The Recruit
Encyclopedia
The Recruit is a 2003 American spy thriller film directed by Roger Donaldson
, starring Colin Farrell
, Al Pacino
and Bridget Moynahan
. It was released on January 31, 2003 in North America by Touchstone Pictures
.
The film received mixed reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes
reported that 43% of critics gave positive reviews based on 163 reviews with an average score of 5.5/10. Metacritic
gave it an average score of 56 out of 100 from the 36 reviews it collected.
), a computer programming expert at MIT
, is recruited by senior CIA instructor Walter Burke (Al Pacino
) to test for a position with the agency. Clayton agrees, in part, to find information concerning his father who he suspects was a CIA operative that disappeared when Clayton was a child. After passing numerous psychometric, psychoanalytical, aptitude, and polygraph
tests, Clayton is taken to The Farm
, a CIA training facility. There, Burke and other instructors teach the candidates the skill sets of espionage, covert operation protocols, and intelligence gathering techniques. During a surveillance exercise, Clayton and fellow recruit Layla Moore (Bridget Moynahan
) are kidnapped by men apparently from a foreign intelligence service.
Clayton is brought to an isolated cell and tortured for several days but refuses to give up the names of his CIA instructors. When the interrogators provide evidence that his defiance is contributing to Layla's suffering, Clayton relents and names Burke. The rear wall of the cell then opens to reveal Burke, Layla, and the other recruits sitting in the lecture theater at The Farm, having witnessed the entire event; the kidnapping being just another training exercise. Clayton is cut from the program, but Burke arrives at his hotel the next morning to advise Clayton his dismissal was a fake and he has been appointed to be a non-official cover
(NOC) operative. Burke assigns Clayton to spy on Layla, claiming the CIA has evidence she's a mole
for a foreign intelligence service attempting to steal a top secret computer virus from the CIA's database. Clayton is provided a job as a low-level CIA data-entry processor and enters a romantic, albeit dubious, relationship with Layla. He eventually uncovers proof that she is removing the virus piece-by-piece using a USB flash drive
.
Clayton surveils Layla as she delivers the flash drive to her contact and follows the man through a train station. After a brief scuffle, Clayton kills him and discovers the contact is Zack (Gabriel Macht
), a CIA agent who had also been a recruit at The Farm. When confronted with the evidence, Layla explains to Clayton she was officially sanctioned to test the security protocols of CIA headquarters by attempting to remove a fake virus, and Zack was a NOC agent. Clayton, by virtue of his familiarity with computer programs, is skeptical and reports his suspicions to Burke who initially congratulates Clayton on passing "the final test." Burke is caught in a lie, however, when he tries to convince Clayton his gun is loaded with blanks
. Clayton fires a shot proving otherwise but flees when Burke knocks the gun from his grip. Burke then chases Clayton through an abandoned warehouse, and boasts that he organized the entire scheme to sell the virus for $3 million. Held at gunpoint, Clayton agrees to hand over the virus, only to show that he has been broadcasting Burke's admission from his laptop back to CIA headquarters. Burke becomes incensed and chases Clayton outside to find a SWAT
team had assembled.
Unbeknownst to Burke, Clayton's broadcast didn't work and a fake broadcast was displayed. The CIA were there to arrest Clayton and had no knowledge of Burke's treachery. Believing to be caught, Burke rails at his unjust treatment by the CIA, allowing the agents to conclude that Burke is the traitor. Burke then realizes he incriminated himself and draws his gun; committing suicide-by-cop. Afterward, Layla consoles Clayton before he heads back to CIA headquarters for debriefing. On the drive to Langley, Virginia
, Assistant Director of Operations Dennis Slayne (Karl Pruner
) makes a comment alluding that Clayton's father was a NOC agent when he died.
reports a "Rotten" average rating of 5.5 out of 10, summarizing it in the following sentence: "This polished thriller is engaging until it takes one twist too many into the predictable."
Owen Gleiberman
of Entertainment Weekly
gave a positive review with B+, he stated, "From the get-go, The Recruit is one of those thrillers that delights in pulling the rug out from under you, only to find another rug below that." Carla Meyer of San Francisco Chronicle
also gave a positive review to the film, stating, "Pacino and Farrell bring a wary curiosity to their early scenes, with Farrell displaying a palpable hunger for praise and Pacino a corresponding mastery of how to hook somebody by parceling out compliments. They're a swarthier version of Robert Redford
and Brad Pitt
in Spy Games -- only The Recruit is more about mind games."
Todd McCarthy
of Variety
stated, "The whole picture may be hokey, but the first part is agreeably so, the second part not. At the very least, one comes away with a new appreciation of the difficulty of inner-office romance at the CIA." Mike Clark of USA Today
gave a mixed review to the film, stating, "Nothing is ever what it seems, but still, nothing's very compelling in The Recruit, a less-than-middling melodrama whose subject matter and talent never click as much as its credits portend."
