Roman J. Israel, Esq.

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2:24

Roman J. Israel, Esq.

PG-13

2017

1h 57m

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

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Popcornmeter

55%

Tomatometer

175 Reviews

57%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Roman J. Israel is an idealistic defense attorney whose life gets upended when his boss and mentor -- the legendary civil rights icon William Henry Jackson -- dies unexpectedly. He's then recruited to join a law firm led by George Pierce, an ambitious lawyer who was one of Jackson's former students. Israel's legacy of activism soon gets put to the test when he takes on the case of Langston Bailey, a young man accused of murdering a convenience store clerk.

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Critics Consensus

Intriguing yet heavy-handed, Roman J. Israel, Esq. makes the most of -- but never quite lives up to -- Denzel Washington's magnetic performance in the title role.

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Mark Kermode

Kermode & Mayo's Film Review

08/28/2018

It's a brilliant performance in a film that's an honorable misstep.

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Donald Clarke

Irish Times

02/05/2018

2/5

There's an interesting drama in there, but it has not been given time to fight its way out of the semi-digested mulch all around.

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Simran Hans

Observer (UK)

02/04/2018

4/5

We don't learn very much about Israel's relationships or motivations from the screenplay, but it's fascinating to watch Washington's display of repressed turmoil.

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Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

Jul 28

3/5

Cloaked inside a frumpy legal savant, "Roman J. Israel, Esq." is another exemplary piece of evidence to Denzel Washington's range, focus, and presence.

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Nick Rogers

Midwest Film Journal

12/28/2024

4/5

What a delight to see an acting institution unto himself — crafting a chatty character of almost unspoken complexity who is tearful, fallible, mortal, deeply despondent and absolutely unlike anything Denzel Washington has ever done.

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Keith Garlington

Keith & the Movies

08/25/2022

4/5

Gilroy and Washington deftly open up this character’s quirks and complexities, and even when the narrative begins to wander Roman is still the focus.

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letaiser

Sep 2

The Acting Performance especially by Denzel Washington is very good but to be honest this concept doesn't necessarily needed to be filmed into a Movie. The whole Film almost was over when the first huge plot and the first exciting scene happened, it might be my fault because I didn't know what to expect about this Movie since I haven't watched any trailers for it but at the end of the day this is just very boring. The last 30 Minutes were pretty impressive and probably the best part about this Movie but overall this just is a mid Film and beside the acting It really doesn't has much great elements in it.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Sep 1

Success in 1 hour and 57 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The USA grossed over $11,700,000.00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Metmet x

Jun 30

one boring movie. gave up on it after 20 minutes.

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Ian B

@EvilAdjuvant 01/13/2025

This is a great movie. It's Denzel like we've never seen him before, but he gives an amazing performance regardless. I think the negative ratings are due to this not being a movie where Denzel shoots someone. This is an intellectual film. This is a thought-provoking story. This is not an action movie.

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Online A

@LukeP 12/23/2024

An important movie that's message is as real of an observation about life as I've ever seen. You can bounce from industry to industry and job to job trying to find something moral, yet it's possible that the basis of capitalist society leaves little room for your ethics. Your hand can thus feel forced, you might feel forced to make compromise, and yet you still may feel the consequences of your compromises. Nearly a folk tale in nature. How it lands with viewers as a film may range widely, but it's simply an impeccably written script.

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Viola O

07/15/2024

I was so concentrated on the character of Denzel that only afterwards I realized how slow the film was but denzel the top

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Dan Gilroy

Director

Denzel Washington

Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Colin Farrell

George Pierce

Carmen Ejogo

Maya Alston

Lynda Gravatt

Vernita Wells

Amanda Warren

Lynn Jackson

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - Standing Up For Who Can't

2:28

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - A Really Bad Day at the Office

1:41

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - Sistahs Stand Up

3:27

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - Lack of Success is Self-Imposed

3:05

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - I'm Going Away

2:09

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - The Time Has Come

3:29

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - Live in What You Did Wrong

3:14

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - Hanging By a Thread

3:13

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - Underwear Model, Esq.

2:46

Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Official Clip - White People's Court

2:25

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Roman J. Israel, Esq.: Trailer 1

2:24

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Synopsis

Roman J. Israel is an idealistic defense attorney whose life gets upended when his boss and mentor -- the legendary civil rights icon William Henry Jackson -- dies unexpectedly. He's then recruited to join a law firm led by George Pierce, an ambitious lawyer who was one of Jackson's former students. Israel's legacy of activism soon gets put to the test when he takes on the case of Langston Bailey, a young man accused of murdering a convenience store clerk.

Director: Dan Gilroy
Producer: Jennifer Fox, Todd Black, Denzel Washington
Screenwriter: Dan Gilroy
Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Production Co: Escape Artists, LStar Capital, Cross Creek Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Language and Some Violence)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 22, 2017, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 26, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA): $11.7M
Runtime: 1h 57m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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