Ocala, FL

I have a small confession to make. I messed up our reverse alphabetical order. All day long I was certain our next film was The Recruit  but upon checking the cabinet it is in fact Romeo and Juliet. But for the sake of the blog, the movies must go on.

I love switch on a switch movies. I really do. Do you know what I mean? Those movies where the plot keeps you guessing and there is always a twist on a twist? I am lucky that I do not always catch on the quickest so those movies are even better! 

The Recruit  is just one of those switch on a switch movies. Al Pacino is great in this movie. Well, he is great in a lot of movies. This movie also takes place in Washington DC, which as you already know, automatically reserves a movie a spot in my collection. By the end of this film you will be asking yourself two questions, one: will we ever really know!?! two: is Burke from Ocala, FL even if he cannot pronounce it correctly? 

This film is about a MIT genius James Clayton that gets recruited to the CIA, Colin Farrell plays in this excellent role. Walter Burke is the recruiter played by Pacino. The story then takes us through the process of becoming a CIA agent. In a typical action thriller there are some good guys and some bad guys and you can never really tell which is which. There are three solid themes in this movie: everything is a test, your failures are known and successes are not, and trust yourself. 

There is some love in this film too. But as viewers are not sure it is really love or another test. Either way Colin Farrell has to take his shirt off a couple times and he always has a brooding face that is often paired with love-turmoil. Just when you think you have things figured out- BAM! The truth comes out and the movie ends. 

In the beginning of this movie James shows us what his classmates at MIT have been working on, wireless video stuff. The movie came out in 2003 and I was thinking- big deal, wireless everything nowadays. But then I had to remind myself as James then used a payphone that things were different in 2003. It made me think of the Beloit Mindset list. Someone at Beloit College puts this list out each year to remind us as professionals what the incoming class of students has for a world view. For example, they have grown up with a computer in their home, they have never used a pay phone, etc. Read last year's list here. 

This movie might be better for RA training rather than an RA program. Mostly with the theme that everything is a test. Sometimes living in the residence life fishbowl, RAs will feel like everything is a test. Their residents are watching their social activities and their job performance, their RHD is watching whether they start duty on time, and the Director is reading their program proposals to challenge them further. But just like in The Recruit, RAs have to learn to trust themselves. The gut is a powerful tool. Trust in your training and trust in your fellow RAs and you will be fine! Unless Al Pacino is on your tail, then you are probably screwed.