TRAINING DAY (2001) (***1/2)

Did Denzel give the best performance of the year? Out of the nominees, the only other one I have seen so far was Russell Crowe in A BEAUTIFUL MIND. And it's hard to say if one performance was better than the other. Both performances hold their films together. Washington adds so much believability to the role as the corrupt cop that you tend to side with his evil philosophy from time to time. The devil is a persuasive creature.

Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke, DEAD POETS SOCIETY) is a rookie working uncover for the first time. His mentor on his first day is Alonzo Harris (Washington). Trial by fire doesn't quite capture the full extent of Jake's initiation. Alonzo is the meanest, dirtiest and most crooked cop in all of Los Angeles. Or is he just playing the rookie to see how he'll react? Or could it be all of the above?

Did Ethan Hawke deserve a supporting actor nomination? He was good in a good role, but I still don't think he was better than Steve Busemi in GHOST WORLD, who got snubbed. The two performances by the leads are what make this film rise above the typical good cop/ bad cop flick.

Director Antoine Fuqua (BAIT) and writer David Ayer (THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS) set up the story as a classic battle of good and evil. As they say, total power corrupts totally. Harris has been out on the streets for so long that he believes that he is a god. He knows the game better than anyone, even the criminals. He pushes Jake to see if he can handle the ways of the street. He plays the game by streets' rules and wins, but he also wants the streets' rewards. Jake is trying to make a better life for his family and Alonzo's narc squad can provide, but at what cost?

The pieces of the plot add up surprisingly well and play out in unexpected ways. But the whole plot leads back to the characters. Alonzo and Jake have two opposing worldviews. Alonzo is a hardened veteran, who has lost the innocent belief in justice that Jake still has. But Jake's belief in protecting and serving will benefit him when he really needs it. Karma can be a funny, unexpected thing.

As the film goes along, it takes on a grander and grander scale, building right up to its operatic ending. You can forgive the film its contrivances because they just add to the grander good vs. evil message. The film is like a metaphor for Christ's trial in the desert. If the devil offers you the world, or threatens to rip it away from you, would you side with him?