ROMAN J. ISRAEL, ESQ. (2017)

2/13/18 - Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017) - 5-/10

A jazzy script about a huge ever present but unseen societal plague. Unfortunately, it is told through an unsympathetic idiosyncratic asshole, that speaks flashily of ethics but never lets the film emblemize them. An OK film that tries hard at times, but never quite coalesces.

The injustices this script wants to discuss are extremely valid and rarely spoken about, but this film doesn’t communicate them enough or pound away at them. Denzel is strong in an atypical Denzel role (*it felt his casting was a huge problem because however old Washington actually is, he doesn’t look the age that this part seems to be describing and portraying. Denzel appears at least 15-20 years too young*), but the film as a whole meanders and is cantankerous.

Roman moves fairly steadily and is somewhat solid, but other than an underlying social message that it wants to flirt with but not commit to, the drama felt uneven and/or unfulfilled. There is a distinct lack of connection and aggregation as the film just somberly floats along, never fully committing to success or failure.