Roman J. Israel, Esq.
Columbia Pictures | Release Date: November 17, 2017 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
58
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 41 Critic Reviews
Positive:
20
Mixed:
19
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
EmpireSimon BraundJan 29, 2018
A worthy but wordy look at the inequities of the US legal system, saved by a handful of terrific scenes and a tour-de-force turn from Washington. Read full review
60
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzNov 23, 2017
Roman J. Israel, Esq. is a surpassingly strange, often frustrating movie. Read full review
60
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottNov 22, 2017
It's interesting to ponder how well Roman J. Israel, Esq. would have worked had Washington passed on the role. Thankfully, we don't have to ponder too long -- because Washington, indeed, took it, and he is terrific. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsStephen Whitty Nov 16, 2017
Washington is terrific as Roman. The character may be unclear, but the actor’s commitment is focused, and his anger and indignation are sharp and painful. Read full review
60
Screen DailyTim GriersonSep 16, 2017
Denzel Washington gives a terrifically off-kilter performance in Roman J. Israel, Esq., a fascinating and flawed character study that frustratingly can’t meld all its ambitions into a coherent and satisfying whole. Read full review
60
VarietyOwen GleibermanSep 16, 2017
It leaves us with a character you won’t soon forget, but you wish that the movie were as haunting as he is. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinSep 16, 2017
Unfortunately, something at the center just doesn’t hold, and it flies apart over the course of 133 minutes into confusing shards of plot, legalese-heavy monologues and, perhaps most surprising of all given Gilroy’s bona fides, a touch of soggy sentimentality in the home stretch. Read full review
58
IndieWireEric KohnSep 16, 2017
Rather than developing Roman’s conundrum, Roman J. Israel, Esq. settles for a prosaic character study laid out in painfully obvious terms, with a tacked-on twist in the third act just so that the story can find some way to end. Read full review
50
Movie NationRoger MooreNov 28, 2017
Forget that [Washington’s] lumpy, “on the spectrum” character turn is designed to attract Oscar attention, and maybe this overlong but engaging character study in crisis goes down easier. Read full review
50
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliNov 22, 2017
I usually give writer/director Tony Gilroy the benefit of the doubt because he has scripted some of my favorite films but Roman J. Israel, Esq. is a few steps too far in the wrong direction. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleNov 22, 2017
Roman is bad at doing good, so when he starts showing promise in the other moral direction, it hardly seems like a tragedy. It seems like a smart career move. Plus, he gets to wear decent suits and finally starts looking like Denzel Washington. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperNov 21, 2017
Roman J. Israel, Esq. has pockets of intrigue, and writer-director Gilroy and Washington have teamed up to create a promising dramatic character. We just never get full delivery on that promise. Read full review
50
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallNov 21, 2017
Denzel Washington’s labored portrayal of a shambling legal savant named Roman J. Israel, Esq. is the least of the movie’s worries. This is a story of shifting ethics that should be dramatic, but shaky logic prevents that from happening. Read full review
50
The AtlanticDavid SimsNov 20, 2017
One element is consistent throughout Roman J. Israel, Esq.—the enigmatic lead, played with typical dedication and forcefulness by Denzel Washington. But even though he’s fully committed to the role, this movie is anything but, aimlessly weaving between story ideas like a distracted driver. Read full review
50
The New York TimesBen KenigsbergNov 16, 2017
It offers tonal whiplash for viewers, with several potentially great ideas that don’t settle into a coherent whole. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternNov 16, 2017
Mr. Gilroy’s new film doesn’t try for lean. When its lawyer hero isn’t citing legal precedent, he uses spectacularly florid language that reflects his unusual mental state. But there’s a disconnect between what we see and hear and what we’re meant to feel. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Nov 15, 2017
It’s the rare instance when you can see this great actor laboriously acting. Read full review
40
Time OutJoshua RothkopfNov 20, 2017
A committed Denzel Washington is wasted in a legal drama that never gets around to making closing arguments. Read full review
40
VoxEmily VanDerWerffNov 16, 2017
Roman J. Israel, Esq. is the most frustrating kind of movie there is: one that almost succeeds, and is more disappointing because it doesn’t. Read full review
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