Loyola Greyhound

Issue date: 2/20/07 Section: Arts & Society

Ryan Phillippe and Chris Cooper portray the true story of the FBI agent Robert Hanssen and the acts of espionage that are considered the worst in American history. Breach is low on flair, but still exciting.

In 2001, FBI counterintelligence agent Robert Hanssen was arrested for spying on his country for the Russians, capping off a career of espionage that many have called the worst act of treason in American history. According to CNN, Hanssen sold about 6,000 pages and 27 diskettes of high-priority information over 15 years, and the amount of damage he caused to the government is still not confirmed.

Six years later, this first real black mark on America in the 21st century is up on the silver screen in the form of Breach, directed by Billy Ray.

The problem with turning recent history into a major motion picture is that you have to count on the fact that the audience already knows what's going to happen. Ray wisely avoids the pitfall of creating false tension, even going so far as to open the film with actual press conference footage announcing Hanssen's crimes and arrest.

What results is a quite respectable thriller that gets the audience involved the hard way: no ticking bombs, no pointed guns (well, one pointed gun, but you get the picture) and no damsel in distress. Instead, Ray gives us strong characters with secret agendas and quick wits, reminding us that a spy thriller doesn't need to be dressed up in a tuxedo and handed a shaken-not-stirred martini to be interesting.

Chris Cooper plays the deeply religious, highly paranoid Hanssen. Having worked intelligence for the FBI his entire career, he is a master of details and tests everybody for their trustworthiness. So, naturally, he is a little suspicious when he is transferred and given clerk Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe) to boss around. And suspicious he should be: Phillippe has been assigned to "ride the desk" of Cooper, who is suspected of being a sexual deviant. Soon, however, Phillippe's real boss (Laura Linney) reveals that the sex scandal watch is just a cover for the FBI's real investigation into Cooper's dealings with the Russians. Phillippe then has to reconcile his professional respect for Cooper with his duty to his country; all while telling bold-faced lies to a man that is essentially a human polygraph machine.

Continued...

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