The Recruit
(2003)
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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. |
Screenshots
“Nothing is what it seems”, says Al Pacino, giving another gruff, seen-it-all performance — this time as veteran CIA agent Walter Burke who recruits cocksure computer whizzkid James Clayton (Colin Farrell). The same could be said about the plot of this thriller, an escapist diversion from No Way Out director Roger Donaldson. Most of the action takes place in “The Farm”, a CIA training facility where would-be agents are taught hi-tech espionage and survival skills, and where Clayton meets and falls for enigmatic rival Layla (Bridget Moynahan). Clayton's relationship with his grizzled mentor is then put to the test when Burke tells him that Layla is a mole and orders him — by any means necessary — to find out who she's working for. What follows is completely predictable.
Halliwell's Film Guide
Despite an oft repeated mantra 'nothing is what it seems', a half-alert audience will be ahead of the agents in working out the villain of this paranoid thriller that begins well before succumbing to the usual conspiracy theories.