Review: Training Day

The first hour of Training Day showcases a great actor strutting his stuff in a surprising film with an original premise. Denzel Washington (Det. Alonzo Harris) is amazing as a rogue LAPD narc who's turning his new rookie partner Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke) to the dark side. But, inexplicably and sadly, the movie suddenly falls right off the cliff, degenerating into a dumb, improbable, almost cartoonishly violent mess. Spoilage warning: plot is discussed, but not ending.

It's great to see Denzel Washington playing a bad guy, and especially impressive to see him as messes with the mind of his eager young partner Jake. Washington is dazzling -- alternately charming, surprising, angry, powerful and savvy. He laughs, cajoles, taunts, tempts and psyches out his younger prey. He's electric, keeping the audience continuously off guard. Jake Hoyt is along for his first day's training to work as an undercover cop, a job he hopes will lead to promotions and more money for his wife and new baby. Set against the backdrop of the ugly and real-life corruption scandals still wracking the Los Angeles Police Department (already battered by years of racial tensions and accusations of brutality), he and Alonzo set out in a souped-up Monte Carlo to ride the mean streets of LA.

Hawke is also great as the eager but savvy rookie who is shocked, then horrified, as he realizes just how out-of-control, brutal and corrupt his new partner is, and how insistent Alonzo is on drawing him into the quagmire of corruption and brutality that underlie the older cop's world. Even though Hoyt knows better from the first, Alonzo is so powerful he can't quite walk away. The movie would have been so much better off if they'd just left the main story line at that, but that no longer seems possible in the looney-tunes world of big-profit studio marketing ambitions.

Training Day quickly degenerates. The "ghetto" scenes are garish, crude, nearly racist stereotypes of life in the big city. Every black or Hispanic kid under 40 is packing and shooting. The elaborate white-men police corruption conspiracies driving the plot were done much better in Chinatown and L.A. Confidential. Hoyt's answer to his increasingly nightmarish predicament is as unsatisfying as it is puzzling and unclear. And a silly plot twist featuring a Russian mafia with enough firepower to take ot the Taliban is inane. I'd highly recommend seeing this movie to anyone who wants to see a great actor strut his stuff for a good hour. Mid-way through, though, you might want to do yourself a favor, finish your popcorn and just go home.

Comments

Training Bra

[Anonymous Coward]

Melyssa:

Bras, even the expensive and beautiful ones suck. I was 13 when my mother gave me my first bra, a size AAA. I didn't need one at the time and hated to wear it. I rarely wear a bra now but when I do it's usually one from Victoria's Secret. I collect those Wonder Bras and have them in all colors of the rainbow. I am grateful that I am of a size that doesn't dictate that I wear one all the time. I am only a B cup, so it's not a major thing if I go without.

Liz :

I wasn't excited about getting my first bra; actually, I was ashamed. I felt shame when I got my period too. I don't understand why development and sexual matters are shameful things. I wish I could remember what my mother taught me when I was young. I hope to avoid teaching those lessons to my daughter. Sexuallity shouldn't be shameful.

Betty :

Bras suck. I think Bras should only be worn on special occasions, like for a sexy moment. Only very, very, very, sexy ones. I never wear a bra unless I'm wearing something very tight to work. i hate the way they start to dig into your skin half way through the day. However, I would like to have a raunchy, lusty relationship wtih someone where I met him in slinky hotel rooms only for sex. If I had this relationship, I would wear lots of slinky bras and matching underwear. I would even wear garter belts and maybe even gloves. I would definitely always wear stockings. I would wear red lipstick too.

Bebe:

Sixth grade. Crucial developmental stage. Boys just noticing me. Time for a training bra.

Tangent:

What the hell does a training bra train????? Last I recall, my breasts actually knew how to manage growth and all other functions without the aid of ouside support.

So Mom and I go shopping, a humiliating trip that is...first bra shopping experience with mom. Come to find out I don't fit into a training bra...I actually fit into a regular bra, albeit a small one....32A to be exact. I remember it to this day....white and slightly padded with fiberfill and a small pink rose smack dab in between my breasts. Despite the shopping experience with my mom, I actually did feel more grown up. More like this woman my body was convicing me I was going to become. AND (this is a really big and) the bra actually emphasised my boobs and I felt proud that they looked so big. (Okay...I was 12!)

So the next day I head off for my 6th grade class very happy to have my new bra on and feeling rather sophisticated. What I didn't realize was how many people (read: BOYS) would notice. Okay, granted I was wearing a white shirt that was actually kind of sheer (not transparent, mind you). What I had failed to notice was that ever PINK rosebud between my breasts...visible to anyone who looked at me. The teasing was relentless...about how big I was and how I must stuff. I recall being terribly insulted at the stuffing comments. I chuckle now, because I am contemplating paying thousands of dollars to have these boobs of mine permanently stuffed!!! Mind you, I don't think those boys would mind that at all. I don't remember much more of that day, except when I got home...I immediately removed the bra and took the scissors to that pink rose.

Jennifer LeighAnne Franklin:

My fist bra was made of a thin white polyester blend. I never washed it cause I wore it all the time. I'd smell it. I liked how it smelled like my body. But when it started turning brown, I knew I'd have to buy another one. Ohhhh, so embarassing! When I asked for my bra, I said, "Mom, I want a bra" and my mom said, "I don't think you need one yet." So I didn't get one! I had to ask again, like 3 times until I convinced her!

end

Re:Training Bra

[Anonymous Coward]

Jew Bagel.

Re:instead of a "Katz Filter"

[Anonymous Coward]

What if i don't have an account huh? then i have to see all of katz pathetic trash.