Breach (2007) User Reviews

focused spy drama

[Buddy-51 · 7/10 · 26 February 2007]

On February 18, 2001, Robert Hanssen, a 56-year old FBI agent, was arrested, by the very agency he worked for, for selling secrets to the Russians. He was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to 15 charges of espionage. This is widely considered to be the worst case of treason in the history of American intelligence.

"Breach" looks at the story through the eyes of Eric O'Neill, the young, up-and-coming junior agent assigned by investigators in the bureau to spy on Hanssen. In the position of personal assistant to Hanssen, O'Neill works to uncover evidence against his boss that will help to strengthen the legal case gradually being built against him.

"Breach" is a fairly solid political thriller, less concerned with big action scenes than with examining the relationship between these two very different men set in unwitting opposition to one another. Hanssen himself is a mass of immense hypocrisies and contradictions. A devout Catholic, he attends Mass religiously, recites the rosary everyday, and looks with disdain upon homosexuals, women who wear pants and anybody seemingly to the left politically of Rush Limbaugh and Ronald Reagan. Yet, despite his outward display of moral rectitude, Hanssen secretly distributes porn videos of his wife (she is unaware of their existence) and betrays his country by turning over classified information to the enemy. O'Neill finds himself simultaneously drawn to and repulsed by the man, who manages to be both prig and libertine at one and the same time. O'Neill knows that what Hanssen is doing is terribly wrong, yet he can't help falling under the spell of a man he knows that, under other circumstances, he might well come to value as a friend and a mentor.

Ryan Philippe is subtle and brooding as the taciturn O'Neill, reluctant to condemn the man he's been sent to bring down until all the facts are in. It's true that his performance is a bit of a Johnny-one-note at times, but since the function of the character is that of observer rather than catalyst, Philippe's self-effacing underplaying seems the right editorial choice here. Plus, it clears the deck for Chris Cooper to step to the forefront with his finely-tuned interpretation of Hanssen that brings real dimensionality and depth to the film. He turns Hanssen into a richly complex figure, a man who demands strict adherence to form yet who systematically violates that very rule at the deepest core of his own being. A stickler for protocol and standards and unforgiving of those who fall short of them, Hanssen somehow fails to see his own glaring weaknesses while managing to condemn others for theirs. Through his perceptive performance, Cooper makes it possible for us to see this walking paradox in all his complexity and humanity.

The movie itself, written by Adam Mazer, William Rotko and Billy Ray, and directed by Ray, is a trifle plodding at times and doesn't feel as vital as perhaps it should given the seriousness of the issues it is addressing, but, for the most part, we welcome its unfrenetic approach to the subject. It doesn't try to gin up the melodrama or unravel its human enigma - rather it presents him as truthfully and impartially as possible, then leaves it up to the viewer to render the final judgment.

Cooper is amazing, the story is taut and good

[secondtake · 7/10 · 2 January 2014]

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.

The Reason For The Treason

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 13 March 2007]

The FBI has finally identified a top level traitor who during the Cold War and afterwards sold costly secrets to the Communist bloc. It's not someone in a million years you would suspect. Robert Hanssen, a person of no apparent vices, a very religious Catholic, a member of Opus Dei, loving husband, father, and grandfather, as All American as you can get.

His espionage cost America dear, the trick now is to get him caught in the act so he can go away for a very long time, maybe even be subject to capital punishment. He's a clever guy Hansseen, as chief investigator Laura Linney says, he'd spot a phony cover story in a nano-second. Send someone in at first, but don't tell them the whole reason for the investigation.

Playing Robert Hanssen is Chris Cooper and the mole sent to catch a mole, Ryan Phillippe. Most of the film is a battle of wits between the two of them. The film takes on a whole different perspective however when Phillippe is told the real reason for the intense investigation of Cooper.

What's nice about Breach and what probably won't draw in the action fans is there is a minimum of violence in the film. Instead it's a character study of two men, fighting what seems to be an uneven battle of wits. Phillippe quite frankly seems overmatched at times, but he does think on his feet. Cooper is nobody's fool, mainly because he's fooled everybody for decades.

Favorite scene in the film is Cooper trying to articulate the reason for the treason to agent in charge, Dennis Haysbert. What it essentially comes down to is he's a brilliant man who's angry because he never got the respect he feels he deserved. He was going to show everyone just how smart he was.

