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Training Day [2002]
![Training Day [2002]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/317KPY7586L._SL160_.jpg)
In stark contrast to most of his previous work, Washington unleashes his dark side with fearlessness and fury, and the result is excellence without compromise. Director Antoine Fuqua (The Replacement Killers) won't score any points for subtlety, but gritty details (including actual LA gang members as extras) and Hawke's finely tuned performance are perfectly matched to Washington's frightening volatility. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com On the DVD: Training Day's special features include an HBO documentary which actually provides some insight into the structure of the film rather than simply adding glitz and glamour. Antoine Fuqua's feature commentary is intimate, suggesting his heart and soul went into this movie. The extra scenes also add to the enjoyment of the movie, the only disappointment being that there is no additional commentary to explain the cuts. The alternative ending ties up a few of the loose ends which are left at the close of the theatrical release. Out of the two music videos it is Pharoahe Monch's "Got You" that fits in best with the style of the film, having a much bassier street-level feel than Nelly's "#1" chart-friendly hip-hop. The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack allows you to feel like you're pumping out the beats from your BMW and the 2.35:1 widescreen is a slick as Denzel Washington's gun moves. --Nikki Disney
RRP: £13.99
Our Price: £1.11 (subject to change)
Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review
A powerhouse performance by Denzel Washington fuels Training Day, a brutal urban police drama in which a rookie narcotics cop learns the hard way that even good cops can go very, very bad. Washington plays veteran detective Alonzo Harris, a self-proclaimed "wolf among wolves", eager to teach his rookie partner Jake (Ethan Hawke) that normal rules don't apply on the mean streets of Los Angeles. Caught in a web of deception, Jake watches with escalating horror as Alonzo uses his badge (and the support of his superiors) to justify a self-righteous policy of corruption.
WELL WORTH THE BEST ACTOR OSCAR!!!!
Review date: 2008-07-18 Rating: 10 out of 10
Stunning movie - easily the best American urban/police thriller I've seen to date!
VERY stylish and often brutal, this hooks from start to finish.
It's not action packed, rather delivering thrills in short, sharp bursts. It's very atmospheric with an incredible central performance from Denzel Washington as antihero/villain, Detective Alonzo Harris, and strong support from Ethan Hawke as rookie officer, Jake Hoyt.
Look out for small roles from the likes of Snoop Dogg & Dr Dre, in this unflinching portrayal of the very mean streets of LA. Also, Scott Glen, Cliff Curtis & Tom Berenger. It's a real tough guys movie BUT not in the cliched action roles that we saw back in the '80s.
The direction from Antoine Fuqua is extremeley tight, and the photography/editing is razor sharp.
There's a good score ranging from Rock to Rap/Hip Hop, and the film looks & sounds hip & modern.
There is some strong violence & language, particularly from Washington who has some GREAT lines (seriously some of my favourite dialogue EVER).
A VERY, VERY, VERY COOL MOVIE WITH AN ICONIC ROLE FOR WASHINGTON!
And the DVD has a reasonable amount of bonus features for a single disc!
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Reviews
Outstanding corrupt cop drama
Review date: 2008-07-05 Rating: 10 out of 10
The ending was a bit of overkill. That could be said. And the mano-a-mano fight après the ending was a bit drawn out. That too could be said. But the rest of the film was more than excellent.
"Training Day" is the best of the bad cop dramas that I have seen, and I've seen a few. Both Denzel Washington as the psychopathic bad cop, Alonzo, and Ethan Hawke as the idealistic rookie, Jake, were full out. Denzel Washington won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance, and Ethan Hawke was nominated for Best Supporting Actor. The direction by Antoine Fuqua was superb. The LA street scenes and milieu were as real and vivid as my old buddy Taco Bender. (And trust me, Taco Bender was very real.) The extras in the crowd scenes should get some kind of prize for macho scary. I've been there, and I still have a few nightmares. There are some streets in LA you don't want to walk down unless you are a homey, or a brother, and some other streets you don't want to walk down, period.
