Michael Clayton |
|
Retrieving prices, please wait ...
If you can't see any prices after a few seconds, click here
| Jevon Taylor, 22 Apr 2008 |
|
| “Michael Clayton” is a, in several ways, slightly old-fashioned movie made for today’s world. Nevertheless, it seems relevant, is a pleasure to watch and, I believe, one of the better (socially and cinematically) films of the last few years. It is the personal story of Michael Clayton (George Clooney), a shady lawyer; and a public story of big business, the ravages of capitalism and… shady lawyers. This is, in itself, nothing new. There have been a plethora of films on corrupt corporations recently and in our more distant pasts, and lawyers often have played roles in them. But the manner in which the characters are performed and revealed to the audience, bit by bit in their interactions with others (a bit like real life!), is refreshing in the often patronising worlds of Hollywood and American “independent” cinema. Intelligently written and acted characters are, I think, THE feature that makes “Michael Clayton” so compelling. The fact that, despite its moral centre, it is not preachy helps too. Although the weary lawyer’s journey to self-discovery in a dirty world is not new ground for cinema, when done like it is here, it is firm ground. The second thing that I liked about this film was the visual style. It had flair, particularly a Tarkovsky-like epiphany near the beginning, but not so much that it overwhelms or detracts from the nuanced performances the film features. Neither was it boring to look at. And the editing mostly disappears as performances and narratives flow from the screen. Basically, all other elements of the film serve its characters, performances, raw-materials, which are allowed to speak volumes. In this manner, “Michael Clayton’s” social heart is felt emotionally as well as intellectually, rather than rhetorically, the products of a good story told well. Compelling, intelligent… recommended. |
| |
|
|
|