Strange are the things that can make a traitor, spy, or terrorist. Though it does get slow at times, I think people will enjoy Breach and see a great acting duel with Cooper and Phillippe.

Two Men in a Boat

[tedg · 24 February 2007]

I was surprised at how effective this was. You know from the very beginning how it will end. You know because it is a true story that there will be no trendy plot twists. You expect, and find, that the young assistant is built around a cliché, as is Hanssen's Catholicism, which oddly ignores the role of Opus Dei in this venture, and focuses on prayer instead of devotion.

And there is a formulaic bit about damaging fathers and odd wives. More: there's the project command center that is drawn from movies and not from life. And finally, our hero is told the FBI's biggest secret in an open public place. This would never ever happen, and it is staged this way only to help the pacing of the thing in terms of stagecraft. And that DIA computer room, with the nice clean Cray-like machines, is from the same fantasy world as "Red October's" neon-lighted missile tubes.

But in spite of all this, it works. And especially compared to "The Departed," it works, simply, cleanly, deeply.

That's because the filmmaker decided early in the game that he was going to do what the Hong Kong "Infernal Affairs" did well and others copied: this business of actors playing characters who are actors. In this case, we have two such in the same boat.

We have a top information manager at the FBI working for the Russians and acting normal, even when leading the hunt for himself. We have the young under cover guy pretending to be simply a clerk. Each intuits the other is watching. The older man completely wins at the start, with the younger man eventually besting him in artifice. Its a calculation that the filmmaker makes, when deciding not to tell us why our young hero does what he does and where he gets the tools. In an ordinary story, that would hurt, but here it is a wise decision because such "explaining" would get in the way of the economy of the thing. And it is all about economic connection with us.

Its a bit counterintuitive that effective stories sometimes get better by lopping off story elements and information. But it is true. Some students of the Hanssen case believe that Hanssen's primary motive was to show his own importance (as a information security planner) by revealing holes in the system that he would have plugged. I wish this film would have worked with that a bit, because this notion of helping the system by hurting is system is both what the story could have been about and the means used to tell the story.

Still, a good one.

As a historical note, there's a reason folks from the FBI and CIA, even senior ones, can't wander into NSA computing facilities. Hanssen wasn't allowed, probably a good thing at the time. Opus Dei again.

Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

I Matter Plenty

[ferguson-6 · 7/10 · 19 February 2007]

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.

Generally Unsatisfying

[Jim-500 · 6/10 · 22 March 2007]

I couldn't help but feel frustrated by this movie. There were so many things the characters did that were hard to believe. Ryan Phillippe does a couple of really stupid things (the briefcase, the videotape) that you don't have to be in the FBI to know not to do. And then he goes a-snoopin' on a computer on which he shouldn't--any PC owner knows that every click of the mouse can be traced. And this guy is posing as a computer tech?

And why is Laura Linney paging him all the time when she knows he is with Chris Cooper and can't talk? If anything, it would raise Cooper's suspicions.

Of course, all these things are done to raise the tension. But then they felt so contrived, as did the other two big episodes where monkey wrenches are thrown into the FBI's works (the photographer, the car inspection) just to put the hero in harm's way.

And I just couldn't accept Linney in this role. She's good, but it's hard for me to picture a young, beautiful blonde in the role of an FBI head. And FBI agents' wives are supposed to know going in that there are some things their husbands can't tell them, so Caroline Dhavernas' dis-ease about his actions was also hard to accept.

I really liked Chris Cooper a lot. Overall, I think the movie is well done. But it's hard writing a story about something where everyone knows what happens in the end before the movie begins. A lot of the action here just seemed so formulaic, and left me ultimately wanting more substance and more imaginative writing.

Could have been great if only they elaborate it more

[johnny-08 · 7/10 · 13 May 2008]

"Breach" of Billy Ray is based on a true story about Robert Hanssen (Chris Cooper). Hanssen works for 25 years in FBI but he becomes suspicious so head of the FBI sends young Erika O'Neilla (Ryan Phillippe) to supervise Hanssen. Erik is hired as Hanssen's secretary and he must earn his confidence and actually become his friend.

Ray's first movie ("Shattered Glass") is also based on a true story just like this one. Here Ray takes maybe too big bite for him. Experienced director would make this movie even better cause here we are only given scraps. The whole betrayal of Hanssen should have been presented in much bigger way. But even without that "Breach" is recommendable movie with great Chris Cooper in main role and with solid support from Ryan Phillippe and Laura Linney.

