Hey folks, Harry here... Just got my pass in the mail to this yesterday - I'm actually very much looking forward to it, even if the Studio Vault Raider didn't care for it. It comes out January 31st and is another Roger Donaldson film. I liked his THIRTEEN DAYS and THE BOUNTY -- and a long time ago I loved the Beach Boys song from COCKTAIL (hehehehe) but other than that his career has been very very spotty at best. Here ya go...
Hi Harry:
Haven't posted anything in a while, but I thought I'd pass along this scoop on THE RECRUIT since I've seen the film, and am starting to see trailers and advertising pop up for it now.
Yes, the trailers look cool. Unfortunately, they are far cooler than the film. Colin Farrel is good. Don't get me wrong. I might go so far to say that it's his best role yet (but that's saying much). He plays the part of teh recuirt, and he plays it with a sorta devil may care attitude that's very engaging. Pacino, however, sort of sleep walks through the film. He has some great lines, like "Am I a scary judge of talent, or what?!", but nothing else.
He never shines.
The thriller aspects are dull and predictable. They basically boil down to whether or not you trust Pacino. The movie's coolest segments are the training program and the torture/mind fuck scenes which the recruits are subjected to while they are on "The Farm."
There is an interesting twist at the end, which plays rather well. I'm referring to the standard convention in which the hero tricks the villain into confessing his crime while he is being broadcast live via TV or the internet. They do this in the movie, at which point I was pulling out my hair in frustration-- Arrrgh! Not that lame device!
But then they flipped it around, and did something totally different. It turned out to be a bluff manuever by Colin Farrel, so he could drive Pacino into a rage at the end of the film, and get him to slip up. It worked, but it was a minor twist, and in a spy thriller, the reveals and twists should be far bigger.
Once again, Donaldson has fallen short of "No Way Out." Will he ever rise above it or is taht we best we can expect from him?
Call me,
--Studio Vault Raider
