Roman J. Israel Esq. is the latest film from writer/director Dan Gilroy. Gilroy's dual role debut was his film Nightcrawler which was one of the best films I saw in 2014. The low IMDb scores (6.3) had me a little bit worried about this film, but it was a bit better than those scores would lead you to believe. It was no Nightcrawler, however.
Roman (Denzel Washington) is a Los Angeles lawyer with an activist heart. His savant-like memory and poor people skills have relegated him to filing briefs and doing research while his law partner handles all the court appearances. After three decades of this setup, Roman is released from his law firm as his partner and friend spends the last days of his life in a hospital bed. Attorney George Pierce (Colin Farrell) is brought in to liquidate the last of the firm's case load. Roman attempts to find work for a civil liberties organization, but finds they only employ volunteers. However, he develops a relationship with the office manager, Maya (Carmen Ejogo), who appreciates his sense of justice. Pierce offers Roman a job and the two develop an interesting relationship as they subtly influence each other. When Roman compromises his own code of ethics, it appears he may have sold out and lost his moral compass. His greatest battle, though, appears to be the one raging in his head, as he works through his mistakes in an attempt to find inner peace.
Dan Gilroy has a way of flirting with dark stories and flawed characters that engage an audience. He did it spectacularly with Nightcrawler and has followed up with a solid film in Roman J. Israel Esq. He has a third film in the works that I will definitely have on my theater list. I enjoyed this film. The story is dark, but it has a strong heartbeat. The characters are good and bad in the purest sense. They are flawed in their own ways. The character interactions seem credible. And the influences the characters have on each other give the story its essence. Actions have reactions. This film sets a lot of things in motion and then remedies them with thoughtful outcomes. The darkness that lingers as an undercurrent in this film gives it a bit of electricity that keeps you on your toes. The film doesn't take the easy way out, delivering a strong story with outcomes that are firmly rooted in reality.
The performances in this film held up the solid writing. I was bothered by the gap in Denzel's teeth, which did not look like CGI. Nor did it look like a prosthetic. So I googled it. Sure enough, I learned that Denzel had a gap between his teeth growing up, which he repaired with a cap. He decided to remove the cap to give his character a frumpy appearance. The look was superb. His character comes across like any of the many public defenders I have met in my life. Farrell, as the high powered attorney George Pierce also looks the part. Of course, his was just tailored suits and slicked back hair. But Farrell definitely looked the part. The pair had good chemistry on screen. They start out in an almost adversarial relationship which develops into a more sincere friendship. They were the anchors that made this film work for me. The rest of the roles were throw away roles to me. Anyone could have been cast and been alright.
Roman J. Israel Esq. has a two hour and nine minute run time. It didn't feel that long. The film had steady pacing for a film that did not have any action sequences. The intense attention paid to the character development kept the film moving at a steady pace without a lot of wasted screen time. The film was given a PG-13 rating by the MPAA for language and violence. There is also talk about a homicide, which is a central theme in the film. This film did not have anything outwardly graphic that would cause me concern with young viewers.
Roman J. Israel Esq. isn't perfect. The pacing may seem slow to some, since the film doesn't offer a lot in terms of action. For engaged viewers, I don't think the pacing will be an issue. It did not feel long or slow to me because I was interested in the characters. The film has a dark streak, but never loses itself to that darkness. The characters were particularly good and the performances solid. I am not sure why this film is not getting better ratings. It is a pretty solid film. 7.5/10.
