Written and directed by Tony Gilroy, Michael Clayton is the story of a law firm fixer who uncovers some dark truths about a client involved in a class action lawsuit that revolves around the effects of toxic chemicals. The film is a legal thriller that explores a man trying to seek out the truth as he is also dealing with forces that want to stop as the titular character played by George Clooney. Also starring Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, and Sydney Pollack. Michael Clayton is a riveting yet compelling film from Tony Gilroy.
The film follows a man whose job is to clean up messes for a law firm and handle things so that he can the job done and let the firm succeed and make whatever deal is need to be made. It’s a job he’s good at but it hasn’t done him a lot of favors personally or financially as the film has him dealing with a friend, who is a top attorney at the firm, who had made a chilling discovery in a lawsuit over toxic chemicals made by a company that he’s supposed to defend. Tony Gilroy’s screenplay opens with a sequence of what Michael Clayton does in his line of work but also the danger of his work. The narrative then shifts to what he was doing four days earlier as he is struggling to pay off debts of a restaurant he co-owns with his troubled younger brother as well as cleaning things up for his firm. Yet, Clayton also has to deal with the sudden mental breakdown of friend and top attorney Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson) during a deposition as Clayton would have a hard time trying to watch Edens.
Gilroy’s script also play into not just what Edens would discover but also play into the morality that Clayton would gain in what Edens discovers. Still, he has to hide Edens from this company who has sent their general counsel Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton) to handle things and to try and shut Edens down. Crowder is an interesting antagonist as someone who is also a fixer of sorts but is more ruthless in how she deals things. Yet, she is also someone that is just as troubled as she is first seen in the film exhausted while is also trying to be this embodiment of professionalism which is starting to take a toll on her. Once Clayton learn what Edens wants to unveil, it forces him to do what is right no matter how much it would put him into trouble. Especially with the people he’s worked for so many years.
Gilroy’s direction is very simple as he doesn’t go for anything stylish in favor of something that is straightforward. Shot on various locations in New York City and areas in upstate New York and Wisconsin, Gilroy would use some wide shots to establish some of the locations but he would aim for more intimate shots in the close-ups and medium shots to play into the drama. Especially in scenes where Clayton is talking to Edens about the latter’s mental condition as Gilroy creates moments that says a lot into what is happening where Edens isn’t just falling apart but is also seeking something that shows some good in the world. Gilroy also creates a world that is quite slick and unforgiving where there are often images of buildings as it would eventually become stifling for Clayton. Gilroy would also create moments that play into the suspense such as the scene of the car bomb and to show it again from a different perspective as it play into the forces that want Clayton gone. It shows how far some are willing to protect something they don’t want the public to hear all for something trivial as money and power. Overall, Gilroy creates a gripping and intoxicating film about a law firm’s clean-up man dealing with a mess that he knows that he can’t cover up.
Cinematographer Robert Elswit does excellent work with the cinematography from the way some of the scenes at night are lit to some of the scenes in the day that are quite natural including the car bomb scene. Editor John Gilroy does nice work with the editing as it very straightforward with a few jump-cuts to play into Crowder‘s own daily routine and rehearsing for her speeches. Production designer Kevin Thompson, with art director Clay Brown and a team of set decorators in Paul Cheponis, George DeTitta Jr., Christine Mayer, and Charles Potter, does fantastic work with the design of the offices as well as the apartment homes that the main characters live in as well as the home of Clayton‘s family in the suburbs.
Costume designer Sarah Edwards does nice work with the costumes as it‘s mostly low-key from the suits that the men wear as well as the clothes that Crowder wears and the clothes of the men she hires to do her dirty work. Sound editor Paul P. Soucek does terrific work with the sound as it play into many of the locations as well as a scene of Edens playing a tape over and over again to create something to blow the whistle on what he found. The film’s music by James Newton Howard is amazing for its low-key orchestral score that play into the drama as it also include some ambient-based electronic music that help add to the drama and suspense.
