MovieChat Forums > Breach (2007) Discussion > What is it about the movie that makes it...

What is it about the movie that makes it so addictive?

posted 10 years ago by mphsss
11 replies | jump to latest

I'll pop it in with the intention of watching one scene, and the next thing I know 15 minutes have gone by and scenario after scenario keeps making me wanna listen to Hanssen's theories and ideas. It's like I either don't watch it enough to memorize it and ultimately get tired of it, or I'm just fascinated with something about the way the film is presented, because it doesn't seem to lose intrigue despite being a pretty straightforward story on the surface.

Wondered if anybody had a similar feeling. It's just kinda hard to explain, and it's odd to speak so highly of an 8 1/2 year old movie that nobody else even remembers anymore, if they did to begin with. It's not like it dominated at the box office!

[–] lensue88 9 years ago

Last night one a.m and watching this again! The movie fascinates me, story, cast, the weird double life.

[–] mphsss 9 years ago

They made a classic in my opinion. I hope the cast and crew know that. I also think they did a pretty good job of making it feel pre-9/11. I dunno if making that 2001 connection is really relevant but it's something I've thought about a few times. I dunno, this may seem like a weird description, but I've observed that films from 1994 to 2001 have this squeaky clean vibe/overly optimistic view of the world i.e. You've Got Mail and/or a rather shiny picture quality even if terrorism is a huge part of the plot, represented by a lot of films from 1996. Then you get into 2002-2007 and everything feels like Ridley Scott did the lighting. Breach seemed to find a way of having that lighter tone.

[–] TeraisaWrites 9 years ago

I had to review the book years ago-the story was crazy amazing and easy to read. I'm watching the movie now-already I like the actors and was happy to read the posts here.

[–] MortimerSpice 9 years ago

Same here. The whole spy thing is intriguing to me and the punishments these guys get when caught

[–] Mjtw-90-874924 9 years ago

Chris Cooper did an amazing job as always. That's part of what makes this movie so mesmerizing.

[–] skat1140 8 years ago

It's Chris Cooper, and to a lesser extent, Ryan Phillipe.

One thing I'd like to know: -did- "Eric O'Neill" exist? Is that his real name? Did he really quit and become a lawyer? Or is it some cheap drama to move the plot along.

It wasn't the strain of "being FBI" that was stressing his marriage. It was being undercover. Presumably, in his further career, he will not be doing undercover work (or could opt out of such), and be able to have both his FBI career and his marriage. So, that part of the story was annoying.

[–] sleepingtiger (712) 7 years ago

skat1140:
Yeah, O'Neill is a real person (he actually did the DVD commentary for the film along with the director/co-writer,Billy Ray, and it's definitely worth listening to, especially after you're seen the film.) I liked the film, and was kind of surprised that I'd never heard much about it. I remember when it came out--it didn't seem to get much hype though. Also, Chris Cooper was marvelous as Hansen-----he's one of those excellent character actors that just seems to fit neatly into whatever role he plays, without a single hitch. And Philippe (whom I think is kind of underrated as an actor due to the fact that he's hot) held up the film really well----he's become a pretty good character actor himself in the meanwhile. I liked the film, and even though I've seem a dozen films like this before, there was nothing about it that made me feel like I was watching the same-old same-old---it was a surprisingly fresh look at the true-life story of a spy. I really liked it, as well as the relationship dynamic between the two main characters. I'd definitely recommend this one if you love spy stories. I remember the Hansen case from way back. There's a pretty good series called THE ASSETS which tells the story of Aldritch Ames who also worked for the FBI and was doing the same thing Hansen did---go figure.

[–] morganseer 8 years ago

it doesn't seem to lose intrigue despite being a pretty straightforward story on the surface.

I've seen it twice now, and enjoyed it both times A LOT. I think the whole combination just works. Excellent script, excellent acting, just the right amount of tension, interesting lighting... I didn't find one discordant note in the whole movie.

BBL

[–] sleepingtiger (712) 7 years ago

Exactly---it's almost what a perfect spy and espionage film should be like,lol.

[–] BourbonKing (5778) 4 years ago

The story is straightforward but what's fascinating is Hanssen's contradicting motivations. On the outside he professes a disciplined and God-fearing pretense to living life as devout Catholic and an American patriot but then he's fully engulfed with selling secrets to the very entity he derides as devious, cunning, and worst of all godless.

[–] ebhaynz (3689) 3 years ago

First of all yes it's a great movie, with excellent screenplay, solid directing, nail biting suspense, and the entire cast is great with the added plus that there's a subtle amount of pathos that Chris Cooper exhibits that we all can relate to. He's not really a monster he's conflicted between his faith, his job, and the lure of easy money.

The whole movie is done in such a way we can't press pause or walk away from it half way through. We are so mesmerized we cannot resist any impulse to stop watching..quite simply, we have to see the entire plot play out no matter if we know the ending or not.