Film Reviews

Breach

• Rating:
• Director: Billy Ray
• Starring: Chris Cooper
• Details: US / 110mins (12A).

Based on the biggest national security leak in US history, Breach sees Ryan Phillippe play ambitious FBI man Eric O'Neill, desperate to be recognised by his superiors and gain agent status. His big chance comes when Kate Burroughs (Linney) assigns him to one-time FBI mainstay Robert Hanssen, now suspected of sexual deviancy. The Bureau can't have a loose cannon like that around and are looking for any excuse to get rid of him, but as O'Neill investigates he suspects that Hanssen is not a deviant, but believed to have sold secrets to America's enemies. Breach needed pizzazz, zing, something that would stop it becoming a one-note story. Similar in tone to The Good Shepherd, Breach fails where De Niro's movie succeeded: tension, intrigue and intricate details to beat the band. Everyone feels like the same character - they all talk, walk, act the same way - and although that might be a deliberate move on the part of director Billy Ray (Shattered Glass), trying to make the point that the FBI are one person with a thousand faces, it doesn't make for interesting viewing. Cooper does his best to be mysterious, but he's never allowed to reach beyond his nothing character. The deathly slow-paced nature of the film might have been an attempt to drag the viewer in, but there's not enough going on to stave off boredom. Thinking back, one wonders how they filled the time.

Review by Gavin Burke