Roman J. Israel - 1 nomination

Actor in a Leading Role, Denzel Washington

Roman J. Israel is the story of an idealistic young lawyer who fights for criminals who can't generally afford an attorney.  His boss recruits him to the firm, because the boss believes in having a strong pro bono department.  Israel never manages to get his own life in order, particularly his finances.  Eventually, a reward for information is offered for a recent murder, and Israel confidentially violates attorney client privilege in order to get his own finances in order.  Suddenly, Israel's life and career are on track, and the reward money changes his path.  But Israel can't seem to shake the violation of professional ethics, and he must ultimately decide how to proceed.

I was expecting this film to pack a stronger punch.  Washington is excellent, as usual, but the pace of the film didn't move like I hoped it would.  The film could have been more dramatic and there are certainly pockets of interesting moments.  There is a love interest with a non profit idealistic attorney who reminds him of his principles, but it's just not enough to make the film excellent.  If you're a Denzel fan, it's certainly worth seeing, but you won't be talking about it for long after you've seen it.  The film is just ok.