I forgot what a tightly crafted, perfectly executed film Training Day was. I knew it was excellent, I remembered it as gritty and intense, but I hadn’t seen it since 2001. Watching it afresh over twenty years later, and one is struck by the intensity of the performances, Denzel Washington deservedly won an Oscar for Best Actor, while co-star Ethan Hawke was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor.

It’s a sharp, and intense ride that follows rookie cop, Jake Hoyt (Hawke) as he’s taken out for his training day with narcotics officer Alonzo Harris (Washington). As the day progresses Jake realizes that things aren’t all the seem, and Alonzo is as dangerous as the criminals he purports to be working to put away.

Washington turns in a master class in acting, he’s intense, and his eyes are magnetic and the source of his performance. There’s layers to it, more than just the cop, and Washington plays them all fantastically.

Hawke brings the same intensity to his own role, and everyone is elevated by every other performance in the film. Hawke’s Jake isn’t naive, but he is dedicated to being a positive force in the community, upholding the law, and what he sees in Alonzo conflicts with that.

Alonzo is a strategist though, he is playing a long game, and may have set Jake up from the beginning and its a stunning ride the entire way through.

The film is also packed with incredible actors that just lift the entire film up into the stratosphere, this is a crime-drama-cop-thriller the way it should be done. Check out this supporting cast: Scott Glen, Tom Berenger, Harris Yulin, Cliff Curtis, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Macy Gray and Eva Mendes (oh and there’s Terry Crews in the background with no dialogue!).

Everything in this film works, the camerawork, the storytelling, costumes, every aspect of the production is top-notch, and this ends up being as perfect a cop thriller as there can be. It’s up there with the classics like The French Connection, this is a film that is going to endure, and get stronger with age, and Washington is nothing short of jaw-dropping throughout.

I don’t think I should wait another twenty years before watching this one again. It’s smart, tightly paced and magnificent. This is one that I may have to add to the collection in form of physical media. What better way to celebrate how much I enjoyed the film?

Wonderfully intense. And Washington! WOW.