The Recruit (PG-13, 2003)

When you lie all the time, how do you remember what is true? How do you remember to care? That is a theme of most spy movies, and it is right at the center of this twisty story about a grad student from MIT who is recruited for the CIA, put through a brutal training period, and then sent out to find someone on the inside who is working for the bad guys. Grizzled veteran Burke (Al Pacino), who has mastered the art of identifying the right candidates and enticing them to join up, even though there is no chance of money or recognition. He tells James Clayton (Colin Farrell), Layla Moore (Bridget Moynahan), and the other recruits that everything is a test; nothing is as it seems. At the CIA training facility, they learn not to believe anything or anyone and to lie without quickening their pulses or dilating their pupils. And they learn that nothing matters -- no feelings, no friendships -- except for completing the mission. The other students are told that Clayton was dropped, so that Burke can use him undercover to find which one of them is working for the other side. Is it Layla?

THE RECRUIT has some supple plot twists, but the story sags in the middle, there aren't any gee-whiz gadgets, and the preview gives too much away. It's an above-average thriller, but not especially memorable.

Studio: Touchstone Pictures
Director: Roger Donaldson
Cast: Al Pacino, Bridget Moynahan, Colin Farrell
Genre: Action/Adventure
Run time: 115 minutes
Theatrical release: January 31, 2003
DVD release: May 27, 2003
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA explanation: violence, sexuality and language