You have to give George Clooney credit. Ever since the debacle that was Batman and Robin, he vowed to take his career in a completely different direction. Love his choices or hate them (personally, I love them), the guy has kept his word. He's even managed to throw in a couple of outstanding directorial efforts into the mix (Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Good Night and Good Luck).

Nowadays, the one time Facts of Life and Roseanne co-star isn't interested in hollow (and meaningless) effects laden spectacles, and his latest drama Michael Clayton is further proof of that. In his new film, Clooney plays the title character, a one time criminal attorney with a gift for cleaning up messy cases. At this point in his career, Clayton isn't particularly happy with his job, but a divorce and mounting debt dictate that he stay in his current position. Besides, he's good at what he does. When Clayton's mentor at the firm goes off his meds and sabotages a huge case, the "fixer" must act fast to keep proceedings from going south. Soon, however, Clayton begins to realize that the situation runs deeper than he originally figured.

As an engrossing thriller (which is how the studio is marketing the picture), Michael Clayton comes up a little short. A prime example of this occurs in the film's opening moments. This is one of those pictures that begins with the ending and then tells it's story in a big flashback. The problem with this structure in Michael Clayton is that it cuts the wire on all the so-called tension, because we already know how things are going to end up. Having said that, writer/director Tony Gilroy (screenwriter of The Bourne series) does follow up this particular scene with a big showdown between a couple of the film's main characters, and this little battle of the wills does provide some nice surprises. But Gilroy's writing is definitely stronger than his directing.

Essentially, Michael Clayton is a character driven piece (think A Civil Action), and the principles (George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, and Tilda Swinton) are all up to the task. What I like most about the movie is that we're never quite sure what kind of person Clayton really is until the very end of the picture. We see glimpses of compassion (watch for a wonderfully heartfelt scene between he and his son), but throughout most of the movie, we see a flawed man with very little joy in his life. It isn't until the final moments that we are witness to Clayton's true colors. What Michael Clayton really could have used a little more of, was intrigue. As it stands however, fine acting and solid dialogue make this one worth checking out.