Creative quotient
Michael Clayton is the account of the life and struggles of a legal firm employee of the same name. Clayton (George Clooney) works as a fixer in one of the bigger law firms that handle big corporate clients. His job is to fix and repair internal issues of the firm which can range from deteriorating client relations to employee problems.

The film is solely based around its central character that of Clayton. He is thrown into a real tangle when he’s assigned to look into the case of colleague Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson) who’s gone berserk handling an important case for the firm. Edens sets out on a delusional spree of ethics as he builds evidence against a multi-million dollar company U North, who’s case he his defending.

Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton) the law firm’s lead attorney is concerned with Edens’ rebelling actions and is on a desperate attempt to settle things down, with whatever it takes.

Besides his talent in resolving these issues, Clayton is shown to have a miserable personal life. Caught up with issues of his reckless brother and on-the-rocks marital relationship, Clayton finds it hard to deal with so many emotional wrenches.

Technical expertise
It would be safe to call Michael Clayton a legal thriller but, apart from the intense and gripping screenplay, the film has very little in terms of action or physical drama. Bordering on the verge of being a little verbose, a major chunk of the film is driven solely by dramatic character interactions and dialogues.

In spite of the stretchy scenes the film never loses its grip. Like any other film of the genre, it serves the audience with plenty of detail and information to decipher what they think would be the conclusion. The reason Michael Clayton turns out good is its fantastic screenplay, engaging dialogues and magnificent acting.

The cast of the film is pretty impressive. George Clooney as Clayton comes across as convincing. Although his character is a troubled soul, logged neck deep in emotional chaos, Clooney adds some celebrity charm to him. Tom Wilkinson does a good job playing the partly deranged Arthur Evans but its Tilda Swinton’s portrayal of the grey shaded, over ambitious and manipulative attorney Karen that takes the cake.

A point where the film loses out on important ground is Clayton’s gullibility. Whilst other characters are given ample time to logic in their development, Clayton’s inclinations look shabby. He is portrayed as an expert negotiator and immensely diligent law professional, yet he is drawn into dubious business deals and debt at the hands of his no-good brother.

But, all in all, the film is worth a watch but those engaged only by action or adventure and averse to long wordy screenplays might feel disappointed.

Verdict
Michael Clayton is worth three hefty stars. One for its gripping and dramatic screenplay and direction. Another star for some very good acting performances from the cast and the final star for its premise. Not often does one get to see a really engaging legal drama based thriller.

rachit.gupta@expressindia.com