Movie Review: Breach

Six years ago, FBI agent Robert Hanssen was arrested for spying against the US for the Soviets and Russians for 15 years. His actions have been called "possibly the worst intelligence disaster in U.S. history".

Hanssen is a contradiction. He's devotely religious, attending mass every day and a member of Opus Dei. According to the film he's a talented analyst and the FBI's "best computer guy". He's conservative to the point of not liking women who wear pants. Yet, he secretly videotapes he and his wife having sex and send those tapes to friends and of course he was a traitorous spy. He's also an obnoxious and demanding boss. Chris Cooper plays Hanssen and does a great job of making this character conflicted, secretative and real.

Breach covers the last 2 months of the investigation before his capture. It's told from the point of view of Eric O'Neill, a young FBI employee, hoping to become an agent, who is assigned as Hanssen's clerk. Ryan Phillippe plays him and it's a difficult role. He has to be young and inexperienced while spying on a senior agent, often lying to him to and not speaking about it all to his wife. Phillippe is ok but he's overpowered by Cooper, which is probably in character. The other agents keep things very dry. Laura Linney is O'Neill's contact and she's given a few moments of doubt about the toll of being an agent, but the role is otherwise forgettable. Dennis Haysbert and Gary Cole have minor roles, but I can never see Gary Cole in a suit with suspenders without thinking of Office Space.

Breach is directed by Billy Ray who previously directed and co-wrote Shattered Glass about a journalist fabricating stories. Breach doesn't attempt to show the whole story of Hanssen's crimes or every aspect of how he was found out. Even though we know the outcome from the first scene, there are some tense scenes as O'Neill tries to manipulate the master manipulator and risks being found out. However, by showing Hanssen mostly through O'Neill's eyes and by showing only 2 months of the story, Breach really tries to be a character study of Hanssen. When captured, an agent asks Hanssen why he did it, and his answer is as unclear as his life.

I was going to say this was the best film I've seen of 2007, but counting films that actually came out in 2007 this is only the second I've seen after Zodiac. Both are good films and worth seeing.