Also it reminds of magnificent "Donnie Brasco". Both Depp and Phillippe characters must become friends with the man they trail and actually enter in their world; so their wives suffer who don't know nothing about that (Heche/Dhavernas). Of course "Donnie Brasco" is much, much better movie but I felt those connections. There is inevitable initiation of Russians again and at the whole end director makes weird. He shows Hanssen as religious man and one of the last lines when they meet in the elevator (what are the chances?) is: "Pray for me." After Hanssen asks that in tears, Eric replies: "I will." That last lines surely never happened in real life but they needed a movie ending and I think most of people will feel a bit sorry for Hanssen. Actually his biggest crime isn't that he betrayed his country (like most of people think); his biggest crime is that people were murdered because of his acts.

If you can, watch this movie to learn something about so called 'one of the greatest security breaches in U.S. history', or because of Chris Cooper or just because you've got nothing better to do on Tuesday evening.

The best of the year to date

[tpibb · 10/10 · 16 February 2007]

The history behind the FBI and the CIA have always fascinated me and I have studied this history for many years. I am well aware of the story of Robert Hanssen, and had to see the film because of that. I had my doubts about it, being the avid movie-goer that I am that they would try to "Hollywood-ize" it too much, as is almost always the case when a true story hit the silver screen. This is not the case with "Breach".

Some of the things in the movie are stretched, as is always the case, but it still remains very loyal to the truth. "Breach" does a wonderful job of taking theses slightly exaggerated parts to increase the feeling of drama and suspense, and doing it the right way.

Another bright spot is Oscar Winner Chris Cooper's fantastic portrayal of Hanssen. Cooper does such a great job of capturing Hanssen's intimidation of young Eric O'Neill and his increasing paranoia. There is no doubt in my mind that Cooper's role is Oscar worthy. It would be a shame if he were not nominated.

This film is excellent from beginning to end and is without a doubt the best spy movie I have seen in ages. The film itself, like Chris Cooper, I believe is Oscar worthy.

Spy-movie based on actual events referred to traitor Robert Hanssen excellently played by Chris Cooper

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 1 March 2010]

An ambitious young named O'Neill (Ryan Philippe), happily married (to Caroline Dhavernas) dreams becoming FBI agent is assigned a major mission by his superiors (Laura Linney, Gary Cole) spying his chief, allegedly a loyal career officer named Robert Hanssen (Chris Cooper) , though he is really selling top secret information to Russian espionage. But Hanssen results to be a devout Catholic and a pornographer.

This good movie is a blend of spy-story and studio character .Magnificent performances of all star cast, as Chris Cooper who reflects splendidly his complex personality as reptilian and astute double-agent, as Ryan Philippe as junior agent who investigates undercover the activities his boss and Laura Linney as FBI major agent. It packs atmospheric cinematography by Tak Fujimoto and appropriate musical score by Mychael Danna. Nice film-making by Billy Ray who builds a nerve-shredding suspense when a narrow margin O'Neill becomes available to search boss's office and when his car is being inspected while the protagonists are returning to garage. These happenings were formerly adapted for TV (2001) in ¨ Master Spy : The Robert Hanssen story¨ by Lawrence Schiller with William Hurt, Mary Louise-Parker and Ron Silver.

Based on real case , the actual deeds are the following : Robert Philip Hanssen (born 18 April 1944) is a former American FBI agent who spied for Soviet and Russian intelligence services against the United States, especially during George Bush government, for 22 years from 1979 to 2001 and betrayed at least 50 sources. He began working for the FBI and then defected to the KGB while continuing to work for the FBI. The codename of the FBI for the spy before they found out it was him was Graysuit. Despite the fact that he revealed highly sensitive security information to the Soviet Union and in illicit pay, federal prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty in exchange for his guilty pleas to fifteen espionage and conspiracy charges. He is currently serving a life sentence at the Federal Bureau of Prisons Administrative Maximum facility in Florence, Colorado, a "Supermax" federal penitentiary in which Hanssen spends twenty-three hours a day in solitary confinement.

