The FBI thriller "Breach" shows, in frightening detail, the true story of bringing down the worst mole in the history of the intelligence agency, Robert Hanssen.
Hanssen's guilt isn't in question; the audience knows from the beginning that he isn't innocent. As soon as he steps on screen, Hanssen (Chris Cooper) walks as though he's carrying a heavy burden -- 15 years' worth of secrets shared with the Russian KGB might do that to a man. However, "Breach" is told from the perspective of Eric O'Neil (Ryan Phillippe), the young agent-in-training tasked to a new office headed by Hanssen.
O'Neil's handler, Kate Burroughs (Laura Linney), portrays Hanssen as a sexual deviant, posting dirty blogs on the internet. The upstart O'Neil has wanted to be an agent, but as soon as Burroughs hands him all the power, O'Neil loses faith in himself. The stress of the situation starts to take a toll on him and his wife, Juliana (Caroline Dhavernas).
As he spends more time with Hanssen, O'Neil believes the Bureau's story less and less. Hanssen is god-fearing, church-going and dedicated to his family. Burroughs finally lets O'Neil in on the real reason that the FBI has him tailing Hanssen. He's involved in a perverse sexual game -- sending video tapes of his sex life to friends, a penchant for strippers and videos of Catherine Zeta Jones -- but the treason he's involved in is the reason for the room filled with 50 agents.
With O'Neil's help, the Bureau brought down Hanssen in 2001. The real Hanssen currently resides in a Supermax penitentiary in Colorado, where he'll be for the rest of his life.
Director Billy Ray has a thing for stories of untrustworthy people, lying to all those around them and their comeuppances. In his directorial debut he chronicled a wayward journalist in "Shattered Glass" and now it's a fallen FBI agent.
The way Ray tackled Hanssen's story was simplistic and straightforward. There were no super spies involved, like a high-flying "Alias" sort of agent, but it was the intelligence doing the work. The action and stealth scenes seemed realistic, no special effects needed.
As Hanssen, Cooper has an ever-present scowl and the way he delivers lines like "Pray more" seems innocent but calculated. The only time his character doesn't seem in control is when he's finally brought down. Linney, although in a small role, commands her scenes. Her deadpan humor also breaks up some of the tension this story of espionage has.
"Breach's" approach to the intelligence agency is suspenseful and chilling. The way it's told succeeds where the bogged down CIA's thriller "Good Shepherd" failed. It's the right length at just under two hours and it doesn't need a massive all-star cast to really get the job done.
Originally from Des Plaines, Ill., Heather moved to Milwaukee to earn a B.A. in journalism from Marquette University. With a tongue-twisting last name like Leszczewicz, it's best to go into a career where people don't need to say your name often.
However, she's still sticking to some of her Illinoisan ways (she won't reform when it comes to things like pop, water fountain or ATM), though she's grown to enjoy her time in the Brew City.
Although her journalism career is still budding, Heather has had the chance for some once-in-a-lifetime interviews with celebrities like actor Vince Vaughn and actress Charlize Theron, director Cameron Crowe and singers Ben Kweller and Isaac Hanson of '90s brother boy band Hanson.
Heather's a self-proclaimed workaholic but loves her entertainment. She's a real television and movie fanatic, book nerd, music junkie, coffee addict and pop culture aficionado.