The casting by Ellen Chenoweth is great as it feature some notable small roles from Katherine Waterston as an aide of Clayton in Wisconsin, Austin Williams as Clayton’s son Henry, Sean Cullen as Clayton’s detective brother Gene, Denis O’Hare as a client Clayton deals with early in the film, David Lansbury as Clayton’s younger and recovering drug-addict brother Timmy, Terry Serpico and Robert Prescott as a couple of men Crowder hire to deal with Edens, and Ken Howard in a terrific performance as a company chief that Crowder is trying to protect. Michael O’Keefe is superb as Barry Grissom as a law firm executive that is trying to oversee the deal as he is someone that Clayton doesn’t like. Merritt Wever is fantastic as Anna as a young farm girl suing the company that she believed ruined her family farm and killed her parents.
Sydney Pollack is excellent as Clayton’s boss/friend in law firm partner Marty Bach as a man that is trying to keep things under wraps as well as be aware of the fact that the business of law is changing. Tilda Swinton is brilliant as Karen Crowder as a corporate general counsel that is trying to make sure that the settlement goes well as she is also dealing with the strain of her work. Tom Wilkinson is amazing as Arthur Edens as a senior litigator with bipolar disorder that would unravel mentally as he copes with the task he’s being forced to do as well as make a discovery that would impact everything. Finally, there’s George Clooney in a phenomenal performance as the titular character as a fixer who cleans up messes for his law firm as he deals with the mental breakdown of a friend as well as making a major discovery where Clooney is quite reserved in his performance but also someone who is conflicted in wanting to do what is right.
Michael Clayton is a remarkable film from Tony Gilroy that features an incredible performance from George Clooney in the titular role. Along with a great supporting cast that include top-notch performances from Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, and Sydney Pollock as well as a well-crafted script. It’s a film that play into the legal world and what some will do in the name of greed and power. In the end, Michael Clayton is a marvelous film from Tony Gilroy.
Tony Gilroy Films: (Duplicity) - (The Bourne Legacy)
© thevoid99 2017
Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 9/12/06 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.
Based on the novel by Jennifer Weiner, In Her Shoes is the story of two very different sisters whose rocky relationship leads to the younger sister to find shelter in the grandmother she had just discovered while the oldest tries to deal with the chaos in her own life. Directed by Curtis Hanson and screenplay by Susannah Grant, the film is an exploration into the world of sisterhood as two different women come to terms with their sisterly bond as well as the mother they lost as they try to find answers with the woman who hadn't been in their life. Starring Cameron Diaz, Toni Collette, Ken Howard, Brooke Smith, Candice Azzara, Mark Feurerstein, Jerry Adler, and Shirely MacLaine. In Her Shoes is a smart and heartfelt film from Curtis Hanson.
The film is an exploration into the life of two sisters where the only thing they have in common is their shoe size as both of them still deal with the wound of losing their mother many years ago. For Rose Feller (Toni Collette), she's a workaholic lawyer who doesn't have much of a social life and often looks plain. For her younger sister Maggie (Cameron Diaz), she's a dyslexic party-girl with no sense of direction as she often causes trouble. After an incident that forced Rose to kick Maggie out, Maggie goes to Florida to the home of the grandmother she had just discovered. Upon meeting Ella Hirsch(Shirley MacLaine), Maggie eventually finds some direction in her life while Rose also finds some new moments that would help her but the two sisters still need each other to sort out things as well as deal with the death of their mother when they were kids. It's a film that could've played to a lot of tropes that is common with female-based comedy-drams that is often tagged as "chick-flicks" but it's a film that has so much more.
Screenwriter Susannah Grant creates a story of these two sisters who diverge and come together to deal with the missing pieces in their family as well as the woman who hadn't been in their life very much in their grandmother. Upon discovering into why Ella wasn't around following the death of their mother, Rose and Maggie are forced to deal with not just some harsh truths about their mother's death. They also deal with their own issues as Maggie is a young woman who didn't grow up with a mother which definitely plays into her lack of direction and the need for money so she can party. For Rose who is always responsible, she has the urge to protect Maggie from the people in her life including a man named Simon Stein (Mark Feurerstein) who was a colleague of hers at a firm as the two fall in love and become engaged. The very few things Maggie and Rose do have in common aside from their shoe-size is their disdain for their stepmother Sydelle (Candice Azzara) who had never liked them either often favoring her daughter Marcia (Jackie Geary). Grant does take stock into structuring the film with such ease where the first act is about the two sisters, the second act is about Maggie meeting Ella and Rose finding her own path in life, and the third is about the two sisters reuniting and mend the broken pieces in their family.
