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Recruit (The)
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray ALL - America - Buena Vista Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Pat Pilon (9th July 2008). |
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The Film
 When a movie tells you three times in the first twenty minutes that it's all a game and that nothing is what it seems, that usually means that what's going to happen is going to be a game. This is something, as audience members, we seem to be more aware of than the characters inside the movie. As such, we can guess what happens much more easily than, say, people being electrocuted after being kidnapped during a training mission. The movie focuses on James Clayton (Colin Farrell), his recruitment into the CIA and beyond. He falls for one of his fellow recruits, Layla Moore (Bridget Moynahan), and then becomes an undercover agent, with the job of stopping the recruit he fell for previously, whom the CIA thinks is a mole. The movie moves pretty quickly through these steps, spending the right amount of time on character and on plot, explaining what needs to be explained and showing us what we need to know. However, nothing is as it seems. The twists and turns in the movie are nothing special, because, as I've mentioned, the movie tells you it's all a game, so you can be ahead of the movie's curve. This is probably the movie's biggest problem. For some lengths of time I was waiting for the characters to catch up with me, waiting for the right switches to click and for the third act to wow me. In the end, the third act did, though. One of the movie's strengths is that the filmmakers knew, I believe, that some of the audience would know the twists in advance, and so didn't spend too much time on pointless exposition. The characters say what they have to say, and then move on. I will admit that I was very intrigued by Ice-9 (the movie’s maguffin) and what its ultimate purpose was. The plot, however, is just a small part of the movie, with the characters being even more important. There's a playful kind of futility running through the movie. These people are trained together, taught the same things and go through the same experiences to try to be the best agents they can be. Now that their training is over, and James is sent to catch Layla, both using techniques the other is familiar with. Seeing how they improvise, adapt and overcome is half the fun. Taking all the mind games and cat-and-mouse interplay in the movie, it's ultimately pretty fun, though perhaps not as surprising as the filmmakers had hoped. Director Roger Donaldson is a capable director and he knows what he has to do to keep the movie going. The peek inside CIA training sessions is interesting to watch, even if, in the end, this is only a movie.
Video
2:35:1 widescreen, using the VC-1 codec. The picture is a very nice one, but looks a bit too soft overall. It seems like the compression could have been a tiny bit better, but overall everything seems very nice. The shadow detail is very strong, and contrast is very nice, allowing you to see small folds in the various suits and coats on screen. Skin tones are also accurate, considering the palette. They're a bit on the pale side when the shoot is outdoors, but this is wanted, probably reflecting the cold snow outside. Indoors, the hues are accurate. The print is free of any kind of defect, and there's a decent amount of grain in the picture. It's a well-shot and well transferred movie.
Audio
The movie comes in with an English PCM 5.1 track. It also has Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks in English and Portuguese and a Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo track in Spanish. The uncompressed track is very strong and solid, giving the movie a very natural-sounding mix. The movie isn't too sound-intensive, but there is a decent amount of ambient noise. When the movie does get a bit more intense, the track follows suit, with gunshots sound very loud, and bullets flying around the room. Footfalls have the appropriate level compared to cars and gunshots, as well. The dialogue is always centered and always audible. The mix is a good one, doing good justice to the movie. English (HoH) Spanish and Portuguese subtitles are also provided.
Extras
Starting everything off is an audio commentary by director Roger Donaldson and actor Colin Farrell. The pair is very nice throughout the commentary, despite Mr. Farrell's early comment of not wanting to be there. He does make the track very interesting. He's not shy about his lifestyle and comments on his nights many times. He talks about becoming an actor, how much he invests in his character and how, for example, he prepares his accent. He's actually pretty hardcore about his acting, regardless of what happens in his life. The director talks about more technical things, like how certain shots were done and what he wanted to achieve with certain scenes. He talks about locations, and asks Mr. Farrell various questions. There's no dead time except for a few seconds here and there, and the pair always find something to talk about. They both have some nice laughs to give out, making this a very rounded and enjoyable commentary. Next is the Disney staple, Movie Showcase. There are three scenes here (1:29, 1:02, 0:51) that purport to show off the advantages of blu-ray. Now, this is a thriller, but it doesn’t have too many intense scenes that show a big advantage over DVD, especially for sound. The three scenes are nice, though, but they don't showcase blu-ray nearly as well as the 'Déjà Vu' showcase does. A few Deleted Scenes with optional commentary are next. There are four scenes, 'James Serves Drunk' (1:15), 'Grab Your B*@#$' (0:34), 'Cocktail Party – Elliot is Cut' (3:46) and 'James Brings Beer to Zack' (0:59) are here. The scenes don't really do too much, but the third one is pretty nice to watch, as it adds a little bit more of training, and is mirrored somewhat later in the movie. Spy School: Inside the CIA Training Program (15:58) is the disc's only featurette, and has a few people talking about the movie and how close it is (or isn't) to actual CIA training programs. Various people who once worked for the CIA talk about how the recruits are spotted, acquired and trained. Life after training is also talked about, explaining that younger agents many times have the bigger cases, because they’re not tainted with experience. It's an interesting featurette. Some Start-Up Trailers are here. Disney on Blu-ray (1:43), 'Wall-E' (2:36), 'Step Up 2: The Streets' (2:26), 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' (2:00) are found on the disc before the main menu.
Overall
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