Written by Caballero Oscuro
Director Anthony Minghella rose to prominence with a trio of literary adaptations (The English Patient, The Talented Mr. Ripley, and Cold Mountain) but returns to his own original material for Breaking and Entering. He borrowed his acting leads from his past works, relying on regular collaborator Jude Law and returning star Juliette Binoche, then added Robin Wright Penn to form a potent thespian trinity. He set the film in modern London and constructed a tale of literal and figurative theft relying on nuanced performances. On paper, it seems like this film should be a sure-fire winner, at least for the Oscar-minded crowd, so it's surprising that Minghella’s original script fails to ignite.
Will Francis (Law) is a successful architect in the midst of opening a sprawling new office with his business partner Sandy (Martin Freeman) in the crime-ridden King’s Cross area of London. Unfortunately, all of the shiny new Macs and monitors are an irresistible draw for the area crooks, leading to two back-to-back break-ins that leave the partners shell-shocked and deservedly jumpy about security. Will decides to stake out the office at night, setting up patrol outside in his car that yields results when he observes the athletic young thief (Rafi Gavron) trying to break in again. His pursuit of the thief leads him to the thief’s home, where he eventually spots the kid’s somewhat frumpy mother Amira (Binoche). And here’s the exact point where the movie throws all credibility out the window.
Any sane character would immediately contact the police and have the thief apprehended, but Will is curious about his background and decides to try to learn more about him and his mother instead. Keep in mind that he’s a wealthy architect in a completely different social stratosphere with a lovely wife (Penn) and daughter waiting at home. Upon discovering that Amira works as a tailor, he approaches her with some garments to mend as a pretense to explore the boy’s room. Amira is a timid Bosnian refugee, while Will is flashy and cosmopolitan (not much of a stretch for Law), but he finds himself drawn to her and eventually enters a torrid affair. Sure, he’s having significant marital problems at home, but his preference of the dowdy and stoic peasant Amira over his classy wife Liv nevers comes close to ringing true, leaving the film’s emotional core completely bankrupt.
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