Happy Birthday Denzel Washington
The annual Denzel should have won an “Oscar” for this role commentary — join me.
Denzel Washington turned 68 today (December 28). Most list him as one of the great actors in the history of stage and cinema. I concur.
Washington has won two Oscars (Academy Awards), a Tony Award, 17 NAACP Image Awards, and one SAG Award, all for acting.
Yet, for many fans such as myself, his second Oscar, for Training Day, stinks.
Yes, his performance was worthy of winning but it was the role itself that stinks. He won for being a PCP-smoking, crooked NARC. I am not saying this role is beneath him and I think he deserves the award.
But Washington deserved a win for other roles to offset Hollywood selecting him for that role.
That role, Alonzo Harris, is not really a cop. Alonzo is a dope dealer with a badge. It is camouflaged as a cop though the role is plausible.
But the role is still basically the typical Academy Awards and nominations African Americans have received over the years.
African Americans, as critic and scholar, Donald Bogle noted, historically get nominated and win the award for a narrow set of categories: criminal (thug), jock (athlete), military, Mammie…
