MovieFreak.com - The Recruit DVD Review

James Clayton (Farrell), one of the smartest graduates in the country, is just the person Walter Burke (Pacino) wants in the Agency. James quickly rises through the ranks and falls for Layla (Bridget Moynahan), one of his fellow recruits. But just when James starts to question his role and his cat-and-mouse relationship with his mentor, Burke taps him to root out a mole. As the suspense builds in a maze of gripping twists and turns, there are only two things James can count on-he can't trust anyone and nothing is as it seems.

The Recruit offers an interesting and exciting look at the recruiting and training of officers for the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency). The script, written by Roger Towne, Kurt Wimmer and Mitch Glazer, is structured pretty well. The first act introduces James Clayton and fifteen minutes into the film the training program begins for him. The second act is somewhat iffy as there is a major turn about halfway through the act. I won’t reveal anything here although the film’s trailer did. The second half of the film then plays to the twist.

However, this change is hard to take at first. Before the twist there is all sorts of training for Clayton and the fellow recruits to go through. A lot of time is spent on those scenes, so when the 55-minute mark approaches, what then? A much-needed twist occurs in the story. The second half becomes a whole different movie and I have to admit it’s kind of hard to take into account. As the second act progresses towards the third and final act, The Recruit turns on its wheels of suspense. Everything we’ve seen Clayton train for he must use to bring down a mole in the agency. Fine, but so what?

The argument for that is The Recruit’s mole subplot is not all too compelling, even though it serves its purpose for suspense, just what a thriller needs. Yet the film can’t sustain the suspense for the entire running time of 115 minutes, much of the suspense is a moment-to-moment thing. A certain relationship in the film also doesn’t feel all that compelling, but again, it’s there to serve the suspense. Compelling or not, The Recruit knows its characters. Clayton is an ambitious man and will do what he has to go get things right and in order. Al Pacino’s character, Burke, is the kind of all-knowledge, yet kind of boring mentor. Some of his dialogue is just not very interesting, such as the layout of all the rules; you know there’s a number one, and a two, what about three? Despite that, the script produces an overall good set of dialogue and character interactions.

Al Pacino and Colin Farrell work well together in this film. On the other hand, however, Pacino looks tired. I’m not sure why, but he comes off that way. Farrell is very energetic and makes this film what it is. They are a little too far apart in age, but that doesn’t necessarily cancel out any chemistry they might have. Roger Donaldson, off the exciting and suspenseful 13 Days, returns to some familiar territory in The Recruit and does a very good job. Stuart Dryburgh’s cinematography is pretty neat, setting up shots in various angles (tilted shots) and lenses. Klaus Badelt’s score is very effective and brings a certain element of suspense to the film.

The Recruit is not the most suspenseful film I’ve seen; it has its moments. But those moments are not enough when trying to fill two hours of suspense in a thriller about the CIA. In the end, The Recruit is a good enough source for viable entertainment with a strong first half.

The Recruit is presented in the director’s original 1.77:1 aspect ratio, which shows more of the film that was presented in theaters and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Basically, it looks like the black bars are less than the 2.35:1 ration shown in theaters, which, of course, shows more of the film, but whatever. The print looks very good. It’s clear and solid. I didn’t notice any scratches or dirt, only in a few instances did they show up for a second. The Recruit’s color palette is also very nice and color detail is sharp, however, colors are mostly subdued and blue-like instead of vibrant. Dark tones and black level impress. This video presentation is all quality and makes watching the film even better.

The Recruit is THX-certified and available in English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. The track is very much alive and Klaus Badelt’s film score accentuates many scenes. Sound effects, like gunshots, come across very good. Dialog is sharp and easy to understand. The surround usage is also very nice; quite the performance. Rear speakers come alive as sounds are emitted all-around, but the dialog and most other noise is concentrated on the front speakers. The DTS 5.1 Digital Surround Sound track is also quite impressive and holds a slighter edge. The Recruit includes a French Language track as well.

Commentary by Roger Donaldson and Colin Farrell – These guys acknowledge it is kind of difficult to watch a movie after making it, but they seem to have a good time talking about The Recruit. Farrell shares some fun trivia and Donaldson refers to stuff on-screen. It’s a pretty conversational track that’s actually more interesting than most other commentaries. Although I think it helps to have Farrell on the track, because listening to one person is nowhere near as fun as when two people talk.

Spy School: Inside the CIA Training Program (~25 mins) – This documentary is damn interesting. It expands on the subject explored in the movie – talking about the CIA – and goes more in-depth into the Agency showing actual training footage and interviews with the filmmakers and one CIA officer who provides a lot of interesting comments. This is a very good addition to this disc as it is well produced and directed, but it ends very abruptly.

Deleted Scenes (~7 mins) – These are presented in widescreen format and come with optional commentary by Donaldson and Farrell. One scene includes an additional training exercise for the recruits. They’re not great, but fun to watch. Donaldson and Farrel provide some good comments on all the four deleted scenes, which got cut due to time constraints.

For some reason the film’s theatrical trailer is not included on this disc. However, when you pop in the disc, you get a couple of preview trailers (which you can skip by clicking "menu" on your remote), including The Hot Chick, Shanghai Knights and Bringing Down The House. You can select to view the film with optional English and Spanish subtitles. The DVD’s main and bonus material menus are something animated to Klaus Badelt’s cool film score. Instead of the "play movie" title is "begin download" and substituting for "scene selections" is "select file;" kind of cool. The 115-minute feature is organized into sixteen chapters.

Colin Farrell’s performance in The Recruit is very good and for some reason Al Pacino looks a little tired. The suspense in the film is evident and likeable, but fails to sustain it throughout. The DVD provides really nice video and audio presentations, while the commentary and documentary in the special features section are two very good additions. Again, if you’re in for some suspense, you might want to check out The Recruit. Consider a rental highly and if you like it, the DVD is worth it.

THE MOVIE	7
THE VIDEO	9
THE AUDIO	9
THE EXTRAS	8
OVERALL (not an average)	7