Breach (2007)

Eric O'Neill is an ambitious young intel officer within the FBI, with hopes for more that he is currently being assigned. His hopes are both raised and dashed when he is assigned to work with veteran agent Robert Hanssen, who is a known sexual defiant. The FBI want to know who else has been involved with his internet postings and require O'Neill to log every action, every comment and find out as much as possible while essentially also working as a clerk. A job is a job but O'Neill finds himself quite liking the grouchy but amiable senior agent and wondering what the point of this assignment is, as he appears to be wasting his time.

Based on a true story, so I'm not sure how much of the detail (or even sweep) is true or artistic license, this is a quite satisfying drama that surprised me by how much I liked it. I hadn't heard anything really about it before watching it and I assumed it would be the usual spy thriller a la The Recruit, with twisty plots, running with guns and shouting. Instead what I got was a much slower and quieter drama that takes as much from the characters as it does from the story itself. It is not an easy sell but it works because the delivery "gets" what is required. The sweep of the narrative is engaging but what makes it succeed is the way it builds the two central characters so they are both of value to the viewer. I didn't think that O'Neill was the main character so much as a required device to get the audience involved with Hanssen. This allows the complex character to be built up and, while never totally understood, I was left with conflicting emotions about him and his motivations for what he did.

I have not put that very well but with this in mind the performances are key. I'm not a big fan of Phillippe to say the least but here he does good restrained work. He is not brilliant but he does just what the film needs. What he seems to benefit from is a great turn from Cooper. Cooper plays all the conflicting parts of his character really well so that, while not making total sense, they convince as reality. It is a great performance and he does make the film. In smaller roles Linney, Cole Quinlan and Haysbert are nice finds that add a sense of quality to the film. Dhavernas didn't work that well for me and it was just as well that her character's involvement was minimal.

Breach is a grown-up spy film, not one for those looking for twisty narrative with a running and shouting conclusion. It delivers a satisfying story where we already know the ending and it does it by building the characters and relationships around the lead two to draw the viewer in. The performances from Cooper and Phillippe are worthy of the material as well, doing it justice and making it work.

Fmovies: Chris Cooper is brilliant. The screenwriter and director have done a very good job of storytelling in one of those situations where you have seen the TV Newsmagazine treatment and you know who did it and how it ends. (spoiler alerts not applicable for this one.)

This movie has a very strong cast including Laura Linney, Dennis Haysbert, Ryan Philippe, Gary Cole and Kathleen Quinlan - who all give their usual solid interpretations. But to me, Cooper stands out with a truly memorable performance, pardon my cliché.

Watch this movie if, like me you passed it over because you had seen it in the news. The suspense, detail and different angles of perspective will amaze you.

Breach (2007)

The big arc here is the uncovering of a spy within the FBI, based on a true story. And that's interesting. But the movie works because of the mental and emotional sparring between the two leads.

First is the spy, Robert Hanssen, played brilliantly by Chris Cooper. He pulls off the brilliance and eccentricity you might get with this kind of person, and all without stagy exaggeration. This is a spy and a spy story worthy of John Le Carre.

Next to him is the young FBI worker, not yet an agent, Eric O'Neill, played by Ryan Phillippe. He's excellent enough to support Cooper, for sure, though he (maybe by necessity) is a more bland type. His struggle with why he (of all the FBI people possible) has been given the huge job of bringing this other man down is key to his depth.

Both men have wives, and both women are good—Hanssen's wife is played by Kathleen Quinlan and though we don't see her much, she's really good. And generally the cast supports this chilling, dry, steady intrigue.

In other ways, the movie is a bit conventional—professionally made, you might say, but without stylistic distinction. It's no breakthrough masterpiece. But what it tries to do telling this story it does with spare, direct force. This is no adventure tale —there is no real action. But that's good. It's compelling and interesting.

Since this is "history" or "based on truth" it's worth saying that only the large facts are followed. All the fun movie stuff—the meeting of the wives, the pistol shooting in two scenes, the sex stuff, and so on—are all invented. Apparently life is either too dull or too dangerous to really put on film.

