Overview: Denzel Washington delivers an Academy Award-winning performance opposite Ethan Hawke in this gritty drama set in the morally ambiguous world of undercover police work.

Every day a war rages between drug dealers and cops on the streets of America’s inner cities. With every war come casualties, none greater than 13-year veteran Los Angeles narcotics officer Alonzo Harris (Washington), whose questionable methods blur the line between legal and corrupt.

Today Alonzo gets a new partner, idealistic rookie Jake Hoyt (Hawke), and Jake has one day - and one day only - to prove his mettle to his fiercely charismatic superior. Over 24 hours, Jake will be dragged into the ethical mire of Alonzo’s logic as both men risk their careers and their lives to serve conflicting notions of justice.

4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Verdict: Warner Bros. is expanding their 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray catalog offerings this month with the release of the intensely frenetic Training Day in the expansive 4K Ultra HD video format this February 28th, 2023.

For my money, this Training Day [4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital] combo pack sharpness takes a fairly large step forward from others in their 4K Ultra HD catalog and even comes with HDR (High Dynamic Range) for the complete 4K Ultra HD experience, of course.

So, what we have is Training Day presented to us as a two-disc combo pack with a sheet for a Digital HD Copy. Other stand out points you should know are: Codec: HEVC / H.265, Resolution: Native 4K (2160p), HDR: HDR10 and Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1.

Featuring Dolby Vision and HDR10 for brighter, deeper, and way more lifelike colors, as with most all 4K UHDs, everything that we watch features these qualities - but somehow, this film gloriously shines within them all.

Noticeably crisp with the overall clarity receiving an obvious boost here on this release, what is more is that it is enjoyably noticeable.

For as well as some new nuances to the somewhat drab palette courtesy of Dolby Vision we also get to witness sudden bright pops of color, such as the Break In at Roger’s House scene. Set out like a raid from the outside, but ending up inside more like pirates digging up buried treasure than they do cops, the scene really now pops.

Indeed, the picture enjoys the fruits of the added resolution in terms of bringing out the aforementioned extremely fine facial and some of the faded, murky white-graded material.

Such as the now infamous You’d Be Dead By Now MF car scene with both Washington and Hawke, where Alonzo offers up some undercover tips; and yet given the scene is a perfect example of peer pressure, still deeply resonates with not only the now color-boosted car talk, but also the fine line facial reaction from Hawke as the gun is pressed to his temple!

As for the audio, well we have a veritable mini smorgasbord of choice here: English: Dolby Atmos, English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 (48kHz, 24-bit), French: Dolby Digital 5.1 and Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1.

Overall, this is a very strong 4K HDR Blu-ray presentation, and, for the most part, the audio track remains fairly similar to its DTS-HD counterpart; with much of the action occupying the surrounds with outstanding directionality and placement where effects flawlessly pan between the sides and rears.

As for the movie itself, well, Denzel Washington earned his Best Actor Oscar in Training Day portraying a veteran LAPD narcotics officer who has become every bit as hard, amoral and corrupt as the mean city streets he patrols.

We’ve seen plenty of bad apple cops in movies before, but rarely one as chillingly complex as Alonzo Harris, a man who long ago abandoned any of the crime-fighting idealism that led him to the job in the first place. Harris has learned that to deal with bad people one has to become bad oneself, and he has no compunction against going outside the law if that is the only way to get what he wants.

For while he may piously declare that he is only beating the lowlifes at their own game - employing their tools, using their methods - the truth is that Harris has simply sold his soul to the same self-centered greed that motivates the criminals he is supposedly after.

Writer David Ayer provides Harris with the perfect foil for him to go up against in the form of Jake Hoyt, a rookie cop who has been assigned to be the veteran’s partner. Feeling that he is finally going to be able to fulfill his lifelong dream of helping to make the world a better place, Jake is in for a very rude awakening once he comes up against the hard boiled cynicism of this more-than-he-bargained-for partner.

Filled with the understandable jitters and self-doubt that come with the first day on the job, Jake quickly comes to see that there is something not quite right with Harris, who spends much of the day breaking laws, flaunting procedures and even threatening Jake’s life if he doesn’t go along with the many nefarious plans and schemes he has up his sleeves.

