 Despite what one likes or dislikes about George Clooney's personal policies and his politics, he is one of the few "big star" actors in Hollywood who uses his considerable power to select and help make quality films. In the last few years, he's turned out Syriana, Good Night and Good Luck, and The Good German- among others. His latest is Michael Clayton, an excellent drama and mystery that reminds us of some of the excellent political films of the 70's. It reminded me of The Parallax View, of Three Days of the Condor, and of The Conversation.
Clooney is Michael Clayton, an employee of a prestigious law firm in New York. While Michael is a lawyer, he never spends anytime in the court room. He doesn't push paper, and he doesn't negotiate plea bargains. Michael Clayton is a janitor. When some rich asshole hits somebody with their car, they call Michael in to clean the mess up. When any one of a multitude of douchebag clients gets themselves into a seemingly inescapable jam, they call on Michael to clean it up. He makes good money. He drives a nice car. However, due to a gambling problem, a bad investment, and a junkie brother, Michael is 75,000 behind to some seedy characters. He needs an influx of cash.
Tom Wilkinson is Arthur Edens, the best lawyer in the firm, and the man in charge of their most important case. The firm is representing UNorth, a company being sued by farmers for apparently delivering a deadly seed product. The case has been in litigation for six years. One day, during deposition, Arthur strips off all his clothes and starts screaming like a madman. Of course, Michael is called in.
It would be unfair to delve any further into the plot, considering how carefully it is constructed and how well it pays off in the end. Needless to say, Michael Clayton is a very smart and enjoyable thriller that has a lot to say about corporate power and influence in the world of today.
The HD-DVD is presented in 2.35:1 widescreen and encoded at 1080p. This is a very impressive transfer. The source material is excellent. Colors are deep and vibrant. Blacks are very distinctive. The depth of the image is impressive. Audio is DTS HD Lossless. While this is not a huge action movie, it does feature an aggressive sound design. Its accentuated here with active surrounds and strong bass. Dialogue is never garbled by the music, either. |
