Training Day

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Training Day

Theatrical poster for Training Day
Directed by Antoine Fuqua
Produced by Bruce Berman and Davis Guggenheim
Written by David Ayer
Starring Denzel Washington
Ethan Hawke
Scott Glenn
Eva Mendes
Tom Berenger
Music by Mark Mancina
Cinematography Mauro Fiore
Editing by Conrad Buff IV
Distributed by Warner Bros. (USA)
Release date(s) October 5, 2001
Running time 120 Min.
Country USA USA
Language English
Budget $45,000,000 (estimate)
Gross revenue $104,876,233
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Training Day is an Academy Award winning 2001 crime film directed by Antoine Fuqua; starring Denzel Washington as Alonzo Harris, a corrupt Los Angeles police officer, and Ethan Hawke as Jake Hoyt, his new recruit looking to become a part of Harris' elite narcotics unit. The entire movie takes place over a single, intense 24-hour period in Los Angeles that forever changes the lives of both officers. The movie was written by David Ayer. Both the screen writer and the director grew up in gang neighborhoods.

Fuqua wanted Training Day to look as authentic as possible, and he shot on location in some of the most infamous neighborhoods of Los Angeles, California. He even obtained permission to shoot in the Imperial Courts housing project. According to Fuqua's commentary on the DVD release of the film, the actors and crew ended up receiving a warm welcome from local residents. When Fuqua wasn't able to shoot a scene directly on location, he recreated these locations on sets.

There were two police officers on hand as technical advisors, Michael Patterson and Paul Lozada. Cle Shaheed "Bone" Sloan served as the gang advisor. Washington, Hawke and other cast members also met with undercover police officers, local drug dealers and gang members to help them understand their roles better.[citation needed]

The film received mostly positive reviews upon release, and Denzel Washington's portrayal of Alonzo Harris gathered glowing praise from the critics. Fuqua wanted his character to be seductive and part of a machine, and not just a random rogue cop. In Washington's own words,

"I think in some ways he’s done his job too well. He’s learned how to manipulate, how to push the line further and further, and, in the process, he’s become more hard-core than some of the guys he’s chasing."[1]

In the movie Harris shows a liking towards Hoyt, and in many ways he sees Hoyt as a younger version of himself -- naive and idealistic before being hardened by the harsh realities of police work and street life.

Training Day presents the moral dilemma of committing minor crimes to prevent larger ones and getting things done even if it means making moral compromises. Denzel Washington won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Ethan Hawke was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Training Day also features appearances by Scott Glenn, Tom Berenger, Harris Yulin, Eva Mendes and musical artists Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Macy Gray.

Contents

[edit] Plot

The movie, as the title suggests, follows a single day in the life of a young LAPD cop Jake Hoyt (Hawke) as he is subject to a single day evaluation by Alonzo Harris (Washington), a highly decorated LAPD police narcotics officer to see if he has what it takes to be a 'narc'.

During the first few moments of Jake's pairing with Alonzo, it becomes quickly apparent that Jake's 'by the book' dictum is in stark contrast to Alonzo's philosophy of blending in with the street. They first detain some college students buying marijuana from a dealer, but instead of arresting them they just take their drugs. Jake is put into a compromising position when Alonzo offers him a hit of marijuana (that is, unknown to Jake, laced with PCP) as a test of his street smarts, putting a gun to his head and threatening to throw him out if he doesn't smoke it. Jake relents and smokes.

Alonzo then takes Jake to the home of a drug dealer and bookmaker "Roger" (Scott Glenn), with whom Alonzo seems to have a close relationship. As they're cruising down the street later on, Jake notices a girl (Samantha Esteban) being attacked by two men in a side alley. Jake jumps out of the car and saves her, while Alonzo watches. Jake wants to arrest the men and get a statement from the girl, but Alonzo dismisses her and leaves the two men out on the street to face 'street justice', though not before intimidating and torturing them. Jake discovers the girl's pink wallet before he leaves and picks it up, whereupon he realizes that the girl is 14 years old.

During the rest of the day, Alonzo brings Jake further and further into the world of the 'street' as he harasses a drug dealer named Blue (Snoop Dogg) and learns about another drug dealer named Sandman. He then illegally searches Sandman's home and steals thousands of dollars in the presence of Sandman's wife (Macy Gray) and nephew, Sandman's wife then calls for help when she realizes the money was stolen, the local gang members which appeared to be Crips outside start to take action, by shooting Alonzo's car on which he then fires back. He then takes Jake to the Jungles to meet his Salvadoran mistress, Sara (Eva Mendes), and their young son, where he establishes that the gang members in the housing project all fear and respect him. During their entry to the housing project, Jake and Alonzo see a flock of pigeons controlled by a resident, and Alonzo explains to Jake that the residents use the pigeons to warn the community the police are present. Alonzo then meets with three high ranking police officers — known as the "Three Wisemen" (Tom Berenger, Harris Yulin, Raymond J. Barry) — where it is clear from their conversation that Alonzo has bigger problems than breaking in a new rookie. Alonzo receives permission from the wisemen to "cash in" on an "account."

Alonzo goes back to Roger's home with Jake and some fellow narcs, and seizes Roger's money stash hidden underneath the floor of his kitchen, offering a cut to the team (Jake refuses his share). Alonzo then takes Jake's shotgun and shoots Roger as he sits unarmed and helpless. Jake is horrified by what he had just witnessed and while the crew sets out to manipulate the crime scene, he snaps, resulting in a tense standoff between him and the corrupt officers. But he soon realizes his predicament and surrenders when Alonzo mentions the department's blood test as his wild card, which would ruin him as it would detect the PCP he had smoked earlier that day.

