Chris Cooper, who won an Oscar for his supporting role in Adaptation, gives a brilliant poker-faced performance as Hanssen and Ryan Phillippe is also convincing as O’Neill.

Despite a couple of tense set pieces, the suspense needed to ignite this film is disappointingly lacking.

In the face of such a towering performance from Cooper, Phillippe keeps his end up while Laura Linney, as his handler, delivers the kind of turn we’ve come to expect from one of America’s finest movie actresses.

An effective and meticulous character drama, Breach doesn't quite make the most of its story but still tells a fascinating tale, aided by Chris Cooper's magnetic central performance.

Slow-burning and sombre, Breach won’t be for everyone. But it’s worth catching for Cooper’s performance, while its fact-based tale of treachery will strike a chord in today’s climate of suspicion.

Tense, fascinating, worthwhile.

Despite a career-best turn from Chris Cooper, however, Breach is a weirdly muted affair.

Cold and cerebral, with simmering suspense rather than outright excitement, this is a feel-the-quality-of-the-acting movie. It can’t answer all sorts of questions, but does take a scary mug shot of a subtle monster.

Oferecendo uma performance densa e repleta de complexidade, Cooper ajuda o filme a se recuperar de uma estrutura narrativa que parece ter o propósito de minar qualquer tensão ou surpresa.

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