Clive Owen, a white man, was the almost-total hero of Inside Man.
He risked his life and freedom not just for money, but to punish a truly evil man and to help out his loved ones. He did his best during a very dangerous caper to minimize violence and avoid loss of life.
Denzel Washington, one of only two prominent African-American characters, is strongly hinted to be - although charming and likable - a fundamentally amoral character who used his badge to enrich himself and blackmail to promote himself.
Lee’s ‘25th Hour’ is also centered around a fundamentally moral white guy. It’s one of my favorite American films of the decade. He’s at his best when he isn’t writing or acting but just adding directorial N.Y.C. atmosphere and attitude ala Sidney Lumet.
Clive was not without his virtues, but he was an “ends justify the means” sort of character.
So Denzel’s character kept the diamond. It was his only way to get ahead in the power structure he was stuck in. He was not amoral, he just had weak morals. You ought to admit though, that of all the police characters the two black guys were the ones with ‘good heads on their shoulders’ ... despite their being persecuted by the Man.
Perhaps we saw the same movie differently.