Curtis Hanson's intimate yet character-driven direction is quite simple yet is often very engaging for the way it balances comedy and drama. Shot in South Florida and Philadephia, Hanson's direction creates some unique compositions in its use of medium and wide shots. Even in scenes where the humor is light-hearted in some parts of the film while the drama gets a bit melodramatic but not overtly. Hanson knows how to set up the humor and drama while creating moments that do play into the development of the characters in key scenes as well as the story about the death of Rose and Maggie's mother. Overall, Hanson crafts a very smart and touching comedy-drama about two sisters dealing with the broken pieces in their life.
Cinematographer Terry Stacey does some great work in the shading design for many of the film's interior scenes in Philadelphia as well as some wonderful coloring in the Florida sequences to set the intimacy that Hanson wanted. Editors Lisa Zeno Churgin and Craig Kitson do excellent work with the editing in creating some stylish montages as well as going for some straightforward cutting techniques. Production designer Dan Davis does fantastic work in using the locations, notably Florida for its colorful, vibrant look to convey the peaceful tranquility that Maggie and Ella lived. Costume designer Sophie Carbonell also helps with the look by designing some great clothing not just for Cameron Diaz and Toni Collette but also Shirley MacLaine and the older actresses to give them a look that helps the story. Composer Mark Isham does a wonderful score in playing to the film's vibrancy and character struggle while the music features a great soundtrack mixed in with pop music like Garbage to some reggae featuring the music of Bob Marley.
The film's cast has some wonderful small performances from Jackie Geary as Sydelle's daughter My Marcia, Brooke Smith as Rose's friend Amy, Carlease Burke as the animal shelter manager, model Ivana Milicevic as Rose and Maggie's mother in pictures, Norman Lloyd as the blind professor, and Richard Burgi as Jim. Other notable small roles from Candice Azarra as Rose/Maggie's stepmother Sydelle is funny while Ken Howard is good as Rose/Maggie's father Michael. Notable standout performances include Jerry Adler as the charming Lewis Feldman and a better, funnier supporting role from Francine Beers as Mrs. Lefkowitz. Mark Feuerstein is good as the sensitive, good-natured Simon who brings all the right qualities that Rose needs in a man while having his own moments to be funny when talking about basketball.
Shirley MacLaine delivers another masterful yet heartfelt performance as Ella Hirsch. MacLaine remains to be very beautiful at her age while her wisdom and concern for the young woman prove her mastery at restrained comedy and even more restraint in drama as she brings a lot of ground for Diaz and Collette to work on while having her own fun. It’s MacLaine that really shines in the film as she continues to be a forced to be reckoned with.
Toni Collette delivers another great performance as the more straight-laced, somewhat neurotic Rose who has a lot of physical and emotional insecurities. Collette manages to make her character develop as she has more emotional scenes that are dramatic while having the time to be funny as Collette proves to be one of the most talented actresses of her generation. Cameron Diaz is often known as kind of bubbly yet a whole lot of fun to see. It's easy to forget that she's an actress and she proves that in her role as Maggie. While Diaz starts off in a more fun yet irresponsible personality, she does allow herself to let the character grow where Diaz brings a lot of depth to a woman who still finds fun in helping old women find new clothes or read to the blind professor. It's a fine performance from Diaz while she has great chemistry with Collette and MacLaine.
In Her Shoes is a remarkable film from Curtis Hanson that is highlighted by the radiant performances of Cameron Diaz, Toni Collette, and Shirley MacLaine. It's a film that is funny as well as heartwarming in the way it explores the relationship between sisters as it has something to offer for not just women but men as well. In the end, In Her Shoes is a sensational film from Curtis Hanson.
© thevoid99 2014
