In this life, there are certain moments that can define us. They may be small or they may be big, but in one way or another, they put us face to face with the truth of who we are and the world in which we live. Every shade of grey disappears and all we are left with is black and white. We can’t ignore it. We can’t pretend it’s not there. But what we choose to do with it can mean everything. And in so many ways, that is exactly what Michael Clayton is about.

If I had to describe Michael Clayton in just a few words, it would be simple yet incredibly powerful. And I have to admit, at first I wasn’t sure about its simplicity. Its plot unfolds just about as you would expect it to. Its events are straightforward and to the point. And its pacing is slow and thoughtful like your favorite Ph.D. professor. But in the bare simplicity of its thoughtfully laid out plot, Michael Clayton still takes a suspenseful hold of you. You may always know about how it’s going to turn out, but as you watch, as you see the truth of reality laid on the screen and the various people battling to hide it, destroy it, shout it out, or simply figure out what in the world to do with it, you can’t help but pulled be in.

The movie’s posters boldly state that the truth can be adjusted. But from its opening scene to its closing credits, the movie could not have been more about the exact opposite. Sure, its characters try to adjust the truth and manipulate it to their own advantage. But the whole time, it is glaringly apparent that the only truth that will ever survive is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. And, when it comes to the characters trying to live along side that truth, let’s just say the expression “the truth will set you free” became an expression for a reason.

From the quite possibly insane Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson) to the driven Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton) and the mysterious Michael Clayton himself (George Clooney), each character points directly at the freeing power of truth in his or her own unique way.

For Arthur, the freedom of the truth does look quite a bit like insanity. I’ll agree, stripping in a deposition room and running through a parking lot naked are a bit extreme. But as you watch, there’s a part of you that also can’t help but know that the Arthur we’re seeing is free in a way that he hasn’t been in a long time. For better or worse, he’s not under the control of medication. After years of devoting his entire life to covering up the truth, he refuses to give his life to that pursuit any longer, and it is as if a fountain of life and joy has burst forth inside of him. He knows the truth, he knows that it’s important to many more people than just him, and in refusing to cover it with lies and deciding to set it free, it’s as if he finally discovers his divine purpose.

Then there’s Karen Crowder. As the head in-house attorney for U/North, she is also the head of all efforts to hide the truth. It’s her job and she takes it very seriously. When normal means don’t work, she resorts to more extreme measures. But as the talented Tony Gilroy takes us between her sweat-soaked anxiety-ridden moments in private and her public proclamations of the lies she has to practice over and over again just to get them to come out of her mouth, we see that battling the truth is not an easy feat. The more she tries to hide it, the more it keeps knocking on her door. The more she attempts to destroy it, the more her lies destroy her. And in the end, as she takes one last step in an effort to make the truth go away, she is literally handcuffed and taken into custody.

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