Authentic, Intelligent & Utterly Engrossing

Rating: 9/10 (27 January 2012)

This movie's a top quality police drama that's not only violent, tense and exciting but also authentic, intelligent and utterly engrossing. It's set in the most dangerous neighbourhoods of L.A. where undercover cops regularly have contact with drug dealers and gangsters and also face high-risk situations on an almost daily basis. The men who undertake this work have to assume many of the characteristics of the criminals they pursue in order to be accepted and in so doing are expected to avoid being sucked into behaving in the same way as the people they're seeking to bring to justice. Needless to say, not every officer manages to do this.
Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke)is an ambitious young rookie who wants to advance his career by becoming a member of an elite squad of undercover officers who work under the leadership of Detective Sergeant Alonzo Harris (Denzel Washington). When Alonzo agrees to take Jake on a one-day ride-along, Jake's thrilled, eager to learn and hopeful that he can show that he has the qualities needed to be a successful member of Alonzo's team.
Jake is naive, idealistic and totally unprepared for the events that he'll experience during his training day. He's initially disconcerted by Alonzo's repartee and sense of humour and is later unsettled by some of his mentor's practices, which seem incredibly unorthodox. Alonzo has many years of experience in undercover work and so Jake is reluctant to challenge his methods too strongly.
After observing the sale of some drugs in a park, Alonzo chooses not to make any arrests but simply acts in a very threatening manner towards the buyers and then confiscates their drugs. When Jake sees a young girl in an alley being sexually assaulted by two men, he overpowers them on his own and is then surprised when Alonzo decides not to report the incident after viciously beating up the two attackers. Alonzo knows that the girl's related to a gang member who will ensure that the two men are suitably punished but Jake is appalled by the use of this kind of street justice.
Later, Jake accompanies Alonzo when he uses a fake search warrant to enter a drug dealer's house so that he can steal the dealer's money and on another occasion when Alonzo and the rest of his squad kill a drug dealer who used to be a cop so that they can steal his money. Jake refuses to take a share of the proceeds but then is forced to change his mind after Alonzo threatens to frame him for the murder.
During his day with Alonzo, Jake is forced at gunpoint to smoke marijuana (laced with P.C.P.) and later pressured into drinking whisky and beer. He also learns that Alonzo owes a large amount of money to some Russian gangsters from Las Vegas and that the money stolen from the drug dealers is to be used to pay them off.
Jake's recognition of how corrupt Alonzo had become had grown as the day progressed but things then become even more threatening when he realises during a visit to a Latino gangster's home that Alonzo has abandoned him and the gang are determined to kill him.
"Training Day" contains plenty of action and violence but it's all relevant to the story and is very effective in portraying the level of danger that Jake finds himself in. The way in which the story unfolds draws the audience into identifying with the hapless trainee and in so doing makes the whole drama extremely gripping. The initial meeting of Alonzo and Jake is fascinating and the way that their relationship develops turns out to be both interesting and unpredictable. The inclusion of sequences filmed on location in the neighbourhoods where the action is set, enhances the realistic feel of the whole project and the authentic sounding dialogue strengthens this further.
Denzel Washington's Oscar winning performance captures perfectly Alonzo's unique combination of charm and menace and Ethan Hawke is extremely impressive as a young guy who experiences the most eventful and memorable day of his life.