Recruit (2003)

"When it comes to action and suspense, The Recruit delivers.  Kevin Carr, Film Threat
"Taut psychological thriller.  Joe Baltake, SACRAMENTO BEE
"A labyrinthine brain twister.  Carla Meyer, San Francisco Chronicle
"Probably better than anyone else working today, Donaldson knows how to knit a thriller.  Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer
"Loaded with twists and turns.  David Sheehan, CBS-TV
"A taut tense thriller.  Larry King, CNN
"Has you on the edge of your seat.  Leonard Maltin, Hot Ticket
"...one of those thrillers that delights in pulling the rug out from under you, only to find another rug below that.  Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

Editor's Note James Clayton is fired up. A bartender by night and computer hacker in the few hours of daylight for which he manages to leave his water bed, the kid is flying high, on a roll with a laid-back lifestyle that suits him just fine. Played by an agile Colin Farrell, Clayton is also a heartthrob with his five o'clock shadow and chiseled pecks. A cushy job offer from Dell computers peaks his interest in securing a professional career, and at the same moment he meets Walter Burke (Al Pacino), a recruiter from the CIA. Though Clayton's better judgement tells him to stay away from the shady Burke, he is curious to learn whatever he can about his father, who was also a CIA agent, killed in the line of duty. Clayton is sent to an intensive CIA training camp called "The Farm," where he quickly learns the gravity of his decision as he undergoes gruelling tests of physical, mental, and psychological strength. His romantic interest in the gorgeous, tough-as-nails Layla (Bridget Moynahan), a fellow trainee, becomes a weakness as the pressure of the tests steadily increases. Finally, without warning, Clayton is thrown into action as he and Burke go head-to-head in a mission that is more dangerous than either of them realize. With top-notch performances from a sly Pacino and a pumped-up Farrell, THE RECRUIT's best moments come from the intensity resonating between its characters. In addition, the settings and training activities at "The Farm" give intriguing insights into CIA recruitment and initiation.

	Al Pacino
	Bridger Moynahan
	Colin Farrell
	Gabriel Macht
	Kenneth Mitchell
	Mike Realba
	Stuart Dryburgh - Cinematographer
	Roger Donaldson - Director
	David Rosenbloom - Editor
	Gary Barber - Producer
	Jeff Apple - Producer
	Roger Birnbaum - Producer
	Andrew McAlpine - Production Designer
	Roger Towne - Writer
	Mitch Glazer - Writer
	Kurt Wimmer - Writer

Entertainment Weekly
"...A CIA thriller that plays some very tricky and entertaining spy games....[Farrell] shoots across the screen with the authority of a sleek bullet....He becomes a star not by decree but by command..." 01/24/2003 p.74-5

Rolling Stone
"...[Farrell] is a young Irish actor of promising gifts. His eyes reflect intelligence and danger..." 02/20/2003 p.68

Hollywood Reporter
"...Al Pacino and Colin Farrell bring plenty of emotional oomph..." 01/21/2003 p.13

Total Film
"...Colin Farrell's roguish recruit is the principal reason to watch, matching Al Pacino's wily old pro play for play, scene for scene..." 12/01/2003 p.115

James Berardinelli's ReelViews 7 of 10
Those who don't mind deflating, cheesy endings will probably have fun with The Recruit. It's not awful (especially for a January release), but it could easily have been much better. Screenwriters need to understand that audiences have become so accustomed to serpentine bends at the end of thrillers that the real way to surprise them is to play things straight. In the case of The Recruit, the movie twisted so hard that it sprained something, and limped across the finish line. - James Berardinelli

Chicago Sun-Times 7 of 10
"The Recruit" reveals that the training process of the Central Intelligence Agency is like a fraternity initiation, but more dangerous. At one point would-be agents are given a time limit to walk into a singles bar and report back to the parking lot with a partner willing to have sex with them. Uh, huh. As for the Company's years of embarrassments and enemy spies within the ranks? "We reveal our failures but not our successes," the senior instructor tells the new recruits. Quick, can you think of any event in recent world history that bears the stamp of a CIA success? The senior instructor is Walter Burke, played by Al Pacino in a performance that is just plain fun to watch, gruff, blunt, with a weathered charm. He recruits an MIT whiz-kid named James Clayton (Colin Farrell), who turns down a big offer from Dell Computers because he wants to know more about the fate of his late father, a CIA agent...The movie was directed by Roger Donaldson, who does political thrillers about as well as anyone; his "Thirteen Days" (2001), about the Cuban missile crisis, and "No Way Out" (1987), about a scandal in the Pentagon, were gripping and intelligent, and "The Recruit" is so well directed and acted that only a churl such as myself would question its sanity. It's the kind of movie you can sit back and enjoy, as long as you don't make the mistake of thinking too much. - Roger Ebert

L.A. Times 7 of 10
Although the training looks neat--target practice one moment, surveillance the next--the writers insist on wedging love and intrigue into the mix. Not surprisingly, Clayton's affair with another recruit (Bridget Moynahan) generates more suspense, mainly because the dating game seems even more fraught with peril and paranoia than the spying game. - Manohla Dargis

ReelViews 7 of 10
The ghost of Agatha Christie looms over this production; not since the late mystery writer's heyday has a villain felt so compelled to spill every detail of his plan while holding the protagonist at gunpoint. It's the kind of overt, inept contrivance that would doom an otherwise entertaining movie if it wasn't already headed in the wrong direction. There's nothing excessively problematical with The Recruit that excising the final fifteen minutes wouldn't cure. In a misguided attempt to provide a few too many twists and turns, Roger Donaldson's otherwise enjoyable thriller takes a detour into a sinkhole from which it never escapes...As James, Colin Farrell is convincing, if not superlative. He's an intense actor, but he really hasn't been challenged -- his recent leap to stardom has involved him playing variations of the same individual...Those who don't mind deflating, cheesy endings will probably have a fun with The Recruit. It's not awful (especially for a January release), but it could easily have been much better. Screenwriters need to understand that audiences have become so accustomed to serpentine bends at the end of thrillers that the real way to surprise them is to play things straight. In the case of The Recruit, the movie twisted so hard that it sprained something, and limped across the finish line. - James Berardinelli