Roger Donaldson
Roger Donaldson is an Australian-born New Zealand film producer, director and writer who has made numerous successful movies. He was a co-founder of the New Zealand Film Commission.-Life and career:...
, starring Colin Farrell
Colin Farrell
Colin James Farrell is an Irish actor, who has appeared in such film as Tigerland, Miami Vice, Minority Report, Phone Booth, The Recruit, Alexander and S.W.A.T....
, Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
and Bridget Moynahan
Bridget Moynahan
Kathryn Bridget Moynahan , best known as Bridget Moynahan, is an American model and actress. After graduating from Longmeadow High School in 1989, Moynahan pursued a career in modeling. She was signed by a modeling agency, which led her to appear in department store catalogs and the covers of...
. It was released on January 31, 2003 in North America by Touchstone Pictures
Touchstone Pictures
Touchstone Pictures is an American film production label and is one of several film labels of the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group. Established in 1984, its releases typically feature more mature themes and darker tones than those that are released under the Walt Disney Pictures banner.Touchstone...
.
The film received mixed reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reported that 43% of critics gave positive reviews based on 163 reviews with an average score of 5.5/10. Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
gave it an average score of 56 out of 100 from the 36 reviews it collected.
Plot
James Clayton (Colin FarrellColin Farrell
Colin James Farrell is an Irish actor, who has appeared in such film as Tigerland, Miami Vice, Minority Report, Phone Booth, The Recruit, Alexander and S.W.A.T....
), a computer programming expert at MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
, is recruited by senior CIA instructor Walter Burke (Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
) to test for a position with the agency. Clayton agrees, in part, to find information concerning his father who he suspects was a CIA operative that disappeared when Clayton was a child. After passing numerous psychometric, psychoanalytical, aptitude, and polygraph
Polygraph
A polygraph measures and records several physiological indices such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while the subject is asked and answers a series of questions...
tests, Clayton is taken to The Farm
Camp Peary
Camp Peary is a military reservation in York County near Williamsburg, Virginia. Officially it is referred to as the Armed Forces Experimental Training Activity under the auspices of the Department of Defense, but it is widely believed to be the location of a covert CIA training facility known...
, a CIA training facility. There, Burke and other instructors teach the candidates the skill sets of espionage, covert operation protocols, and intelligence gathering techniques. During a surveillance exercise, Clayton and fellow recruit Layla Moore (Bridget Moynahan
Bridget Moynahan
Kathryn Bridget Moynahan , best known as Bridget Moynahan, is an American model and actress. After graduating from Longmeadow High School in 1989, Moynahan pursued a career in modeling. She was signed by a modeling agency, which led her to appear in department store catalogs and the covers of...
) are kidnapped by men apparently from a foreign intelligence service.
Clayton is brought to an isolated cell and tortured for several days but refuses to give up the names of his CIA instructors. When the interrogators provide evidence that his defiance is contributing to Layla's suffering, Clayton relents and names Burke. The rear wall of the cell then opens to reveal Burke, Layla, and the other recruits sitting in the lecture theater at The Farm, having witnessed the entire event; the kidnapping being just another training exercise. Clayton is cut from the program, but Burke arrives at his hotel the next morning to advise Clayton his dismissal was a fake and he has been appointed to be a non-official cover
Non-official cover
Non-official cover is a term used in espionage, particularly by national intelligence services, for agents or operatives who assume covert roles in organizations without ties to the government for which they work. Such agents or operatives are typically abbreviated in espionage lingo as a NOC...
(NOC) operative. Burke assigns Clayton to spy on Layla, claiming the CIA has evidence she's a mole
Mole (espionage)
A mole is a spy who works for an enemy nation, but whose loyalty ostensibly lies with his own nation's government. In some usage, a mole differs from a defector in that a mole is a spy before gaining access to classified information, while a defector becomes a spy only after gaining access...
for a foreign intelligence service attempting to steal a top secret computer virus from the CIA's database. Clayton is provided a job as a low-level CIA data-entry processor and enters a romantic, albeit dubious, relationship with Layla. He eventually uncovers proof that she is removing the virus piece-by-piece using a USB flash drive
USB flash drive
A flash drive is a data storage device that consists of flash memory with an integrated Universal Serial Bus interface. flash drives are typically removable and rewritable, and physically much smaller than a floppy disk. Most weigh less than 30 g...
.
Clayton surveils Layla as she delivers the flash drive to her contact and follows the man through a train station. After a brief scuffle, Clayton kills him and discovers the contact is Zack (Gabriel Macht
Gabriel Macht
Gabriel S. Macht is an American actor. Macht is known for playing The Spirit in the film of the same name, and lately for his role as Harvey Specter on the USA Network series Suits.-Personal life:...
