Training Day
Short description
Training Day is a crime drama set on the streets of Los Angeles, where Jake Hoyt, a young police officer hoping to make detective, begins a one-day trial with the narcotics unit. He is paired with Sergeant Alonzo Harris, a seasoned undercover veteran whose methods blur the line between law enforcement and corruption. What starts as a routine evaluation becomes a long and increasingly dangerous tour through the city's toughest neighbourhoods, during which Jake is drawn into Alonzo's questionable dealings and forced to weigh ambition against his own principles.
Antoine Fuqua directed the film, the fourth of the nineteen features he has made in chronological order, arriving between Bait and Tears of the Sun. David Ayer wrote the screenplay, and Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke lead the cast as Alonzo and Jake, with Scott Glenn, Tom Berenger, Harris Yulin and Raymond J. Barry in supporting roles.
Made for a budget of about 45 million dollars, the film took roughly 105 million dollars worldwide, a solid return. On IMDb it holds 7.8 out of 10 from around 514,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.5 out of 10 from a much smaller pool of voters. Its critics' rating of 6.8 out of 10 from 169 reviews sits slightly below the audience scores, suggesting viewers responded to the film more warmly than reviewers did.
What's left behind the scenes
- Fouqua wanted to make the film as realistic as possible, so many scenes were shot in the infamous criminal districts of Los Angeles. He even had to personally obtain permission to film from some street gangs. They most often readily agreed.
- As a result of the attack on the World Trade Center, the release date of the film was postponed by two weeks — to October 5th.
- The film was shot in between takes of "John Q" starring Denzel Washington.
- In one of the scenes that was ultimately cut, Alonzo Harris (Denzel Washington) shows Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke) a photograph of himself as a very young police officer. This snapshot was taken from a frame taken from the film "Ricochet" (1991).
- The role of Harris was also offered to Bruce Willis, Gary Sinise, and Tom Sizemore.
- Screenwriter David Ayer wrote the first draft of the script in 1995, long before the infamous 1998 incident involving the exposure of corruption within an elite narcotics task force, which went down in the history of overseas law enforcement under the name "The Rampart Scandal".
- Scott Glenn and Denzel Washington previously played the same character in the films *Death Wish* (1987) and *Man on Fire* (2004) respectively.
- Filming took place from January to April 2001.
- Before Antoine Fuqua took over the direction, the film was to be directed by Davis Guggenheim, with Samuel L. Jackson intended for the role of Harris and Matt Damon for the role of Hoyt.
- Before filming the scene where Ethan Hawke's character plays cards with criminals, director Antoine Fuqua secretly instructed the actors playing the gangsters, without Hawke's knowledge. This was done to further disorient Hawke and add tension to the scene.
- Toby Maguire was initially considered for the role of Jake. As part of his preparation, he spent two months shadowing undercover officers from the Los Angeles Police Department's narcotics division and deliberately gained weight for the part. However, when Ethan Hawke, who Antoine Fuqua had originally chosen, became available, the role ultimately went to him.
- Upon the film's release, many viewers and critics disliked the scene where Ethan Hawke's character smokes marijuana laced with PCP, and Denzel Washington's character explains that any undercover cop who refuses the offered drugs will be immediately exposed and killed. Screenwriter David Ayer, in an interview, cited existing law enforcement guidelines which allow undercover officers to use drugs in certain situations, a point that was essentially conveyed in the film.
- When Denzel Washington's character fires two pistols simultaneously during a shootout, he holds one pistol straight and the other (in his left hand) at a 90-degree angle. This is because he is using Smith & Wesson pistols, which eject spent casings to the right. If held as Washington's character does, the spent casings from the angled pistol would eject straight down, avoiding his other hand and preventing burns.
- Several police officers participated in the film's production as consultants, including Brian Davis, a respected veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department and founder of the elite Special Investigations Section.
- The fictional gang in the film is based on real gangs from Los Angeles. In preparation for the role of Smiley, New Zealand actor Cliff Curtis spent some time among gang members.
- Antoine Fuqua was offered the directing role after Denzel Washington saw his film "Bait" (2000), which was still in post-production.
- In the original version of the ending, Denzel Washington's character walked away unscathed, but the actor insisted he get his comeuppance, and the script was changed.
- T. Rogers, the founder of the "Black P. Stones Bloods" gang, was present on the set. This gang "controls" the Los Angeles neighborhood where the filming took place. Rogers gave permission to film the movie in "his" area in exchange for having some of his subordinates cast in minor roles in the film.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