Unlike some cop dramas and shoot `em up thrillers, this one was carefully planned, so that the scene in the barrio at the card table, the rook all alone set up for the kill, came across as real because what had happened before was just about the only thing in the world that could have saved him. The LA atmosphere was like a rush, as stunningly authentic in a different way as, say, that in Chinatown (1974) or LA Confidential (1997), but more contemporary.
I wonder how many guys starting in say the sixties or maybe a little before have experienced the kind of initiation that Jake experiences in terms of being fed some dope never before tasted and then "led" on the "trip" by someone wanting to exploit them. Most of the time, for most guys it was an initiation into something other worldly, scary, but something that was only psychological and would be gone the next day. For Jake it was a matter of, first, his livelihood as an idealistic cop, and second a matter of groking to a paranoid view of the world in which the good guys are the bad guys and everything is hopelessly corrupt and there is no good, only evil--and you just found out. And third, a matter of life and death with either acid and grass running all around your brain or maybe PCP and speed, and some suddenly obviously evil person (as Washington so well depicted) giving you the kind of "guidance" you can't refuse. And then finally it is beyond life and death and only a matter of primeval justice and a revenge you must perform.
Look for Snoop Dogg in a wheelchair and Dr. Dre as one of Alonzo's posse cops.
Denzel the best there is
Review date: 2008-03-09 Rating: 10 out of 10
I have yet to watch one movie that encapsulates a star in one viewing. Simply a tour de force!! Denzel is the best there is!!
OH DEAR - BORING, NO STORY HOOKLINE AND VERY DULL
Review date: 2007-11-12 Rating: 6 out of 10
Well, going on the previous reviews you would think this would be a rollercoast thriller ride full of edge of the seat tension and action - Bang! How wrong can you be. This is rather dire moving from a plot perspective as quite frankly it's more of a " a day in the life of a drugs cop in LA" - it literally just follows Washignton around with his rookie cop, drinking whisky smoking dope, talking and interrogating a few gang members and that's it! no twists, no hookline - nothing. You tend to start wandering after 30 minutes is anything actually going to happen, then afer an hour when you realise this is all the film is about you tend to switch it off!
Good acting, direction, soundtrack and a peek at Snoop Dogg, but beyond that -leave it on the shelf - very, very dull and boring!
Ya wanna go home, or ya wanna go to jail?
Review date: 2007-11-01 Rating: 10 out of 10
I can't believe this flick was nearly five years old before I caught it - why on earth didn't anyone recommend it to me before?
I was a little disappointed by the fact that the makers had chosen a white guy to play the role of a prospective undercover narcotics agent, given that the reality of such a situation would call for an officer of colour, and assumed the decision had been an attempt to make the movie more appealing to a wider demographic of audience. But as the film pregresses it's clear why and - ultimately - how sensible this decision was. Hawke brings a youthy, nervous yet courageous portrayal to life in a performance that is matched only by the film's ultimate star, Denzel Washington.
The script is awesome, the action is amazing, the direction is brilliant, in fact I can't praise it enough. It's just a fantastic film. Truly amazing.
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Ethan Hawke
Tom Berenger
Harris Yulin
Denzel Washington
Scott Glenn
Creators:
Denzel Washington (Primary Contributor)
Ethan Hawke (Primary Contributor)
Bruce Berman (Producer)
David Ayer (Producer)
David Ayer (Writer)
David Wisnievitz (Producer)
Davis Guggenheim (Producer)
Jeffrey Silver (Producer)
Robert F. Newmyer (Producer)
Director(s):
Recording label: Warner Home Video
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
EAN: 7321900219624
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen,
Release date: 2002-07-15
Number of discs: 1
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Audience rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 117 minutes
Theatrical release date: 2001-10-05
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: Russian (Original Language)
Language: Spanish (Original Language)