I've watched this movie several times (not recently), but flipped through it tonight, and it's a great movie. Washington is an amazing actor, and he says a lot of his BS with authenticity, like Alonzo really means it.
So is Alonzo just shoveling all this to Jake, to get him to follow and get his buy-in? Or does he believe what he's saying about his work being "real" police work?
It's just nonsense, he's totally corrupt.
shareI think it's a good mix of honestly and BS, but it depends upon the scene and distance into the movie. Initially he's sizing Jake up and laying the smackdown on Jake, putting him in his place and enforcing the chain of command, and within that seeing what he's made of.
In the middle once he's figured Jakes not some idiot with a badge he starts working the mind games on him a bit. In the early / middle he's still comming across like a guy who's worked the routes and knows better, but there's curruption amongstic it and it becomes more evident to Jake. It is at this time he tries to bring into Jakes mind the whole idea of "the battle or the war" concept, or as he puts it "wolf or sheep"...
What's more interesting to me though is the almost finaly scene where post of the killing of the drug lord and Alonzo is already preparing the "bathtub" scene for Hoyt, he then has a heart to heart chat with him in the car where he departs a last bit of wizdom about walking a higher path and Hoyt is in no way buing it (while I was thinking dude you're a dead man...). I like that scene very much as it seems like a clinch point where Hoyt could say "Yeah you're right" and all would be well. Meanwhil Alonzo already has the grave digging and it really depneds on Hoyt how it plays out.
Granted a bit hollywood after that point but I have to say I love Washington as an actor good guy or bad and this movie proved the latter, so overall I loved it!