The Story
Michael Clayton (Clooney) is the guy you turn to when you need things fixed or hushed up in a hurry. Clayton weaves his magic behind the scenes at the huge law firm of Kenner, Bach & Leeden where he makes anything that could damage any of the firm’s clients simply fade away.
Clayton hides well the fact thats he’s begun to feel repulsed by what his job entails. And while he’d just as soon tell these scummy corporate bigwigs where to go, he continues performing the job the firm expects of him while loathing himself for doing it. His displeasure is just barely contained beneath the surface when he’s called out of a poker game to take care of a hit-and-run accident. Arriving at the driver’s home, Clayton reels off the client’s options while obviously struggling to hide his distain for the man who clearly believes he’s entitled to special treatment due to his connections -- and money.
But that’s just the set-up for the main story of Michael Clayton which is the potential settlement of a $3 billion class-action suit that’s been dragging on for half a dozen years. The firm’s lead litigator assigned to the case, Arthur Edens (Wilkinson), has snapped. Edens has stopped taking his manic-depressive meds, as evidenced by a bizarre strip tease he does while in the middle of a deposition. Edens has come to the conclusion that the class-action suit against his client, the agrochemical giant U/North, has merit. Hundreds of people have died as a result of using weed killer from U/North, and Edens believes U/North should be held accountable.
Clayton’s called upon to rein in Edens, a man he respects, admires, and knows well. At the same time as Clayton’s assigned to watch over Edens, a pair of ‘investigators’ are hired by Karen Crowder (Swinton), the in-house lawyer for U/North and one of the most power-hungry beasts in the corporate jungle. Unfortunately for Clayton, Edens has become a man obsessed with getting the truth told – damn the consequences.
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