The Recruit (2003)

Pretty bad film. Predictable plot line, obvious from the beginning. Sorry I wasted my time even though Colin Farrell was nice to look at. I'm surprised Al Pacino agreed to do this movie. He is much better than he showed in the movie. Maybe it was terrible directing or maybe a poor script. It's hard to say; but now I know why I had never heard of it. Thank god I didn't have to pay to see it. Lol

This was definitely a more interesting and enjoyable movie for me because I went into it knowing absolutely nothing about it. Perhaps if I had known what to expect out of it, the reveals and mysteries that evolved throughout the story would have had less of an impact on me. What I really liked about it was that it didn't try to do too much in being a big action movie. There is an action sequence at the end, but for the most part it's a spy drama that just feels more like an action movie and advertised itself as an action movie. There were some things that I thought were done very effectively and others that weren't so much. The way that I was able to stay on exactly the same page as James throughout was remarkable. Even at Walter Burke's warning that "everything is a test" and "nothing is what it seems", when James put his guard down or believed Burke, so did I. James was also a good overall character with a lot more personality than a lot of protagonists in similar roles. One would expect him to be more like a Tom Cruise hero, but instead he is more cynical and therefore easier to root for. The story also used its unpredictability to its advantage and kept me guessing throughout. The spy training sequences were good-- not too sensationalized, but entertaining to watch while staying within the boundaries of reality.On the downside, the twists got a little old by the end and made the climax dramatically un-satisfying. The incorporation of James' father as part of his motivation for joining the CIA was also rather sloppy and didn't really contribute much to the overall story. Bridget Moynahan gave a flat performance for the most part, although it was a step up from her role in I, Robot. Al Pacino at least played a more colorful role, but I disliked his performance. The use of the lie detector as a device was a shaky choice. In some ways it made for interesting drama, but then again, there's something lacking when the characters know for sure if the other is lying. Overall, I saw some things here that I think lots of modern movies would do well to emulate. The plot of this movie, while not fabulous, was good enough that I was interested in it the entire way through and this was accomplished without any large scale action. The story was also riddled with turns, but easy to follow as well. Collin Farrell gave a solid performance that showed some good versatility. So if you're interested in seeing this, go in with low expectations and you might find it enjoyable. On a final note, this is a good movie to watch if you're an aspiring screenwriter looking to write spec scripts. Overall Rating: 8/10.

The Recruit is a decent movie with a well developed storyline and a talented cast. It's a fun ride that is quite thrilling, as we're taken on a journey with Colin Farrell's character, seeing him trying to discover what's really going on with his investigation for the CIA, it will certainly keep your attention from start to finish. It could have been a seven or eight, but I had to give this movie a six because it is jam packed with problems, the biggest one is that there are way too many twists, the characters perspectives of what they're going changes constantly, to a degree that it gets way too predictable, when one shocking twist comes along, it gets more and more obvious that another one is soon to come. My other issue is that Al Pacino's character is very poorly written, I get that he is suppose to be a mysterious man, but we never end up really finding anything out about him, he gives Farrell certain pieces of information about his past, but it is then suggested later on that everything he said could have been a lie, I found this very frustrating and I think that since he was such a blank canvas that Pacino dosen't get to deliver the performance we know he can give, this certainly isn't another Scent of a Woman, that's for sure. It's an enjoyable film despite being heavy on flaws, and I would recommend the Recruit if you ever see it on television and there is nothing else on, but you definitely shouldn't go out of your way to see it. A highly promising CIA trainee catches the eye of an agency veteran who begins to act as his mentor. Best Performance: Colin Farrell Worst Performance: Bridget Moynahan

The Recruit is a perfectly adequate thriller, lifted from 'just okay' to 'average' by Mr. Pacino's presence. The material is far from challenging however and Roger Donaldson, who we know can deliver a good film (his purple patch surely must be Species (1995); Dante's Peak (1997) and Thirteen Days (2000) - all good stuff), does not have much to work with here. Farrell's status as a computer genius is completely unconvincing, but then anyone who has even a basic understanding of how systems work must find films involving password hacking and creeping download bars annoyingly inaccurate and trite. The outcome is unsurprising, but on the up-side everyone's mortgage is paid for another year.