Based on a true story, Breach follows the tail end of a massive internal investigation of FBI agent Robert Hanssen, who was arrested for treason and espionage in 2001. And interesting as that sad chapter in American intelligence might be, the biggest problem weighing down this thriller is that everyone already knows how the story ends at the outset. Unlike other fictional recreations, like Titanic, here we don’t root for survivors, or the heroes trying to save the children.

Perhaps for security purposes very little of what happened can be shown, and the director wanted to honor real events which meant pulling punches. Maybe the story arc did not lend itself to a visual adaption. But if either is the case, going for the dramatic would have been acceptable, and a lot more entertaining. A bit of artistic license goes a long way. Ultimately there is not much story to Breach.

What works:

1) Tight, zinger based dialog keeps many of the scenes afloat.

2) Chris Cooper. Great actor caught in a mediocre movie, yet he makes the best of his sentence.

What needs improvement:

1) Ryan Phillipe. He’s just cursed.

2) The script. Going for inspired by a true story, i.e. keep the names and the fact that Hanssen got arrested and invent the rest, would have unleashed a cosmos of drama and entertainment. Instead, I got warm milk and stone cold cookies.

3) The concept: In the wake of 9/11, do audiences really want to see the FBI in an unflattering light? Because they look bad here. Just awful.

Verdict: Cable.