Of course, Harris attempts to seduce Jake over to his way of thinking by arguing that such unconventional actions are required to circumvent a legal system that hamstrings officers with its bureaucratic rules and obsession with civil rights violations. Or is this just a convenient excuse for Harris to justify his lawbreaking?

The film is, in many ways, more interesting as a study of Jake’s character than of Harris’, as we wonder if Jake will come to accept Harris’ seasoned viewpoint or somehow see through it and remain true to his ideals.

Training Day is filled with scenes of great dramatic intensity, often times based on some legitimate moral dilemma that Jake finds himself confronting. The mercurial nature of Harris’ behavior keeps us as bewildered and off guard as it does Jake, for like him, we really don’t know what exactly Harris wants or where he is coming from.

Such moral ambiguity is a sign of powerful storytelling and Ayer deserves a great deal of credit for bringing some depth to an overworked genre. However, at times the film feels a bit forced and strains credibility just when we most need to believe in its truthfulness.

This is particularly the case in a scene in which Jake is about to be blown away in a bathtub and receives a last minute reprieve in the form of a coincidence too preposterous to be even slightly believable. Moreover, some of Harris’ actions - though valid for the point that the film is trying to make perhaps - seem highly unlikely in the real world.

The overall effect of them is to throw the audience out of the movie just when we are most eager to go where we feel it is taking us. However, these are minor quibbles about a film that works so well for so much of the time

As this is the film that won Washington his Academy Award, we must not fail to mention the superb performances delivered by both him and Ethan Hawke as Jake. Washington, generally relegated to good guy roles, proves himself a deft villain in this case, displaying the many intricate coils of his seething, cobra-like character.

In many ways, though, Hawke does the more impressive job, partly because he has been given the less flamboyant role of passive observer. Washington gets to hit all the dramatic heights, yet, it is through Jake’s eyes that the audience gets to observe this lethal individual and Hawke provides the understated richness that brings this every man character to life.

As Jake gets more and more intricately ensnared and embroiled in Harris’ immoral actions, we can’t help but identify with the ethical plight being thrust on this man who just wants to do what he knows – or thinks he knows – is right. Thus, these two fine actors provide the explosive, symbiotic partnership that brings the screenplay to vivid life.

Director Antoine Fuqua makes each moment count dramatically, whether it be a tense confrontation between Harris and Jake over an issue of great moral consequence or a subtle moment of quiet reflection as Jake contemplates his next move.

In closing, and despite the fact that the film seems to strain a bit at the edges (one wonders what Jake’s SECOND day on the job will be like), Training Day provides more food for thought than your average cop buddy movie – and much, much finer acting.

Training Day Ultra HD Blu-ray contains the following previously released special features:
• Pharoahe Monch’s “Got You” music video
• Nelly’s “#1” music video
• Deleted Scenes
• Commentary by director Antoine Fuqua
• Training Day: Crossing The Line Featurette
• Alternative Endings

Training Day, starring Academy Award winner Denzel Washington and Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke and directed by Antoine Fuqua, will be released on Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack on February 28th and Digital on February 7th, it was announced today by Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment.

Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ 2001 crime thriller Training Day was directed by Fuqua (Olympus Has Fallen, The Equalizer) from a screenplay by David Ayer (The Fast & The Furious). Washington won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Detective Alonzo Harris, and Hawke was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Office Jake Hoyt.

Training Day was produced by Bobby Newmyer and Jeffrey Silver. The film also stars Scott Glenn (Silverado, Backdraft), Cliff Curtis (Live Free or Die Hard), Dr. Dre (Set It Off), Snoop Dog (The Wash), and Eva Mendes (Ghost Rider, The Women).

Ultra HD* showcases 4K resolution with High Dynamic Range (HDR) and a wider color spectrum, offering consumers brighter, deeper, more lifelike colors for a home entertainment viewing experience like never before.

Training Day will be available on Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack for $33.99 SRP and includes an Ultra HD Blu-ray disc with the feature film in 4K with HDR and a Digital download of the film. Fans can also own Training Day in 4K Ultra HD via purchase from select digital retailers beginning on February 7th.