The backup arrives to clean up, and Jake expresses his disgust at the way Alonzo operates, to which Alonzo replies that it is part of his methodology; he had to cozy up to Roger (who was apparently a very elusive and unscrupulous drug dealer) in order to take him out, which sums up his pragmatic view of "law enforcement", but Jake believes otherwise.

The pair later arrive at the home of a Latino gangster named "Smiley," (Cliff Curtis) who is playing poker with two other gang members: "Sniper" (Raymond Cruz) and "Moreno" (Noel Gugliemi). After playing a hand, Jake becomes aware that Alonzo has abandoned him to the thugs, and Smiley informs him of Alonzo's situation: he must pay one million dollars to Russian Mafia members for killing one of their employees in Las Vegas, explaining the heist of Roger's stash. Jake tries to escape, but the trio quickly overpowers him and drags him into the bathroom to be shot. They ignore his pleas for mercy and search his pockets, finding the pink wallet he had picked up earlier which happens to belong to Smiley's cousin. Jake desperately tells him where he found it. Not believing him, Smiley calls his cousin, who confirms Jake's story and provides his physical description. In appreciation for Jake's brave actions, Smiley spares Jake's life, returns his pistol and allows him to leave.

Jake returns to Sara's apartment looking for Alonzo. He attempts to arrest him as he tries to make his appointment with the Mafia members, but Alonzo resists. Jake eventually subdues him, after which gang members and local residents begin congregating to watch the conflict. Alonzo tries to get the crowd on his side, but it becomes evident that the neighborhood has had enough of him; they allow Jake to walk away with the money, who intends to turn it in as evidence. Detained by one of the gang members, an incensed Alonzo then rails at the defiant mob. They in turn abandon him in disgust.

Attempting to escape through LAX, a broken Alonzo meets his end at a quiet intersection, where a crew of Russian gunmen shoot him down.

The final scene has Jake pulling into his driveway and going home to his family, while a radio broadcast reports Alonzo's death. Ironically, the news report of Alonzo's death is a facsimile of a line spoken earlier in the movie by Alonzo himself, which was used to persuade Jake to take part in Roger's murder/robbery: "An LAPD narcotics officer was killed serving a high-risk warrant. An LAPD spokesperson said, officer Alonzo Harris was survived by his wife and four sons."

[edit] Cast


[edit] Box office

The film was release in theaters in October 5, 2001, and was a box office hit, landing #1 in box office. At its second week of release, the film gross $13,386,457, landing again in #1 in box office. The film stayed in the top-ten on box office until the seventh week of release, landing #12 in box office. The film grossed $76,631,907 domestic box office and $104,876,233 worldwide.

[edit] Details

DVD cover for the film
DVD cover for the film
  • Screenplay sold on spec for $1 million dollars.[citation needed]
  • This movie marked the first time L.A. street gangs allowed cameras to be brought into the Imperial Courts neighborhood. The crew also filmed in Hoover Block.[citation needed]
  • Denzel Washington's character drives a black 1979 Chevrolet Monte Carlo lowrider.
  • The coffee shop in the beginning of the movie, called Quality Cafe, appears in many movies, including Old School, Se7en, Ghost World, Gone in Sixty Seconds, and Catch Me If You Can.
  • The movie's script was altered to add some aspects of the Rampart Scandal, which happened after it was written.[citation needed]
  • Denzel Washington's character looks were designed to resemble Rafael Pérez's, who played a central role in the Rampart Scandal.[citation needed]
  • This marks one of the few movies where Washington plays a villain. A Soldier's Story being the first.
  • This movie was parodied to a 5-minute segment of Chappelle's Show. The parody involves Wayne Brady and Chappelle cruising in a neighborhood to show Brady's "real" side. There is a segment of the skit very reminiscent of when Alonzo "convinces" Hoyt to smoke marijuana laced with PCP.
  • An alternate ending on DVD shows Jake Hoyt being approached and questioned by the "Three Wise Men" as he returns home (the silhouettes of them leaving the car parked on the street can be briefly seen in the theatrical version).
  • The movie was alluded to in the video for Lil' Scrappy's "No Problem" with Snoop Dogg in the role of "Blue" again.
  • The 2002 music video for rapper AZ's single "I'm Back" was based on Training Day
  • Denzel Washington's character Alonzo was ranked 50th villain on the AFI's 100 greatest heroes and villains.
  • Eminem was supposed to make his major film debut in Training Day but turned it down for his role in 8 Mile[citation needed]
  • Raymond Cruz's character is named "Sniper". Cruz played Army sniper, Domingo Chavez, in the Tom Clancy movie Clear and Present Danger (film) along with Harris Yulin.
  • Parts of Training Day were shot on a dead end street called Palmwood Dr where the Black P Stone Blood gangmembers were seen on the rooftops.
  • Cle Shaheed Sloan, the gang technical advisor of Training Day, managed to get on screen real-life gang members from Rollin' 60 Crips, PJ Watts Crips and B.P.Stones Bloods.

[edit] References

  1. ^ EtymologyOnLine "Spoon" Accessed May 31, 2007.

[edit] External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
v • d • e
Films directed by Antoine Fuqua

The Replacement Killers (1998) • Bait (2000) • Training Day (2001) • Tears of the Sun (2003) • King Arthur (2004) • Shooter (2007) • Brooklyn's Finest (2008) • Escobar (2009)