"Hello, Mr. Roman": 7.5
This film tells the "death of idealism" in an uncomplicated plot. The difference is that because Mr. Roman’s partner and mentor was hospitalized at the beginning, his ideals were shaken from the beginning. When he was crushed by the last straw, he made the first decision that violated his principles and caused him more trouble. Although the plot is simple, there are no flaws.
Obviously, this film further exposed the director and screenwriter Dan Gilroy's screenwriting level higher than the director's level. Compared with the stunning New York streets in his predecessor "Nightcrawler": the neon lights are particularly dazzling in the black at night, reflecting on the male protagonist's face and his fast-driving car. The photography of "Hello, Mr. Roman" closely follows Denzel Washington, audiovisual language is relatively weak. The most impressive thing is that in the last shot of Denzel Washington, in the mid-to-close shot taken from the back, the lighting highlights the contours of his face, while the eyes are still shadows. This showed that he was finally redeemed, so a sky light that had never appeared before, but the shadows in his eyes also hinted at his final tragic ending. This is also the design of Robert Asvit, the master photographer of the two films.
However, when we compare the director's previous work "Nightcrawler" again, we can find his changes. In contrast to "Nightcrawler"'s unobtrusive ridicule about "dreams", "Mr. Roman, Hello" condenses this sharpness and focuses more calmly on the characters. And this change is achieved through the creation of different protagonists: the former is an extreme figure, from the beginning to the end they are unscrupulous to achieve their goals, and refuse to examine their own heart, then the latter gives the protagonist richer emotions. The audience can also be relatively easy to represent others, because he has more humanity and human struggle. In the face of temptation, he does not have the absoluteness of a pure saint or a pure evil person, and has always been in a process of thinking.
It's a pity that this text has been filmed too many times in Hollywood and even the world, and the script has no "Nightcrawler" spots, and the innovation is limited. This should be the reason why this film only nominates the male lead during the awards season in the United States.
If this film only has the above-mentioned characteristics, it is at most 7 points, such a painless score, and it has no movie history status. But Denzel Washington’s performance has raised the film by half a notch. The details, persistence, struggle, desperateness, fear, regret, and relief are all distinct, + credibility. The romance drama also further broadens the character's personality.
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