Review of Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017) by Vanessa D — 05 May 2018
LIGHTLY SPOILERY SYNOPSIS & REVIEW:
Another fine & thoroughly engaging performance by Denzel portraying a savant defense attorney who has what appears to be Asperger Syndrome. After his long time job behind the scenes with his sole partner ends, he doggedly forges ahead going by his old ways. Still living in the height of his activism during the 70's, he soon learns the world is not as black & white or cut & dried as he always believed it to be. The wonderfully idealistic & brilliant Roman J. Israel, Esq. has to find his way in the craziness of the over crowded dockets of the LA court system working for his new boss, George Pierce, played very well by Colin Farrell, a typical cutthroat attorney living high, who surprisingly starts learning some much needed lessons in humanity from him. Social injustice is the main thing that drives Roman, as he has always continued fighting the good fight for decades.
However, after struggling with his new job, Roman makes some poor choices & ultimately uses ill gotten monetary gains to fit in, & things take a totally different & dark turn for him. Very thought provoking storyline from Dan Gilroy, (Nightcrawler), that shows how much our society has changed for the worse & is simply in a word, broken, when it comes to civil rights & compassion.
Once again, Denzel totally deserves the best actor nomination. He delivers all around per usual.
Keep on truckin', baby... (I love that "Fro" Roman sported through most of the film).
The 60's & 70's songs chosen for the soundtrack worked perfectly along with the haunting score by James Newton Howard.
This review of Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017) was written by Vanessa D on 05 May 2018.
Roman J. Israel, Esq. has generally received mixed reviews.
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