Fuqua sucks... I've yet to like anything he's done. Shooter is probably the best and that ain't saying much. I can't stand Training Day or Denzel (who is almost always amazing) and his ridiculous undeserving oscar performance. I would be disappointed if such a hyped script ends up in his hands. How about Todd Field instead?

Wow the person above doesnt know any thing, to be honest....

Denzel was most deserving of the Oscar, his performance was brilliant and the story line was meticulous, ESPECIALLY for a gun shooting/action/ thriller film... those are extremely rare...

That role is exactly why, I have been saying for years, that Denzel needs to stop all these heroic good-guy roles, and play some bad/evil/manipulative characters, I mean he did in Training Day and look what happen...If I was the guys agent I'd immediatly stop all of his lame ass action movies of late with Tony Scott and do something where he is a Villain...he's more interesting that way...

Fuqua doesnt completely suck in my opinion either...he's underrated in my opinion and hasnt found the right script like he did with Training Day, I mean to me Shooter sucked!
Brooklyns Finest looks promising ....

I think the projects a good idea for him, but Wahlberg is getting lame to me, Im not sure why, same with Christian Bale, and arent they working on a film now....
-Working on another together almost immediatly after would kinda burn out the audience dont ya think?

Denzel's performance in training day was a caricature not a character, he's been better just about every other time he's stepped in front of the camera (including his deserved win for Glory). He was so over the top it was laughable, as was the 'meticulous story-line' of corrupt cops that we've seen a million times before and will probably get to see a million times again. It was probably the worst performance of the nominees that year and if crowe hadn't pissed off the academy that year he was a shoe in (how does beautiful mind win best actress, writer, director and picture and not actor, considering the whole movie hinged on his performance). Penn and Wilkinson were also much better and more deserving (Wilkinson coincidentally in a film directed by the guy I'd rather see helm this project). If you want to see Denzel go bad in a good way watch A Soldier’s Story not that piece of garbage Training Day.

I don't know how Fuqua is underrated... he directed the lackluster aforementioned film and the paint by numbers Shooter, the horrible war movie Tears of the Sun, the laughable (not in a good way) Bait and the down right terrible historical drama King Arthur (also Clive Owen's worst performance). I don't know how this guy still gets work let alone call him underrated. Brooklyn's Finest could be good, it has a good cast - lets not hope he ruins all their performances though too...

But I guess that's why film taste is subjective and opinions are like assholes, both you and I have got them.

Denzel was definitely not a cariacture, that is laughable ...

This is why he won, he won because up till then, he was the most and still is the most handsome black actor/ leading man in film, Will Smith is now up there as well...

But he truly won because up till that point he played nothing but hero types and real life figures, such as Malcom X and Hurricane Carter and a gay rights lawyer in Philadelphia, a leader of racial equality in Remeber the Titans...

But THEN comes along Training Day.... where he is cop but not just any cop a disturbed/paranoid/manipulative/evil/ selfish/ cop who has lost their way with greed...

That so CALLED drastic comfort zone of Denzel was immediately shattered with the role... I dont understand how you can define his portrayal as a cariacture, cops act like that and police agencies are like that in the ghetto's and all over the world let alone the US...

I feel like his timing was right as well, which I thought didnt matter until I started reading some posts on this very blog, I mean Halle Berry won Best Actress (most deserving) and then they honored Sidney Portier (an amazing actor who transcended race boundaries in film), so that year African Americans you can say was the main forefront and deservingly so...

Yes Russell may have been more deserving and A Beautiful Mind is one of my favorite films to be honest and I GUARENTEE & KNOW ANY OTHER YEAR RUSSELL CROWE WOULD HAVE WON! But Denzel came out on top and I dont think it was b/c Russell pissed them off...

-Training Day was special in my opinion so i do disagree with Colin, which I almost never do, the insight into this corrupt man's world was sooo interesting, the whole film was soo intimate between these 2 polar opposite characters and you do not get that out of gun blasting/in the ghetto films...

So I do disagree with you but we can agree to disagree on this point, but i do love the debate!!!
-keep it coming lol

I'm always in for a debate because I know that everyone can't agree on everything, especially when it comes to film taste or the value of art. All I can say is that Training Day makes me cringe (because I find most of it ridiculous) and Denzel in it makes me laugh but keep on enjoying it if thats your thing. All I can say in my defense though is "King Kong Ain't Got Nothing On Me!"

By the way, a tangent debate that was had on here reminds me of this and Training Day... the new film Law Abiding Citizen also looks ridiculous to me but apparently almost everyone else disagrees.