Writer/director Anthony Minghella (THE ENGLISH PATIENT) crafts a multilayered drama that investigates the criminal heart in all of us.
Will (Jude Law, CLOSER) is a landscape architect working on a project to turn an impoverished area of London into a viable quarter. He lives with his long-term girlfriend Liv (Robin Wright Penn, NINE LIVES) and her autistic daughter Beatrice (Poppy Rogers, FROM HELL). Will and Liv’s relationship is on the rocks. Will and his partner Sandy (Martin Freeman, HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY) set up their new office in the very neighborhood they are trying to revive. However, this leads to several break-ins, conducted by free runners, including Miro (Rafi Gavron, film debut), who works for a group of immigrant crooks.
Miro’s loving mother Amira (Juliette Binoche, CACHE) tries desperately to keep her son out of trouble. After Will chases Miro to his home one night, he meets Amira and is smitten by her. Other key characters include police detective Bruno (Ray Winstone, SEXY BEAST), prostitute Oana (Vera Farmiga, THE DEPARTED) and the office’s cleaner Erika (AEON FLUX).
Set in an ever more urbanized London, the film deals with themes of longing to connect with others and the divide between the rich and the poor. The story deals with many characters trying to break into something, whether it be a building or a new way of life or a relationship.
Will wants to break into the relationship between Liv and her daughter, but feels forced into an outsider role. Miro wants to break into the more lavish lifestyle of white Britons. Later, Will tries breaking into Amira’s family, looking for something he can’t find at home. Both Will and Miro, however, have barriers that prevent them, which include emotional, economical and societal walls. Those same issues exist when Sandy wants to date Erika.
There’s a lot going on in this film, which is good and bad. At times, you feel overwhelmed by ideas and confused with where the film is going and what it's trying to say. But in the end, the messages become clearer. Minghella weaves several metaphors together to a conclusion that feels a bit contrived, but works in regards to the overall themes.
What sells everything is the richly drawn characters. Some of the film’s confusion comes from a good problem — Minghella loves his characters, making them real and complex and not just pieces of a thematic puzzle. All the characters are fleshed out.
The entire cast breathes life into their roles. Law and Wright Penn have played characters similar to these before and they are good here too. However, Binoche radiates. She brings great joy and pain to her Serbian immigrant character, who struggles to survive in London when she wishes she could go back to her home. In a supporting role, which adds great humor, Farmiga shines, making a big impression. It’s a shame that her character is lost halfway through the film.
If there is one major flaw, it’s that Minghella may have bitten off more than the film can handle. This lessens some of the emotional punch, but never ruins the film. The story remains captivating like a good mystery would, making us wonder where it’s going. With its complex characters brought to life skillfully by a great cast, it makes us think and care. To some degree, the film explains the key thing that drives the criminal mind — a longing for something one does not have and wants desperately. However, BREAKING AND ENTERING also finds a hopeful note at the end of that destructive urge — the need to repent.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