Hanssen was arrested on 18 February 2001 at Foxstone Park (whose events are well described at the movie and being caught by Dennis Haybert)) near his home in Vienna, Virginia and was charged with selling American secrets to Russia for more than US$1.4 million in cash and diamonds over a 22-year period. On 6 July 2001, he pleaded guilty to fifteen counts of espionage in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. He was then sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. His activities have been described as "possibly the worst intelligence disaster in US history". Hanssen is now serving in life sentence.

One of the best spy movies ever

[gregsrants · 9/10 · 11 February 2007]

In February 2001, F.B.I. agent Robert Hanssen was arrested by an agency task force and charged with selling the highest and most classified of the government's secrets to the Soviet Union. His case would later identify him as the biggest spy in American history who's sharing of sensitive documents and information lead to the death of at least three operatives while exposing some of the nation's highest confidential secrets and operations.

Breach, the new film by Billy Ray (Shattered Glass) tells this remarkable story of how Hanssen was eventually exposed and how the F.B.I. worked over the final two months of his employment at the agency to try and infiltrate his circle and make a case using all their available resources at the highest level of the bureau.

Chris Cooper (Adaptation) plays Hanssen. He is a church going family man that at first hardly mirrors the monster that the agency is determined to expose. Ryan Phillippe (Crash) plays Eric O'Neill, an agent wannabe that is assigned to work as Henssen's clerk in an attempt to follow, document and spy on his move in an attempt to help the F.B.I. build their case. Their relationship for two months will lead to the downfall of Hanssen's operations and would leave a black mark on the government agencies in a year that presented its own problems by September 11th.

When we first meet O'Neill, he is a hard working computer and surveillance wiz. Married to a beautiful wife (Caroline Dhavernas) Eric has all the hopes and ambitions of working his way up the corporate ladder to become an F.B.I. field agent. So when the Bureau's Kate Borroughs recruits O'Neill to work for and report all activities of Hanssen, Eric is quick to realize the opportunity and accepts the position as Hanssen's clerk.

Eric is informed that Hanssen is nothing more than a sexual deviant that if revealed, would bring great embarrassment to the Agency. He is told of Hanssen's penchant for strippers, women and web sites depicting sexual acts and behavior and his role is based unconditionally on surveillance furthering this information.

But as Eric is dragged deeper and deeper into Hanssen's personal and professional life, he can hardly confirm his superior's suggestions. Hanssen became a mentor. He was a highly intellectual individual that had strong Catholic beliefs and a wife and family to which he adored. This brings O'Neill to question agent Borroughs as to exactly why the agency is investing so much energy and time into a man that revealed himself to be more the perfect neighbor rather than the someone worthy of such high level agency attention.

This brings Borroughs to her only recourse – informing O'Neill that Hanssen is everything they claim him to be and more. He is someone who has sold secrets to the enemy and jeopardized the safety and security of the American people and their allies.

With this new information in tow, O'Neill continues with his surveillance with new found ambition and cooperates in luring Hanssen into a trust that will eventually lead to his arrest.

Breach is one of those rare spy movies that is almost perfect. The characters are all crisp and well developed and the story, inspired by real events, is a screenwriters dream. Imagine being handed the reins to a film about people whose lives - in ways that we might never fully realize the complete impact - shaped the future of a country by exposing how one man could have access and be trusted with the most confidential of information.

Luckily for us – the paying customer – the story and its telling were given to screenwriters Adam Mazer and William Rotko under the direction of Billy Ray who surprisingly handles the content and the pacing like a veteran even though he previously had only one directing credit on his resume prior to this superior outing. I couldn't help but think that the same story under the producing credit of Jerry Bruckheimer would have produced something with tremendous gunfire, explosions, over-wrought musical scores and a cat and mouse story that would have had more dramatic trumped up moments rather than believable situations where the tension felt by the audience comes in the form of watching our characters fight against the time they are given to produce the necessary evidence while the weight of their failure and exposure hangs heavy in the balance.

It's unfortunate that Breach is being released this time of year. Most audiences in the mood for serious fare will be spending their monies trying to catch the Oscar nominees and winners and with popcorn fare such as Ghost Rider and Bridge to Terabithia being released Breach may get lost in all the shuffle.

So whether Breach has box office success or must find life on DVD is up to the public, but one thing is certain – Breach is already one of the best films of the year and as far as the spy movie genre goes, I for one am hard pressed to mention another as worthy effort.

May disappoint some...

