Breach
I am wondering why Breach was not released at the end of 2006 instead of at the beginning of 2007. Director Billy Ray (Shattered Glass) has made a solid thriller based on a true story. I don't think that the film would have garnered tons of nominations but I do think that Chris Cooper could very likely have scored a nomination for his searing performance of Robert Hanssen (and knocked out the overrated Will Smith). It is too late for that and I think that Cooper's performance will probably be forgotten by the end of the year.
Hanssen was working for the FBI but he was also selling top secrets to the Soviets. When Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe) is assigned to the case he is told that Hanssen has to be watched because he is heavily into porn. Now this fact turns out to be true. But, O'Neill later finds out that Hanssen has done much worse things than watching snuff films. On top of all of this Hanssen is a devout Catholic and attends mass everyday. Talk about a man who is filled with contradictions.
Although we know the outcome of the story I don't want to say much about how he finally got caught. That is part of the entertainment factor of the film. Breach is nicely paced and never feels sluggish. It is a good film and I am surprised that it was released at this time of the year.
Phillippe is surprisingly good as O'Neill. And Laura Linney is wonderful (as always) as the tough agent Kate Burroughs who O'Neill has to report to. But the film belongs to Cooper. I couldn't keep my eyes off of his face. Every twitch of his mouth and every blink of his eyes show that he is a man who is hiding something deep down inside. Cooper is definitely one of the best American actors working today (I liked him since I saw him in the John Sayles films Matewan and Lone Star).
Although February may not be the best time to release a quality film it worked out to my advantage. Having seen all of the Oscar nominated films I was looking for something good because most of the new films out there are pretty bad. So if you like films that make you think and keep you on your toes then Breach is for you.
Hanssen was working for the FBI but he was also selling top secrets to the Soviets. When Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe) is assigned to the case he is told that Hanssen has to be watched because he is heavily into porn. Now this fact turns out to be true. But, O'Neill later finds out that Hanssen has done much worse things than watching snuff films. On top of all of this Hanssen is a devout Catholic and attends mass everyday. Talk about a man who is filled with contradictions.
Although we know the outcome of the story I don't want to say much about how he finally got caught. That is part of the entertainment factor of the film. Breach is nicely paced and never feels sluggish. It is a good film and I am surprised that it was released at this time of the year.
Phillippe is surprisingly good as O'Neill. And Laura Linney is wonderful (as always) as the tough agent Kate Burroughs who O'Neill has to report to. But the film belongs to Cooper. I couldn't keep my eyes off of his face. Every twitch of his mouth and every blink of his eyes show that he is a man who is hiding something deep down inside. Cooper is definitely one of the best American actors working today (I liked him since I saw him in the John Sayles films Matewan and Lone Star).
Although February may not be the best time to release a quality film it worked out to my advantage. Having seen all of the Oscar nominated films I was looking for something good because most of the new films out there are pretty bad. So if you like films that make you think and keep you on your toes then Breach is for you.
posted by Film Fanatic | 2:01 PM
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