultimatum played to the worst suspicions of those opposed to intelligence-gathering agencies and the case for war.

So, Gilroy’s credits as writer and director of Michael Clayton, a film that depicts corporate malfeasance, might give viewers pause, fearing that the film is a one-sided, anti-Big-Business screed. The presence in the title role of George Clooney, a fine actor but also a noted Hollywood liberal, might add to any such suspicion. It’s gratifying, therefore, to discover that those fears are misplaced. Michael Clayton is crisp and propulsive, without being at all alienating.

The story tackles clear, documented corporate criminality that will have even the most hardened supporters of Big Business wanting to see justice done. It also excels as a profile of two lawyers wrestling with their consciences who make dramatic changes in light of incriminating information.

A former litigator for law firm Kenner, Bach & Ledeen, Clayton (Clooney) has long since moved out of the courtroom and into the role of “special counsel,” tasked with containing potential corporate problems. “I’m a janitor,” Clayton explains to one incredulous client, early in the film. “The smaller the mess, the easier it is for me to clean up.”

Clayton soon finds himself at the center of a major mess after an attempt on his life, but instead of immediately thrusting us into the whodunit aspect of the story, Gilroy’s story reverts to four days earlier, recounting the events that led to Clayton’s close call.

Between attempts to find thousands of dollars to cover expenses associated with a restaurant he co-owns with his troubled brother, Clayton is assigned to minimize the damage from the meltdown of fellow lawyer Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson). Off his meds, the troubled Edens expresses sympathy for a witness testifying against agrochemical company U/North—one of the law firm’s major clients—which stands accused in a class-action suit of poisoning the ground of farms that use its product. “I’ve spent 12 percent of my life defending the reputation of a weed-killer,” says the despondent Edens, after he unearths documents incriminating U/North.