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:

If you can't break the law, break the system.

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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, Columbia Pictures, Cross Creek Pictures

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 and Maya find a dead homeless man on the sidewalk, a police car approaches them and the lights on the front of the car turn on. The film is set in Los Angeles, California and the police car's lights do not display a steady red light. In the California Vehicle Code, all police and emergency vehicles in California are required to have at least one steady red light facing forward when the flashing lights are on.

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Quotes

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Each of us is better than the worst thing we ever did.

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Alternate Versions

After premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, the film was re-cut by director Dan Gilroy and star Denzel Washington. The new version is 12 minutes shorter than the festival premiere. In addition to dropping some scenes, the film now features different music on the soundtrack (replacing a number of songs) and moves a scene depicting Roman and Israel going to a Lakers game at the Staples Center to an earlier point in the story.

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Connections

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

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Soundtracks

Keep On Truckin'
Written by Leonard Caston, Anita Poree and Frank E. Wilson
Performed by Eddie Kendricks
Courtesy of Motown Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

A Character Study, but Not Much Else

Denzel Washington stars as Roman J. Israel, Esq. a mildly savant criminal defense attorney whose life is turned upside down when his longtime law partner passes away. Suddenly the passionate civil rights attorney who thanks to his fiery demeanor should stay far away from an actual courtroom, is left looking for a job. He is forced to settle for working for George Pierce (Colin Farrell) a successful defense attorney, whom Roman views as a profiteer who doesn't care about his clients. The entire ordeal breaks Roman, who sells out his ideals and loses sight of who he was.

Denzel gives a good performance as the extremely passionate and slightly eccentric Roman J. Israel Esq., but Roman's penchant for long rambling speeches made for tedious viewing. Colin Farrell's Pierce develops into a much deeper character than he originally appears to be and is utilized well. However, while Roman's struggle to find his identity is the core of the film it never really is able to captivate. Ultimately the film settles in as an interesting character study that struggles to come together as anything more than that. While many would be content with that, it is a disappointing follow up for Dan Gilroy after his excellent debut with Nightcrawler.