[CrenshawPete · 7/10 · 10 March 2007]

First off, I'd like to say that this is a decent movie, but those who go in expecting something along the lines of Syriana, Munich, or Spy Game will likely be very disappointed. This film is actually much closer to Donnie Brasco, but not nearly as good. In Breach, the "how" and "why" are never explained. If you want to know the answers to those questions, then you're probably better off getting a book on the subject because they won't be answered here. In fact, the movie begins only months before he is captured, and no Russian contacts are ever seen. One major problem I had was that Mr. Hanssen is portrayed as a two-dimensional villain. This is partly due to the failure to explain *why* he did it. He appears almost comically evil, while the executed Russian KGB defectors are implicitly regarded as the unfortunate good guys. However, reality is never black-and-white. Yes, what he did was terrible, but the Russians would regard their defectors as the evil ones and Mr. Hanssen as the good guy. Again, I'm not condoning what he did, but I think the writer/director should have been more impartial in their portrayal or Mr. Hanssen because the real story is certainly more complicated than is shown here. 3.5/5

Academy Award Caliber Performances

[bhop59 · 10/10 · 16 February 2007]

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.

Slow but steady, 'Breach' is an intriguing effort

[editor-299 · 7/10 · 13 February 2007]

About the only fault I could find with this espionage thriller is the slow pacing, which is a testament to its character development and building dramatic suspense.

Still, the tale of the downfall of FBI traitor Robert Hanssen (Chris Cooper, "American Beauty") – who sold sensitive secrets to the Soviets for almost 20 years – is extremely well-acted and intriguing, nonetheless.

It's more an homage to the gritty, realistic films such as "The Spy Who Came In From the Cold," "The Falcon and the Snowman" and "The Conversation."

It's late 2000, and while the FBI has suspicions about Hanssen, they have no solid proof of his alleged spy activities. With an entire staff of agents working on his case, more personal attention is still necessary.

Enter agent trainee Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe, "54," "Crash"), who is set up as a clerk for Hanssen in the Department of Security Assurance – an entity made up to trap the senior intelligence analyst.

The bureau informs O'Neill that he was brought in to keep an eye on Hanssen's "sexually deviant" Internet postings; but it is soon apparent that the church-going family man is a much tougher (and much more intelligent) nut to crack.

Invited into his home, as well as his confidence, the status-seeking O'Neill questions his superiors (including Laura Linney and Dennis Haysbert) about the direction – and legitimacy – of the entire investigation.

Only later does O'Neill discover that his boss is wanted for a far more devastating crime. Evidently, Hanssen's espionage activities resulted in the worst breach of national security in the country's history (although we still do not know what devastation former National Security Adviser under Clinton, Sandy Berger's stealing of secret documents may cause).

It may come as a surprise to many that Hanssen actually almost got away with a much lesser charge (a concealed weapons rap) , but his ego and religious zeal lead him to fall into the bureau's last-ditch trap.

Despite the pacing, there are several moments of pure tension where Hanssen almost uncovers the plot that O'Neill is trying to keep from him.

All of this keeps us on the edge of our seats despite knowing the outcome (if we didn't before, the movie opens with a press conference by then attorney general John Ashcroft announcing Hanssen's arrest). This is a tribute to the taut, seamless script, a debut effort by Adam Mazer and William Rotko; and direction by Billy Ray ("Shattered Glass").

While Cooper, is marvelous, as usual, in this low key role, it's Phillippe that overcomes his pretty boy image to excel here.

Not sure what it was trying to do

[sioenroux · 5/10 · 2 August 2007]

The performances were all just fine, the story had the potential to be intriguing, the characterizations ought to have been riveting.

Why then, was this movie so ho-hum? It felt like the director and writers didn't know what story they were trying to tell. Was it a character study of a traitor? No, we don't get much depth on Hanssen. Was it a taut thriller? No, there weren't thrills to speak of, and no real twists or turns. Was it an inside-the-FBI potboiler? No, we didn't learn much about the bureaucracy of intelligence.

At times, there were glimmers of each of these stories, but never any depth on any them. I felt like we skated along the surface of a story that would have been much more interesting viewed from underneath the ice.

I don't recommend spending the time on this, unless you really like looking at Ryan Phillipe. I do, and it still didn't elevate it.

