Often good acting is equated to external tics and Denzel Washington’s performance in Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017) is a barrage of choices. The glasses, the fro, the gap in his teeth, the bow-legged walk, and so on. There are a lot of choices to create this character but I thought they were deeply felt and strong choices, and Washington’s performance is something intriguing and dynamic to watch in contrast to the ‘old man’ action movies that he can basically walk through without breaking a sweat (though still being committed and focused). The film itself received a mixed, muted response on release and for director-writer Dan Gilroy was not the critical hit that his previous film Nightcrawler was. With its unhurried pace and its meandering plot, particularly in the first half, it feels like a throwback to 1970s movies, a socially conscious character study in essence like Save The Tiger. As a lawyer, Israel, Esq. has been committed, diligent and focused but mainly behind the scenes. When his partner, the face of the practice, suffers a heart attack, the back-room savant has to step out into the world a bit more and his comfortable, cloistered existence fighting the good fight is shaken up. In his orbit, other characters emerge including a sharp corporate lawyer (Colin Farrell) who was a student of his partner and a volunteer activist (Carmen Ejogo) who crosses paths with Roman when he tries to get a job at a Black rights organisation. Both are a bit unsure about this odd duck, but come to find him inspiring in different ways, even though Roman is slowly despairing of his own place in the world and wanting to sell out. About the halfway point, Roman makes a risky choice and if you are familiar with Washington’s moral compass or values as a personality and an actor, there is a familiar trajectory that runs through the second half (similar in some ways to Flight). There’s a hardwon appeal to the character, and to the film, in the way it avoids the uplift you might expect from this type of movie. For example, Roman is given a chance to give a rousing speech to a group of younger activists but shoots himself in the foot with a display of patronising sexism. When he demonstrates to Ejogo’s character a strength of purpose during a conflict with patrol cops over the fate of a homeless man, even that is not given a satisfying resolution. The good fight is a long term exhausting life and the film is committed to that ideal. Great work by Washington and the cast in a character-based movie that has its strengths amongst its strange choices. Available to stream on Netflix, SBS On Demand and Kanopy. Recommended.
VHS Tracking 