Obviously we're all waiting for "a picture which amiably passes time, without grabbing your attention". That's about as much excitement we could muster for CIA recruit Colin Farrell learning his spycraft. This efficient enough thriller gets a DVD release with good picture and sound, and some hit-and-miss extras.

Farrell Gets (Half) Cut

Colin Farrell joins director Roger Donaldson for a candid commentary that's enjoyable for their chatty nature, but lacks substantial production detail. Roger and Colin regroup for comments on the deleted scenes, where Colin gets to find out why some of his moments were dropped.

Back To School

The most enjoyable and informative extra feature on the DVD is a 16-minute featurette on CIA training schools. Interestingly, former CIA spook Chase Brandon won't "confirm or deny" that they have a training facility, but later admits that in fact they have several, and we see footage of recruits being put through their paces. Such doublespeak gives this featurette an unusual slant, especially where Chase tries to compare reality to the scenes in the film without actually giving anything away. More of this material would have benefited an otherwise entertaining, if slight, DVD package.

EXTRA FEATURES

This DVD was reviewed on a JVC XV-N5 DVD player.