Slow paced and engaging spy drama based on character

[bob the moo · 1 June 2008]

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.

spy movie

[ssto · 6/10 · 7 July 2007]

i didn't like it much. its OK to watch, but never really got me involved. it reminded me a lot of some Russian spy-movies from the 80ties, but its maybe even worse, because Breach is just so uninspired

I didn't like Ryan Phillippe's play, while Chris Cooper and Laura Linney played so well this movie didn't deserve them. Also - can we please see a CIA/FBI/NCA movie without Dennis Haysbert in it?

Of course, it is filmed very well. Could it be better? Probably. Every story can be filmed superbly, depending on the drive behind it

6/10

peace

Good spy movie

[agmoldham · 6/10 · 12 June 2007]

This movie is based on a true story. Being from the UK I'm not familiar with the story, so i can't vouch for the accuracy or otherwise of the movie. The film stands up on it's own right though and I don't think knowledge of the facts would make any difference to the enjoyment of the film.

The story revolves around thee investigation of the most notorious double agent in American history. Robert Hanssen is played by Chris Cooper who must be one of the finest actors in current cinema. It's a shame the movie wasn't cut a bit more because it's a bit ponderous at times, but it's still well worth a view.

Interesting but oddly uninvolving.

[dwightet · 6/10 · 16 December 2021]

This story of Robert Hanssen, arch spy embedded in the FBI has all the makings of a fine story but it is oddly unemotional and cold. It has a fine performance by the always excellent Chris. Cooper but he is still not able to breathe much life into this script. Hanssen's motives are unclear and the trap the FBI sets up seems to banal that it just doesn't make one give a hoot. Laura Linney is also in this film and she, too, is a fine actor. It could have been a contender but.

Slow but Authentic

[johnwalt-1 · 8/10 · 3 March 2007]

"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.

Top Notch Performances; Anorexic Script

[Danusha_Goska · 7/10 · 18 February 2007]

"Breach" tells the true story of Robert Hanssen, America's worst spy and traitor, through the eyes of Eric O'Neill, one of the many FBI personnel who was assigned to gathering evidence against Hanssen.

Chris Cooper, handsome and slim, looks nothing like the fat, oily, ugly Hanssen. But Cooper, like the rest of the cast, puts in an intense, believable performance.

Ryan Philippe, as Eric O'Neill, on whose accounts the film is based, is okay as a young newlywed trying -- trying too hard, in the eyes of his coworkers -- to become an FBI agent, and who is ambiguous about that ambition.

Philippe has the appropriate youth, callowness, and skill, but he never really communicates a sense of the precariousness of his position. I don't worry about him. He's too suave, too cocksure. His surety decreased my tension, and one must feel tension in a movie like this, even though if you've read the news, you know what happened to Hanssen.

I couldn't help but think what a Jack-Lemmon-like actor would have made of that role, someone who could, as Lemmon did, communicate that he was a white-collar, white-male who was struggling hard to do what was expected of him. Maybe the actor Topher Grace could have done something interesting with the O'Neill role.

Laura Linney, one of the finest actresses alive today, is just pitch perfect as an FBI agent for whom the FBI is her entire life. She admits that she does not even have a cat; she despairs that Hanssen has worked to undo every good thing she has worked to do. She is asked if her difficult career has been worth it; she says, "Ask me when we've caught Hanssen." The history here is fascinating. The film is well made. Here's the problem -- Eric O'Neill was a marginal character, and telling the Hanssen story through his point of view reduces the story's most compelling aspects.

Robert Hanssen is one of the most lurid personalities America has ever produced. He was a member of Opus Dei, the secretive Catholic cult notorious for its extreme practices, including self-flagellation. At the same time, Hanssen was engaging in the most extreme of behaviors: funding a stripper, posting porn on the internet featuring his wife, under her own, real name, surreptitiously filming his wife during sex, and selling every secret America has to her enemies.

Too, Hanssen's bio is full of lurid details. Hanssen's father abused him physically and psychologically. Hanssen reported that he felt both love and hatred for his father.

Hanssen's bio, in short, brings up many questions. What makes a man lead a double life? Is Opus Dei culpable in any way for enabling Hanssen? What makes a man betray his country? What is the final, exact toll of the damage Hanssen has done? Was Hanssen's treachery related to the attacks on 9-11? Finally, how could so many very intelligent people have been fooled by Hanssen for so long? "Breach" doesn't provide answers to these profound questions that you haven't heard from the average newspaper article about Hanssen. This is a theme of Shakespearean depth and profundity, and "Breach" offers nothing more than a sketchy, mouse's eye view.

