They make the white man look like a nerd

Hoyt didn't cry in this movie. The only character that cried was the black crackhead Alonzo had up against the fence.

They weren't facts of life, they were facts of being a detective in Los Angeles. How would Hoyt know these facts being fresh from the academy, it is perfectly logical for the veteran detective to know these facts since it was his job for years.

If it makes you feel any better, Alonzo is based on an actual black cop who was a crooked member of the LAPD.

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They certainly did in this movie. They made the black man look souped up and like he had it all together and knew all the facts of life, and they made the white man look rather like a drip, one who even started to cry.

I guess technically, you're right. You've described the characters who were played by a white actor and black actor as they were meant to be portrayed for the story. Hoyt's character is supposed to be be naive and impressionable or the story doesn't work. (Maybe you could call that looking like a nerd.) Harris is supposed to be imposing and experienced or the story doesn't work.

But, the one thing you don't make a case for is that there is something specific about their characters that makes them white and black besides the actors that played them. What I'm saying is, that if they cast Bruce Willis in the Harris role and Will Smith in the Hoyt role, nothing would change about the story. Well, maybe Bruce Willis' character wouldn't have as cool of a car but that's not plot; that's aesthetic.

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