Here are the notes I wrote down after seeing the movie last October.

“See it in a theater, if you can. Some of the quiet moments require the pent, not-quite-hush of a theater. Our audience in Kansas City gasped and clapped at all the right spots, and it really made the movie more fun. The movie was directed with great restraint by Tony Gilroy, he lets the camera linger when it should. I am reminded especially of an elevator ride Clooney takes. Nothing happens on the ride, except a hell of a lot of acting. Clooney and Swinton were superb, and I wanted to see them together more. As it is, they have just two scenes together. Swinton actually does most of her best acting when she’s alone in a scene. For that matter, so does Clooney. And Gilroy is masterful at capturing it. See this movie.”

I haven’t seen the two big winners of the night, There Will Be Blood and No Country for Old Men, but Michael Clayton stands out to me as a fine bit of moviemaking. I should really see those other movies, though.

What did you think of Oscar night?