Keeps you focused, very interesting, based on a true story.

Breach is a wonderful, slow-burning thriller based on the worst breach in American history. It also goes along well as a cat-and-mouse thriller between the undercover FBI agent, O'Neill and the suspected man himself, Robert Hanssen. Even though the film is a work of fiction, it provides lots of information about the actual events, and I learned a lot that way. The film goes a good job in building up the tension, despite knowing exactly how the film is going to end. The film is well-acted and provides a strong script.Billy Ray's film is about an FBI agent named Eric O'Neill who desperately wants a promotion and he seizes his chance when he is tasked to get close to a senior agent named Robert Hanssen who has also been labeled as a sexual deviant but it is also believed he is selling secrets to the Soviets. While undercover, the task proves to be hard as O'Neill begins to grow fond of the man and is facing issues at home because of his new boss.The film is well-acted especially from Chris Cooper who gives a tour-de-force performance as Robert Hanssen. Cooper gives a strong amount of a cunning and untrustworthy personality and it gave me the creeps sometimes as I felt he could see through O'Neill's identity. Ryan Phillippe gives a good performance as the young O'Neill who eventually became a hero of the FBI. Laura Linney also does well as the stern, no-nonsense boss of O'Neill.Overall, Breach is a chilling story depicting the worst espionage any American have committed in history. It shows just how vulnerable our secrets can be, especially in the wrong hands. I like how the film also turned into a deep character study focusing on the Catholicism of Hanssen. This is a fantastic film, although it's a bit of a slow burner. I rate this film 9/10.

Breach is a historical drama film directed by Billy Ray. The screenplay by Ray, Adam Mazer, and William Rotko is based on the true story of Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent convicted of spying for the Soviet Union and later Russia for more than two decades, and Eric O'Neill, who worked as his assistant and helped bring about his downfall. Chris Cooper and Ryan Philippe star in this fact-based drama concerning the FBI traitor who carried out what many historians refer to as the most notable national security breach in U.S. history. A key member of the FBI's elite Soviet Analytical Unit, Robert Hanssen (Cooper) would, for 15 years beginning in 1985, sell thousands of pages of classified documents to the Soviets. After making roughly 600,000 dollars on his clandestine endeavor and compromising everything from the identities of KGB spies working for the American government to nuclear war contingency plans, Hanssen was eventually transferred to a newly created position at the FBI's Washington headquarters and assigned the task of guarding his country's most sensitive secrets. It was while working in this capacity that a young agent named Eric O'Neill (Phillipe) was assigned the task of keeping tabs on Hanssen by suspicious higher-ups. Later, after being arrested while delivering a cache of secret documents to a "dead drop" spot in a Virginia park, the notorious traitor was arrested and sentenced to life in prison with no chance for parole.Powered by Chris Cooper's masterful performance, Breach is a tense and engaging portrayal of the FBI's infamous turncoat.He is the is the principal reason why this unspectacular, low-key study of the Hanssen national security fiasco is so effective.The movie soars because of it.Aside from that,it is an espionage thriller which focuses on strong character development, performances and setting that it feels so realistic and far from being contrived.Overall,it is an enjoyable, slow-burning thriller with an intelligent script that it should be classified as a must-see.

In 2001, the FBI clerk Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe), who is a specialist in computer but wants to be an agent, is invited by agent Kate Burroughs (Laura Linney) to work with the senior agent Robert Hanssen (Chris Cooper) that had worked for many years in Soviet Union and now is assigned to protect the agency against electronic infiltration. Kate tells to Eric to write down the behavior of Hanssen in notes and send them to her since Hanssen would be a pervert under investigation of his sexual behavior.Eric works with the bitter and rough Hanssen and he finds a family man and devout Catholic who earns his respect instead of a deviant. Further, his investigation and his relationship with Hanssen and his wife Bonnie (Kathleen Quinlan) affects Eric's wife Juliana (Caroline Dhavernas). Eric tells his opinion to Kate and she decides to tell the truth about Hanssen to him: he is a mole that sold many secrets to the Soviet Union and has compromised the identity of dozens of agents. Eric decides to go on in his assignment despite his friendship with Hanssen and the problems in his marriage."Breach" is an engaging and dramatic spy movie based on the true story of an FBI agent that was arrested for spying on 20 February 2001. I bought this DVD many years ago and only yesterday I decided to watch it and I found a great film.The plot is developed in adequate pace and supported by magnificent performances of Chris Cooper, Ryan Phillippe and Laura Linney. The duel between Eric O'Neill and Robert Hanssen is fantastic. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "Quebra de Confiança" ("Fail in Confidence")