Roman J. Israel, Esq.

Neither the office-bound crackerjack defense attorney he’s reputed nor the wildly mercenary revolutionary he’s perceived, Denzel Washington straddles the awkward and the intense as Roman J. Israel, a stammering, low-rent legal crusader. In his off time Israel listens to Gil Scott-Heron and Pharoah Sanders to drown out the incessant noise from a nearby all-night construction site while laboring over a massive class-action lawsuit that he hopes will stop biased judicial sentencing against the underprivileged. When his 27-year-long career at a progressive LA family firm is halted, Colin Farrell offers him a position at an upscale firm as a favor to the family. With his idealism under scrutiny, Roman is faced with the prospect of selling out his values or abandoning any hope of implementing social change.

[PG-13]