Eric O'Neill is simply not as interesting or important to the audience as Robert Hanssen. The movie doesn't make him interesting or important. His squabbles with his wife over his FBI duties, for example, seem petty and contrived.

Perhaps a film could have been made that honored the complexities of the themes at play in the Hanssen case from the point of view of Eric O'Neill, but this isn't that film.

It is a very good film, though, intelligent, crisp, swiftly moving, and very well acted. It's just not a great film.

Engaging and Dramatic Spy Movie

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 14 August 2012]

In 2001, the FBI clerk Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe), who is a specialist in computer but wants to be an agent, is invited by agent Kate Burroughs (Laura Linney) to work with the senior agent Robert Hanssen (Chris Cooper) that had worked for many years in Soviet Union and now is assigned to protect the agency against electronic infiltration. Kate tells to Eric to write down the behavior of Hanssen in notes and send them to her since Hanssen would be a pervert under investigation of his sexual behavior.

Eric works with the bitter and rough Hanssen and he finds a family man and devout Catholic who earns his respect instead of a deviant. Further, his investigation and his relationship with Hanssen and his wife Bonnie (Kathleen Quinlan) affects Eric's wife Juliana (Caroline Dhavernas). Eric tells his opinion to Kate and she decides to tell the truth about Hanssen to him: he is a mole that sold many secrets to the Soviet Union and has compromised the identity of dozens of agents. Eric decides to go on in his assignment despite his friendship with Hanssen and the problems in his marriage.

"Breach" is an engaging and dramatic spy movie based on the true story of an FBI agent that was arrested for spying on 20 February 2001. I bought this DVD many years ago and only yesterday I decided to watch it and I found a great film.

The plot is developed in adequate pace and supported by magnificent performances of Chris Cooper, Ryan Phillippe and Laura Linney. The duel between Eric O'Neill and Robert Hanssen is fantastic. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Quebra de Confiança" ("Fail in Confidence")

Very interesting thriller!!!

[CRISTOBALDEMIAN · 7/10 · 4 June 2007]

I liked this movie a lot...not only is it adventurous it penetrates a lot into the human character...what the message it transmits is that u can never know someone...people are not as they appear to be...Robert Hanssen, portrayed by Chris Cooper is a successful intelligence officer, with a lot of experience and a splendid background...but rumours appear that he is not loyal, so Eric O'Neill, portrayed by Ryan Phillippe is sent to investigate..As a psychological thriller i found it very good one...it explores a lot the psychology of the traitor... I gave it a 7, cause i was impressed...it had a lot of elements that attracted me...once has to watch this movie very attentively to understand it.

Breach is excellent true-to-life story of Robert Hanssen

[tavm · 10/10 · 17 February 2007]

Breach is based on the true story of the capture of Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent responsible for many treasonous acts against the United States. Chris Cooper is excellent throughout in portraying a Catholic family man who goes to church constantly with his wife and kids while hiding his sexual perversions. Ryan Phillippe is Eric O'Neill, Hanssen's new assistant who is assigned by boss Laura Linney to keep tabs on Hanssen to use as evidence against him. Caroline Dhavernas as Eric's European wife who wants Eric to come clean about his job, Gary Cole as another agent, and Dennis Haysbert as Linney's superior round out the fine cast in a film that slowly but surely builds up suspense in the various ways of snooping that brings the bureau closer to catching Hanssen in the act of treason. Don't expect James Bond or Alias action here. Do expect an excellent drama about an agent who almost slipped from the FBI's hands.

Intelligent and engaging, solid film-making all around

[Monotreme02 · 7/10 · 20 July 2007]

Billy Ray does something very interesting in this film: He toys with the audience. He utilized similar techniques in his previous film, Shattered Glass, which I thought was also quite excellent and even somewhat underrated. The former film, too, was a character study much in the same way and along the same lines that Breach is. Ray places his "villainous", deceitful character at the center of the film, and portrays him in a way so undeniably human and rounded, when we the audience hear about his wrong and fraudulent deeds, we can't even believe it at first. It happens in Shattered Glass with Hayden Christensen's Stephen Glass character (his only truly fine acting job, if I may say so myself), and indeed, Ray's portrayal of the character of Robert Hanssen manipulates us in just such a way. In utter identification with Eric O'Neill, when we are first told about Hanssen's dealings with pornography and even more so his selling secrets to Russia, we simply can't believe it. Ray seems so fascinated and fixated with Hanssen and has developed and portrayed him in such an incredibly three-dimensional, rounded and well-developed way, he almost neglects his other characters, who get far less development than Hanssen does. Again, the same thing happened in Shattered Glass, but this minor flaw doesn't take away from the big picture at all. It just means the actors have a little less to work with.

