Caffeinated Clint
“Michael Clayton” is “Erin Brockovich” with Aftershave – only not quite as entertaining.
George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack
There’s nothing quite as unappealing as a film with a person’s name making up the title : “Michael Collins”, “Erin Brockovich”, “Jerry Maguire”, “Audrey Rose”, “Jackie Brown” – from the outset, all movies that were about as enticing as a frothless Cappuccino. But like a cup of the hot stuff, it’s what’s inside that counts and the superficial gripe soon takes a back seat to fulfilment, once you realise it ain’t that bad after all, right?
George Clooney’s latest movie, “Michael Clayton”, should be another one with a bland exterior but killer interior – a run-down townhouse with a refurbished lounge room, if you will. One of those that you’ve gotta get into it, not just view it from afar, before you can appreciate, ya know?
Key words: Should be.
Michael Clayton (Clooney) is a veteran lawyer – though he’s never made partner, which is kind of strange – bought in to “fix” situations. His latest assignment? Sort out the mess left by a colleague.
An attorney (Tom Wilkinson), who’s defending a mammoth conglomerate from a huge class-action suit, has an attack of the scruples and goes bananas – right in the middle of a hearing (he stripped off). Clayton steps in to clean up his mess and take over the case. Thing is, Clayton discovers that, like his weathered colleague, the people they’re supposed to be defending – and their lawyer (Tilda Swinton)- are as guilty as hell, and starts to grow perturbed with his tasks.
“Michael Clayton” is “Erin Brockovich” with Aftershave – only not quite as entertaining. It has some good performances – though at times even Clooney seemed to be channelling his Bruce Wayne from “Batman and Robin”; in other words, he seemed a little flat – in it from the likes of Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Sydney Pollack and Tilda Swinton; an interesting enough-storyline (rather gripping at times) and the structure of it is clever enough, but when all is said and done, it’s nothing you can’t see from week to week on one of the legal shows on TV – “Damages”, for instance – and usually, they’re better handled too.
Good, but expected a little more from screenwriter Tony Gilroy (The “Bourne” trilogy).
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Reviewer : Clint Morris
