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Roman J. Israel, Esq. was the highly anticipated film from writer-director Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler) that underwhelmed critics and audiences when it opened last November. Although reviews of the film were mixed, most critics and audiences agreed that Denzel Washington gave one of his best performances as the title character, an idealistic criminal defense attorney who loses his way and pays a price for his soon regretted indiscretion.

The actor earned his eighth Oscar nomination for his performance, which in my estimation is his best since 1992’s Malcolm X, the film that brought him the first of his six lead Oscar nominations after having received two in support. Those earlier two included one for 1989’s Glory for which he received the first of his two wins. He subsequently won in the lead category for playing a rare out-and-out villain in 2001’s Training Day. Most of his characters, though, have either been staunch heroes or just ordinary human beings with recognizable frailties we are all subject to. Roman J. Israel is such a character.

Having spent his entire career in partnership with another attorney who made the court appearances for which Roman did the research and prep work, he is like a fish out of water when his partner becomes incapacitated and he must meet face-to-face with clients, assistant district attorneys, and judges. A brilliant savant, he is unable to control himself when the assistant DA’s and judges don’t see the logic in his arguments, often resulting in problems for his clients as well as himself.

The first half of the film is an indictment of the modern court system in which take-it-or-leave-it plea bargain settlements are the norm and overwhelmed assistant DA’s are too busy to properly research or review cases in which they dole out their indiscriminate take-it-or-leave-it deals, which equally too busy judges are more than eager to go along with. The second half of the film is more of a thriller in which action takes precedence over the well-reasoned arguments that made the first half of the film so riveting.

Although Washington’s mesmerizing performance is front and center, he is supported by a group of fine actors including Colin Farrell, Carmen Ejogo, Tony Plana, and Sam Gilroy, Dan’s nephew, whose father is writer-director Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton).

Roman J. Israel, Esq. is available on Blu-ray and standard DVD.

Much better reviewed, and much more successful at the box-office when it, too, opened last November, Stephen Chbosky’s Wonder is based on the popular novel by R.J. Palacio.

Jacob Tremblay plays a disfigured and bullied child who has been homeschooled by his mother (Julia Roberts), but now that he is ten, his parents enroll him in middle-school where he must learn to adjust to the outside world. At the same time, his older sister has troubles of her own as she navigates her way through high school.

There is nothing here that we haven’t seen before, but it is handled with such deft charm it can and probably will be used as a training tool for young children for years to come.

Chbosky, who wrote and directed the critically acclaimed 2012 film The Perks of Being a Wallflower and had a hand in writing the screenplay for 2017’s live-action remake of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, directs with a light touch that makes the medicine go down with a spoonful of sugar.

The excellent supporting cast includes Owen Wilson as Tremblay’s father, Izabela Vidovic as his sister, Noah Jupe as his new best friend, Daveed Diggs as his teacher, and Mandy Patinkin as the school’s principal.

Wonder is available on Blu-ray and standard DVD.

Among those films newly receiving Blu-ray upgrades are The Silence of the Lambs, Elevator to the Gallows, both from Criterion, and Games from Shout Factory.

The Silence of the Lambs, which swept the 1991 Oscars for Best Picture, Actor (Anthony Hopkins), Actress (Jodie Foster), Director (Jonathan Demme), and Adapted Screenplay (Ted Tally), was previously released on Blu-ray by MGM. It has been given a stunning 4K restoration and features as an extra the brilliant commentary by director Demme, Foster, Hopkins, Tally, and former FBI agent John Douglas from the long out-of-print 1994 Criterion laser disc.

Also included in the packaging is a new interview with critic Maitland McDonagh, as well as thirty-eight minutes of deleted scenes, a 2005 interview with Demme and Foster, and four documentaries featuring hours of interviews with cast and crew. In addition to all that, there is a book with an introduction by Foster, an essay by Amy Taubin, and pieces by author Thomas Harris on the origins of his character Hannibal Lecter.

Elevator to the Gallows marked the legendary 1958 feature film debut of director Louis Malle as well as his first collaboration with star Jeanne Moreau (Jules and Jim).

Moreau and Maurice Ronet (Purple Noon) are lovers who are never seen together in the film in which Moreau convinces Ronet to murder his boss, who also happens to be her husband. Everything that could possibly go wrong, does, as Ronet, seemingly clear of the murder, is trapped overnight in the elevator in his office building while Moreau searches for him and teenage psychopath Georges Poujouly (Forbidden Games) steals his car and eventually commits two murders of his own for which Ronet is suspected.

The 2K restoration is among the best yet for a black-and-white film. Extras include footage of Malle and musician/composer Miles Davis from the soundtrack recording session; a program from 2005 about the score featuring jazz trumpeter Jon Faddis and critic Gary Giddens; a 2005 interview with Moreau; archival footage of Malle, Moreau, and Ronet; and more. Also included is a booklet featuring as essay by critic Terrence Raffery.

Curtis Harrington’s 1967 film Games is a macabre story of mayhem and murder featuring Simone Signoret in a return to the world she inhabited so brilliantly in the Henri-Georges Couzot classic Diabolique. Her cohorts here are James Caan and Katharine Ross early in their respective career. It’s relatively minor, but great fun if you’re not expecting too much.

This week’s new releases include The Florida Project and The Girl Without Hands.

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