Breach Reviews

[Highly rated reviewer]

Excellent espionage... and true to life too..

Forget it if you want Bond style shoot em up and chase em style cinematised spy games, this is based on true events, and is an excellent interesting and informative watch. everyone in this paints the picture well, but Chris Cooper as the main man Rober Hannsen is outstanding. Bond paced it might not be, enthrallingly interesting it is. Definately worthy of a watch, Recommended.

[Highly rated reviewer]

turn of

We turned it of half way through..it sounded brill but just did not hit the spot..its just not bourne enough for me

A Superb Drama

A superb, thoughtful drama built around Chris Coopers' fantastically complex central performance as a possible Russian spy. The film concentrates on the individuals involved in the attempt to track down one of the US's biggest ever traitors. It ignores any tempation to lapse into Die Hard style histrionics, instead rewarding the viewer with an engrossing experience. Brillant.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Great Performances & A Great Story

Breach follows the true story of a young agent (Phillippe) as he investigates a veteran of US intelligence (Cooper) who is suspected of spying for the Russians. This movie gives the viewer a real sense of what being an undercover agent is like: how it effects every aspect of your life, and how decisions about people's characters are incredibly difficult to make. Especially if the people you're investigating are trained to be misleading. As such, despite knowing the ending ( a bit like 'The Assassination of Jesse James' and 'A Mighty Heart'), the film keeps the viewer engaged with the games the two characters play with each other, and as we try and get inside the head of one of the biggest traitors in US intelligence history.

Hmmmmm...not bad

After recently seeing the Bourne ultimatum I was looking forward to this 'based on true story' spy film 'Breach'.

It tells the events of America's worst spy and traitor Russel Hanssen played by Chris Cooper (Bourne trilogy) and how he is brought to justice.

Despite knowing the eventual outcome(it has an announcement at the very start of the film) this film still managed to hold my attention throughout. The performance from Chris Cooper is superb, playing the part of the complex and super intelligent Robert Hanssen.

However were it not for Coopers performance I think I would have struggled to get through this film. It is okay but it really is'nt gripping enough and nor does Eric O'neil (Ryan Phillipe) the young hotshot brought in to monitor Hanssen closely employ any smart, clever skills or inventiveness to come across like he can outsmart Hanssen, who has evaded being caught by the smatest F.B.I agents for ages.

Overall a good performance by Chris Cooper and an intersting true story make this film worthwhile, but only just. More tension and inventiveness in bringing him down could have made this rather special. Instead it's rather uninspiring slow and predictable. Shame.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Not worth the time

This film starts slow, continues to be slow, then ends............ The story (True) is good but they could have made it a little exciting im sure. Ok for a sunday afternoon if you have nothing better to do but you may want to mow the grass instead.

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[Highly rated reviewer]

rubbish

did not like to slow

Slow

Kept experiencing deja-vu with this film and then later found out there was a previous dramatisation with William Hurt in the lead role. It seemed slow-paced, lacklustre and rather dull to me.

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great suspense

I would have given this a four star maybe even a five but unfortunately I felt cheated by the ending of the film. Fantastic performances, great suspense and a plot very believable,what a shame the end of the film was blunt and quick - maybe some people like that, but for me it was just wham, bam the end it was as though they had run out of time to end the film properly. I would still recommend this film as good viewing.

interesing film

A good drama based on real events. To be honest nothing much happens but the acting is excellent and it holds your interest which is what a drama should do. No easy answers as to why he did it - but he was a soul in torment. Not sure that he deserved to spend 23 hours a day in solitary after conviction. Recommended.