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Michael Clayton

In the film Michael Clayton, the slow, continuous editing, coupled with the mise-en-scene of expansive corporate wealth helps to emphasize the fundamental corruption and rot of the legal world under its rich and glitzy exterior. The film is a thriller. George Clooney, the film’s titled character, is the “fixer” for a high-powered legal firm. He has no personal relationships, except for a son, and no goal in life except to survive in his dull, half-lived world. The definition of the “thriller” forms when a senior partner (Tom Wilkinson) has a breakdown during a deposition for a multi-million dollar case. Clooney is forced to “fix” the situation, which challenges him more than any middle-aged millionaire client. Family and career are threatened in the process. However, the director has chosen to bring about a resolution to the crises generated throughout the story in the next-to-last scene of the film by using skillfully written dialogue, lighting and judicious editing and filming of shots.

The theme of the film is the underlying role of wealth in misrepresenting the cause of justice. A directorial debut, Tony Gilroy chose to actively engage the viewer’s intelligence and force him or her to make inferences. Instead, these inferences are created through the reactions of his characters who are the embodiment of the modern day legal complexities and parody of justice due to the element of corporate wealth. Wealth is the prime motivator in this film, forming the underlying component rather than being directly revealed.

The director sets up the mystery of the film slowly as the film unfolds, revealing bits and pieces at a time. George Clooney’s character (Michael Clayton) has moved through the film with a weary boredom that characterizes the state of the legal profession. Tilda Swinton’s character (Karen Crowder) speaks volumes for the outward calm but inner scheming of legal business. He is dependent on her to provide his freedom and escape from the endless, wealth-laden, legal maze, while she is dependent on him to ensure that her schemes are not revealed. By the time the audience has arrived at the last scene, they can intelligently infer what the resolution will be and if they have been paying attention to the unspoken cues the director provided through the mise-en-scene elements.

The denouement, the next-to-last scene in the film and my favorite, is a brilliant and masterful shot of Clooney’s character repeating, “you’re fucked,” twice. With each successive time, the growing realization of Swinton’s character is heightened when she says “What?” and then, “What do you mean?” The dialogue is very effective at revealing the critical punch. The brief editing interference of the executive heightens the sense of urgency. As Clooney’s character walks away in a continuous tracking shot that zooms out as he walks away from the tableau unfolding behind him, Swinton’s character sinks to her knees and curls up into a fetal position, as if literally punched. With Clooney’s back to them, the director epitomizes his character’s walking away from that world; he moves slowly, yet confidently, hesitant to believe with the tension still etched into his face.

The director skillfully integrated the background sets with the dialogue and grouping of shots to highlight the authentic nature of the legal profession. The corruption in the legal world is the main theme of the film, but the director chooses to highlight this through the visual elements rather than explicitly stating the greed of the characters. Even Michael Clayton’s demand for ten million dollars in the next-to-last scene is not what it seems; it only serves to emphasize the extent to which the legal fraternity will go in order to protect its disreputable dealings from view.

The medium close-up shot in the taxi is a long, continuous take that stays framed on Clooney’s face as the credits keep rolling, and is a magnificent last scene to such an intense movie as it juxtaposes the inner and outer action. There is an extension of time in this scene; the minutes appear to stretch with the character as he does nothing but sit, while far in the background there is busy movement of people and traffic. Once more, the character’s emergence from the glitzy, legal world is emphasized: He is traveling in an ordinary New York cab that is far removed from the wealth-ridden set left behind. The extending of time in this concluding take helps to heighten the emotions of the character, and his slow realization, as he finally smiles before the last credit, of his release from the corrupt, dark world into the bright world of ordinary people.

Written by: Karina Chaikhoutdinov

Reviewers Rating: 9.5
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