But that's okay. It's a strong story. And Cooper steals the day.

Breach fmovies. "Breach" is slow - slow enough to recommend waiting to rent for most people. It is a good story, but the material requires the methodical pacing that will bore viewers hoping for car chases and gun fights.

The most authentic part of the movie is its attention to detail. The interior shots look like the drab, boring government offices they portray. This wonderfully realistic touch will be lost on those that haven't toiled in such holes; it is nice that a movie finally depicts a governmental office that looks like one, instead of a futuristic, gleaming movie version that has more in common with the starship Enterprise.

Intentionally or not, the drabness goes beyond the office spaces (apologies to - yeahhh - Gary Cole). Laura Linney's hair is flat and dull, and she's as pale as a ghost. All of the exterior shots are cloudy with a 70% chance of showers, like DC all winter long. The somber look of the movie enhances theme, but will probably leave some viewers with a bad taste.

As a retired intelligence analyst, I enjoyed this movie because it reminds us that traitors exist, and they cause damage to our national security. Like "United 93" it isn't easy or enjoyable to watch, but the subject matter is thought provoking.

Greetings again from the darkness. Writer/Director Billy Ray was the creative force behind "Shattered Glass" a few years ago and obviously is drawn to true stories of human deception. Here he takes on one of our biggest fears ... a federal agent who sells out his own country. Normally we only get these type of scenarios in LeCarre novels, but the story of FBI agent Robert Hanssen is a real life nightmare.

Perfect casting has Chris Cooper as the very odd Hanssen who has nearly 25 years with the bureau, many of which have been spent selling off national secrets to the Soviet Union. In an almost unbelievable stroke of luck, Hanssen was put in charge of finding the mole ... yes, his job was to find himself!! Cooper is very strong here as the ego-maniacal tortured soul who pulls off his deceit with a disarming devotion to religion, the bureau and blending. He appears to be just another working stiff pulling in a paycheck.

Most of the supporting staff is solid. Laura Linney is slightly miscast as the agent in charge of bringing Hanssen down. Dennis Haysbert is her boss. Gary Cole plays it straight here, and Kathleen Quinlan (as Hanssen's wife) and Bruce Davison (as Eric O'Neill's dad) have brief but effective turns. Caroline Dhavernas is an actress I am not familiar with, but her performance here has me intrigued.

The weak link in the film is Ryan Phillipe, who just doesn't possess the acting chops to pull off the pivotal role of Eric O'Neill - the agent wannabe who gets thrust into the crucial position of bringing Hanssen down. It is just implausible to believe Phillipe could ever pass the FBI entrance exam, much less outsmart the guy who outsmarted the entire bureau for two decades. Despite the weakness, the story is strong enough to overcome this and maintain the quasi-thriller feel. This is quite an accomplishment for a film when all the viewers know how it will end!! The real life Hanssen is spending life in prison and O'Neill immediately resigned from the bureau for the "normal" life of a Washington attorney. Part spy thriller, part history lesson, part psychoanalysis, "Breach" is very enjoyable despite the fact that we are provided no real answers as to WHY this man acted as he did. We are only led to believe that it wasn't the money, but instead the ego that drove his madness.

Chris Cooper, already an established actor, gives the performance of a lifetime as Robert Hansen, the FBI agent arrested for 25 years of espionage against the United States. Cooper convincingly portrays the smugness, cockiness, and "holier than thou" attitude which eventually (in my eyes) led to Hansen's downfall.

The movie is tense and moves swiftly without compromising the story line. Ryan Phillipe is equally impressive as the young FBI employee who is brought on to earn Hansen's trust and find out what made him tick.

This is a must-see - I saw it with about 100 people ... and from what I heard, almost everyone was still talking about it afterward as they walked out and in the bathrooms - and all were great comments.

Definitely an early Oscar contender for 2008 in my opinion.