Breach cast2/2/2024 ![]() Cooper is so convincing as Hanssen that he becomes the focus of attention. And Phillippe is very good.īut a weird thing happens. We're supposed to identify with Phillippe's O'Neill, who in his quest to bring down Hanssen almost shatters his own marriage (Caroline Dhavernas plays his wife). Good thing Phillippe and Cooper are up to the job. There's almost no breathing room in this film, which makes Hanssen and O'Neill's game of wits nearly unbearable. Even when the action moves outside into a gray Washington winter, things feel tightly constrained. "Breach" unfolds mostly in a tiny, windowless office outfitted with drab government-issue furniture. If O'Neill can make that happen, he'll be a key player in the biggest espionage case ever.ĭirector Ray ("Shattered Glass") excels at real-life thrillers in which personalities take precedence over cinematic flourish. Hanssen has been in Russia's employ for years and the bureau desperately wants to catch him making a drop of classified material. When O'Neill threatens to quit because he's wasting his time trying to find dirt on a squeaky-clean guy like Hanssen, his handler finally reveals the truth. Upon learning that O'Neill is a lapsed Catholic, Hanssen devotes himself to getting his aide to return to the fold. He disdains the system that promotes the polite and politic while ignoring real genius - namely himself.Īnd Hanssen is a devout Roman Catholic of the old school who says the Rosary daily, attends Latin mass and attributes the fall of Communism not to Ronald Reagan but to Soviet godlessness. Hanssen resents the FBI gun culture which rewards the guys who knock down doors while sidelining those who sit at desks being thoughtful. Politically and socially he's a bit to the right of Attila, stating categorically that women shouldn't wear pants ("America doesn't need another Hillary Clinton") and spouting uber-patriotic rhetoric. Hanssen is imperious, demanding and borderline abusive. Sometimes it's all O'Neill can do to get through the workday. O'Neill is supposed to watch his boss for signs of misbehavior. His mood turns darker when a bureau bigwig (Laura Linney) explains that Hanssen is suspected of being a deviant whose sexual practices pose a security risk. This is just the sort of dead-end assignment the advancement-obsessed O'Neill dreads. Young FBI agent Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe) is not pleased when he's named the new assistant to Hanssen, a veteran Soviet specialist and computer wizard who is heading up a new program to protect the FBI's data base from hackers. history.īilly Ray's film is essentially a game of feints and dodging between two men. And when he finally blows - watch out.Ĭooper portrays Robert Hanssen, the FBI agent who was arrested in 2001 after feeding the Russians classified information for two decades, single-handedly orchestrating the biggest espionage disaster in U.S. At the same time he excels at suggesting what's going on behind a bland exterior. ![]() Cooper keeps a tight lid on his performance, delineating the life of a man adept at diverting attention. Nobody is likely to take Chris Cooper for granted after seeing "Breach," an uncomfortably claustrophobic real-life spy movie that gives the actor one of his juiciest roles.īut don't expect to be wowed with bombast and hammy gestures. The problem with being routinely great is that people start taking your excellence for granted.
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