), a CIA agent who had also been a recruit at The Farm. When confronted with the evidence, Layla explains to Clayton she was officially sanctioned to test the security protocols of CIA headquarters by attempting to remove a fake virus, and Zack was a NOC agent. Clayton, by virtue of his familiarity with computer programs, is skeptical and reports his suspicions to Burke who initially congratulates Clayton on passing "the final test." Burke is caught in a lie, however, when he tries to convince Clayton his gun is loaded with blanks
Blank (cartridge)
A blank is a type of cartridge for a firearm that contains gunpowder but no bullet or shot. When fired, the blank makes a flash and an explosive sound . Blanks are often used for simulation , training, and for signaling...
. Clayton fires a shot proving otherwise but flees when Burke knocks the gun from his grip. Burke then chases Clayton through an abandoned warehouse, and boasts that he organized the entire scheme to sell the virus for $3 million. Held at gunpoint, Clayton agrees to hand over the virus, only to show that he has been broadcasting Burke's admission from his laptop back to CIA headquarters. Burke becomes incensed and chases Clayton outside to find a SWAT
SWAT
A SWAT team is an elite tactical unit in various national law enforcement departments. They are trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular officers...
team had assembled.
Unbeknownst to Burke, Clayton's broadcast didn't work and a fake broadcast was displayed. The CIA were there to arrest Clayton and had no knowledge of Burke's treachery. Believing to be caught, Burke rails at his unjust treatment by the CIA, allowing the agents to conclude that Burke is the traitor. Burke then realizes he incriminated himself and draws his gun; committing suicide-by-cop. Afterward, Layla consoles Clayton before he heads back to CIA headquarters for debriefing. On the drive to Langley, Virginia
Langley, Virginia
Langley is an unincorporated community in the census-designated place of McLean in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States.The community was essentially absorbed into McLean many years ago, although there is still a Langley High School...
, Assistant Director of Operations Dennis Slayne (Karl Pruner
Karl Pruner
Karl Pruner is a Canadian actor whose most notable work is in portraying Canadian Prime Minister John Turner in the 2002 mini-series Trudeau. He did not play Turner in the sequel Trudeau II: Maverick in the Making but did portray Frank Scott. Amongst his other work, he did voice acting as Beta Ray...
) makes a comment alluding that Clayton's father was a NOC agent when he died.
Cast
- Al PacinoAl PacinoAlfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
as Walter Burke - Colin FarrellColin FarrellColin James Farrell is an Irish actor, who has appeared in such film as Tigerland, Miami Vice, Minority Report, Phone Booth, The Recruit, Alexander and S.W.A.T....
as James Douglas Clayton - Bridget MoynahanBridget MoynahanKathryn Bridget Moynahan , best known as Bridget Moynahan, is an American model and actress. After graduating from Longmeadow High School in 1989, Moynahan pursued a career in modeling. She was signed by a modeling agency, which led her to appear in department store catalogs and the covers of...
as Layla Moore - Gabriel MachtGabriel MachtGabriel S. Macht is an American actor. Macht is known for playing The Spirit in the film of the same name, and lately for his role as Harvey Specter on the USA Network series Suits.-Personal life:...
as Zack - Kenneth Mitchell as Alan
- Karl PrunerKarl PrunerKarl Pruner is a Canadian actor whose most notable work is in portraying Canadian Prime Minister John Turner in the 2002 mini-series Trudeau. He did not play Turner in the sequel Trudeau II: Maverick in the Making but did portray Frank Scott. Amongst his other work, he did voice acting as Beta Ray...
as Dennis Slayne
Critical response
Critical reception of the film was mixed. Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reports a "Rotten" average rating of 5.5 out of 10, summarizing it in the following sentence: "This polished thriller is engaging until it takes one twist too many into the predictable."
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman is an American film critic for Entertainment Weekly, a position he has held since the magazine's launch in 1990. From 1981–89, he worked at the Boston Phoenix....
of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
gave a positive review with B+, he stated, "From the get-go, The Recruit is one of those thrillers that delights in pulling the rug out from under you, only to find another rug below that." Carla Meyer of San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
also gave a positive review to the film, stating, "Pacino and Farrell bring a wary curiosity to their early scenes, with Farrell displaying a palpable hunger for praise and Pacino a corresponding mastery of how to hook somebody by parceling out compliments. They're a swarthier version of Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
and Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
in Spy Games -- only The Recruit is more about mind games."
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy
Todd McCarthy is an American film critic. He wrote for Variety for 31 years as its chief film critic before being fired in 2010. He is currently a critic for The Hollywood Reporter....
of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
stated, "The whole picture may be hokey, but the first part is agreeably so, the second part not. At the very least, one comes away with a new appreciation of the difficulty of inner-office romance at the CIA." Mike Clark of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
gave a mixed review to the film, stating, "Nothing is ever what it seems, but still, nothing's very compelling in The Recruit, a less-than-middling melodrama whose subject matter and talent never click as much as its credits portend."