As an actor's movie, this is one of those vehicles that really lets them loose. Chris Cooper, as the centerpiece of the film, delivers a subdued, vicious and absolutely incredible performance as Robert Hanssen, another very fine role in his already fruitful career. If this film is not forgotten by late this year, one can certainly hope for an Oscar nomination for Cooper. The other "higher-caliber" actor who does well in the film is Laura Linney, who is very high up on the "why hasn't she won an Oscar yet?" list. As I already mentioned, her character isn't developed quite enough to give her absolute liberty in the performance, but she does get a few tender and vulnerable moments to truly shine. Ryan Phillippe, on the other hand, is an actor I have a few problems with. He has had some great, meaty roles in fantastic movies – this one being one of his meatiest – but he never quite manages to get a major bite in. He is an okay actor that never exceeds that categorization and moves into the range of excellence. But I am confident, as he is still young, and with roles in films such as this one, Flags of our Fathers, Igby Goes Down and others, he is slowly building himself a repertoire of high-quality films that slowly but surely improve his skills by posing higher and more difficult obstacles for him to work around. His work in Breach may just be his best yet, but it still doesn't excel into greatness.

On a superficial level, everything about this film is solid. The direction, the design, the cinematography lighting and overall look of the film, the pace, the story… everything is rock solid and well crafted. The true story aspect of the film did not necessarily have to stop it from becoming just another average espionage thriller – and I had feared this as near the end it almost entered such territory but abruptly veered away – but Ray does an excellent job at keeping the film focused on the fascinating story and on the characters, and not on the "action". The story itself is a fascinating, fascinating tale that, if treated well, was perfect for making a movie about, and Ray treats it expertly well. That said, the movie never quite reaches absolute greatness due to its naturally subdued nature. Ray is a good director, but he will never reach the heights of Wes Anderson, Michel Gondry or Craig Brewer simply because he keeps it simple and makes great-but-"regular" movies. Not that it's a bad thing: It's quite reassuring to know that one director is consistent at directing solid and interesting real-world drama/thrillers with fascinating stories, high production value and fascinating characters.

Finally, I must also comment on the musical score, which immediately caught my attention and which, at first, I thought was something out of Philip Glass' notebooks until a little patience during the credits revealed that it was one Mychael Danna, who had actually composed some absolutely fantastic film scores over the years in even more fantastic movies: Little Miss Sunshine, Capote, The Sweet Hereafter, The Ice Storm… the list goes on. I don't necessarily remember every aspect of his work on those films (except for Little Miss Sunshine, which was also more recent and also features an immediately memorable and brilliant score), but I can safely say that his work on Breach is nothing short of brilliant, and just fantastic music on its own, besides the fact that it obviously and exquisitely enhances the tone and pace of the film.

Billy Ray is a good director, but never exceeds into greatness. Ryan Phillippe is a good actor, but never exceeds into greatness. Indeed, just about everything in this film is good – even great – but never exceeds into excellency, except for perhaps Chris Cooper's absolutely fascinating and powerhouse performance as Hanssen. Ray's character development is also exceptional; one can deduct from both this film and Shattered Glass that Ray seems to have an interest in deceitful, untrustworthy characters. The story is strong, intelligent and engaging, the film-making solid all around, and in all this is just a good example of fine but restrained film-making.

Hanssen was never this stupid?

[mrgabe-1 · 4/10 · 19 February 2007]

Despite the excellent acting in Breach, the screenplay and plot leave much to be desired. Much better to have stuck to the facts, since Hanssen's life and downfall are interesting enough as is, without the plot contrivances of a very young and green sleuth managing to keep up with his clever elder. It is very difficult to stay interested in the story line when Hanssen does not immediately marginalize his assistant, instead of taking him into his confidence and ultimately destroying himself. Perhaps with a better actor than Ryan Phillippe, who can't keep up with Cooper, viewers could manage to suspend belief and become involved in this contrivance. Hanssen certainly was a monster, but he was never this stupid.