Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017)

Roman J. Israel, Esq., a driven, idealistic defense attorney, finds himself in a tumultuous series of events that lead to a crisis and the necessity for extreme action.

Director:

Dan Gilroy

Writer:

Dan Gilroy

Stars:

Denzel Washington, Colin Farrell, Carmen Ejogo

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Denzel Washington	...	Roman J. Israel, Esq.
Colin Farrell	...	George Pierce
Carmen Ejogo	...	Maya Alston
Lynda Gravatt	...	Vernita Wells (as Lynda Gravátt)
Amanda Warren	...	Lynn Jackson
Hugo Armstrong	...	Fritz Molinar
Sam Gilroy	...	Connor Novick
Tony Plana	...	Jessie Salinas
DeRon Horton	...	Derrell Ellerbee
Amari Cheatom	...	Carter Johnson
Vince Cefalu	...	Security Bailiff
Tarina Pouncy	...	Hallway Bailiff
Nazneen Contractor	...	Melina Nassour (Ass't. DA)
Niles Fitch	...	Langston Bailey
Jocelyn Ayanna	...	Court Officer Bailiff

Storyline

ROMAN J. ISRAEL, ESQ. is a dramatic thriller set in the underbelly of the overburdened Los Angeles criminal court system. Denzel Washington stars as Roman Israel, a driven, idealistic defense attorney who, through a tumultuous series of events, finds himself in a crisis that leads to extreme action. Colin Farrell costars as the monied, cutthroat lawyer who recruits Roman to his firm.

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Plot Keywords:

lawyer | court | murder | los angeles california | courtroom | 

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Taglines:

All rise.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for language and some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Canada United Arab Emirates USA

Language:

English Spanish Armenian

Release Date:

22 November 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

Inner City

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$22,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$11,962,712, 19 February 2018

Company Credits

Production Co:

BRON Studios,Cross Creek Pictures,Culture China - Image Nation Abu Dhabi Fund

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min 129 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS (DTS: X) SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Both Colin Farrell and Carmen Ejogo starred in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016).

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Goofs

When Roman is driving the U-Haul, the radio on the dash that is shown is an AC Delco, which is factory equipped in GM vehicles, however, the U-Haul is built on a Ford chassis. Ford vehicles do not have AC Delco audio equipment.

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Quotes

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: I'm tired of doing the impossible for the ungrateful.

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Connections

References ...and justice for all. (1979)

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Soundtracks

Peace, Piece
Written by Bill Evans
Performed by Bill Evans Trio
Courtesy of Riverside Records
By arrangement with Concord Music Group, Inc.

User Reviews

Interesting story, told poorly but acted by Denzel brilliantly.

This film was Dan Gilroy's second directorial debut, and although his forte of experience is writing, he failed that department, and did better in his directing (camera work, but not his choice of editing).

The problem with the writing is the dragged out mumbo-jumbo Denzel Washington had to say to express his savant mentality, most of it not making any sense or philosophically unnecessary, and it extended into 2+ hours of doing so. Denzel carried his role so exceptionally well, that had this film been edited down to 80 or 90 mins by getting rid of the convoluted and unnecessary dialogue, it would have been dramatized much better.

Then there's the premise to the film; standing all this time for a cause, then slipping to the other side, then going back. What was the point? What was the message?

This film is nothing extraordinary, but nevertheless, Denzel and Colin Farrell's great acting were the only reason this film has as high (6.3) of a rating as it does, and would have been much lower with any sub-A list actors, or higher with better writing.

It's a generous 7/10 from me