| Overall Grade: |
A |
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| Story: |
A- |
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| Acting: |
A+ |
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| Direction: |
A |
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| Visuals: |
A- |
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Thought-Provoking And Tense
by Yahoo! Movies User (movies profile)
Aug 25, 2007
5
of
5 people found this review helpful
"Training Day" asks the classic question: "Does the end justify the means?". It's this question that our young protangonist must answer. And then he must live with his answer.
A young cop named Jake (Ethan Hawke) is tired of pulling over D.U.I.'s and other petty police business. He wants to work with the big boys. Thus, he has been scheduled to have a training day with one of the best narocotics detectives in the L.A.P.D. (Denzel Washington). During this training session, Jake learns that real detectives aren't necessary the good guys. Then he has to decide if he is going to go along with the system, or if he is going to try and stop it.
The story of Training Day is well-written. The dialouge is quick and snappy, and the plot turns are thought-out and well placed. The pace is good, keeping the action up while allowing time for the psychological mind games. The only reason to complain is that it is all so cynical. That the very men who protect us are scoundrels like the pigs they lock up. Unfortunately, this may also be the truth.
Denzel Washington's performance is riveting. He commands the scenes he is in, but yet also has a presence even if he is only being talked about. Denzel is known for his good-guy roles, and switching personas can be difficult for an actor. But quite frankly, he comes off as a truly vile man. Ethan Hawke is very good as a young, impressionable man who has to decide if he can live with himself while doing these horrible things. The rest of the cast is basically there as fillers, though, which I imagine is the fault of the writers.
"Training Day" is not your typical action movie. A lot of the action goes on inside of Jake's head. His battle with himself is the real story of the movie, not the battles between him and Alonzo or anyone else. People looking for a shoot-em-up shouldn't come here. The violence is ugly and very real. The faint of heart and stomach should beware.
This movie is fantastic. It's got action, but it also has a mind. It also has a soul. That's almost what it is all about. Whether you are willing to sell your soul to get the right thing done. With powerful performances and brutal reality, "Training Day" teaches us one important thing: you need more than good explosions to make a good movie. |
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