Great acting for a horrible plot and script

Rating: Null/10 (23 May 2004)

(Some spoilers here)
I thought that the plot of this movie was just horrible. The movie was somewhat complex, but we don't ever see Alonzo's motives or anything like that until Jake meets Smiley and his crew. Before, it's just like hey, let's go here and beat this rapist, then this druggie, etc. This movie is the type of film that I would typically abhor to see because the script in my opinion was too redundant at times.
If anything saved this film, it was the casting. Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke gave the best possible performances in this otherwise crappy film. They fit their characters' roles perfectly and you can see it in their eyes.
I am wondering why Ethan Hawke wasn't nominated for Best Actor along with Denzel Washington, instead of Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars as I think Hoyt is also a main character. Nevertheless, this acting duo is what has made a film with a horrible script viewable, because Training Day is the worst script with the best possible actors. This is definitely shown because Training Day had two Oscar nominations, for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, and nothing else. Denzel Washington of course won the movie's only Oscar, but I don't know if this was his best performance ever. Nevertheless, Washington deserved the Oscar in 2001, and he is finally recognized as one of THE premier actors in Hollywood.