In an accomplished directorial debut, Gilroy gives the film a shadowy, autumnal hue and combines image and sound in sometimes surprising and ingenious ways.
Comment
10/05/07
Michael Clayton (2007)
90
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:189
Fresh:170
Rotten:19
Average Rating:7.6/10
Consensus: Michael Clayton is one of the most sharply scripted films of 2007, with an engrossing premise and faultless acting. Director Tony Gilroy succeeds not only in capturing the audience's attention, but holding it until the credits roll.
Theatrical Release:28-09-2007
Synopsis: Michael Clayton (George Clooney) is what is known in the legal world as a "fixer," or in the character's own pejorative version, a "janitor" who cleans up legal messes for VIPs and corporations on... [More]
Starring: George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack
Director: Tony Gilroy
Reviews for Michael Clayton
121 - 140 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
It's about issues of personal responsibility and moral duty.
10/05/07
There are more than ample rewards for discerning adults: Some of the best dialogue in a recent movie and a gallery of unforgettable performances.
10/05/07
Every performance in this film is spot-on.
10/05/07
The movie's plot may be familiar, but its hero is a unique and memorable creation.
10/05/07
...contains several great scenes that will stick in your mind long after the credits roll.
10/05/07
Ace work from all involved...
10/05/07
Michael Clayton is an assured, intelligent thriller, the kind that never depends on clunky exposition and differentiates its heroes and villains only by the choices they make during the film.
10/05/07
If Michael Clayton's particular mix of law and commerce gets a little murky, that murkiness also gives the film a shadowy aura.
10/05/07
Clooney, for his part, allows his movie star looks to go flabby and soft (all things being relative, of course), and he buries the performance way down in his gut.
10/05/07
...sharp writing from Tony Gilroy and an intelligent, subtly powerful performance from George Clooney.
10/05/07
Michael Clayton is a riveting, suspenseful, rip-roaring entertainment.
10/05/07
The pieces come together into a stirring portrait of a man reclaiming his soul from a scrap heap of discarded principles.
10/05/07
There's nothing sadder than a prestige picture that just doesn't work, because these kinds of films so rarely allow themselves to have fun.
10/05/07
Just when you thought Hollywood might have forgotten how to make a smart adult thriller along comes a film like this.
10/05/07
It is just about perfect as an exercise in the genre. I've seen it twice, and the second time, knowing everything that would happen, I found it just as fascinating because of how well it was all shown happening.
10/05/07
Top CriticFailing fixer Clooney is great but has to fight for center stage next to supporting actress Tilda Swinton as the ethically maimed corporate attorney. Add Tom Wilkinson, Sydney Pollock and a dynamite screenplay and we have the thriller of year.
10/05/07
The film's denouement is without question one of the best exercises in sustained and controlled excitement I've seen in a movie in a long while.
10/05/07
George Clooney does something unusual in Michael Clayton. He looks uncomfortable.
10/05/07
Instead of the typical John Grisham-style connect-the-dots legal thriller, we get a film that's idiosyncratic, with a time-shifting structure, a surfeit of subplots and characters.
10/05/07
Latest News for Michael Clayton
May 11, 2009:
RT Interview: Tilda Swinton on Julia
One of the most diverse and celebrated talents of her generation, the directors on Tilda Swinton's CV represent a veritable who's who of independent cinema and include David... More...
May 27, 2008:
Sydney Pollack: A Retrospective
With two Oscar wins and plenty more nominations under his belt, Sydney Pollack was a filmmaker that Hollywood admired. He was also a proven actor's director whose fruitful... More...
May 26, 2008:
Sydney Pollack dies aged 73
Academy Award-winning director, producer and actor, Sydney Pollack, dies aged 73. More...
April 11, 2008:
Script Review: Tony Gilroy's Duplicity 
Tony Gilroy's follow-up to Michael Clayton -- the Clive Owen/Julia Roberts-led Duplicity -- is filming now, and Latino Review is offering a review of the script. More...
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