Haven't watched this since college and I'd somehow forgotten every detail of it since. Spent years nodding blindly when people mentioned Michael Clayton with reverence, and now I'm happy to announce I can nod confidently while continuing to add nothing to the conversation. Movie rocks. Not sure how I blocked all memory of Arthur's final scene, because it's one of the most haunting scenes of its kind that I've ever watched.

Possibly Clooney's finest hour. He weaponizes his charisma and oozes a strangely palatable, legal-specific smarm up top until it slowly withers away, leaving a desperate and desolate man powered only by his self-loathing. Even in his triumphant final moment, he unravels Karen in the same breath that he unravels…

On 35mm @ The Aero, as part of American Cinematheque's Friend of the Fest series, which they were kind enough to include us in again.

The screening had a wonderful energy, a sold-out crowd laughing and engaging at all the right moments. Five different people stood at the exact moment that the "I'm not the enemy!" "Then, who are you?" sequence ended to head to the bathroom. It was like waiting for the White House explosion in Independence Day. You can't miss *that part.*

My favorite thing in this movie—must be my 30th time seeing it—is the trio of horse moments. At the very beginning, Clayton on the hilltop, confronting three horses serendipitously, almost like a dawning call, drawing him…

If There Will Be Blood sports the best closing scene of 2007, then Michael Clayton certainly takes the gold for best film opener. Over images of the darkened offices of powerhouse Manhattan law firm Kenner Bach and Ledeen, a voice spins a manic monologue recounting his crisis of conscience as a litigator for the same firm. The viewer takes in the sleek, immaculate, cold rooms as they are being cleaned by anonymous janitorial staff while the urgent, near whispering voice speaks of the revolting horrors that are perpetrated when those rooms are occupied. The speech comes to a frantic climax as the image cuts from an empty conference room to one bustling with dozens of lawyers rushing to and from,…

"I'm not the guy you kill, I'm the guy you buy. Are you so fucking blind that you don't even see what I am? I sold out Arthur for 80 grand! I'm your easiest problem and you're gonna kill me?"

After my fourth watch in under a year, I think it's safe to say that Michael Clayton is one of my new personal favorites. It's hard to imagine a better lead for this character-driven mystery than the classically charismatic George Clooney.

Clayton is a conflicted man propelled by his ideals in a profession centered around money. He's the man who gets the job done, even if it means not getting around to reading his son's favorite book. But he's also…