James McTeigue promises a gritty home invasion movie but ends up producing a sluggish story complete with cardboard characters and humdrum action sequences.Known for his political-thriller movie “V for Vendetta,” director James McTeigue was once a well-celebrated director but after his 2009 film “Ninja Assassin,” everything went downhill. Indeed, his filmography is far from the best but his latest offering promises to be enthralling and edgy. But, spoiler alert, it wasn’t.
“Breaking In” follows a mother named Shaun Russel (Gabrielle Union) as she tries to save her two children, Jasmine (Ajiona Alexus) and Glover (Seth Carr), from a group of burglars lead by the stoic crime boss, Eddie (Billy Burke). It’s a home-bound thriller that lacks the ‘thrill’ needed to arrest attention or interest.
To put it simply, “Breaking In” is unoriginal and lazily written. It recycles every trope in the film making handbook plus the characters, especially the villains, are mindbogglingly dense and weak. There is no character development of sort. It feels like the movie is not even trying to be clever, fun, or gritty. It seems like this movie is contented to stay right below average when it's premise promises a riveting story that can explore a myriad of topics such as motherhood, racism, crime, and violence.
The only exciting part of “Breaking In” is Gabrielle Union. The “Birth of a Nation” actress single-handedly makes this film bearable. If there is one good thing that “Breaking In” did, that is to prove that Union is deserving for more lead roles. Even though her phenomenal performance is the direct opposite of her co-stars, it’s a delight to see her star in a woman-can-fight-back story.
Furthermore, “Breaking In” is not as good as it looks. Sure, it has some good moments but, overall, it’s just plain and uninteresting. It’s a watered-down “Panic Room,” with no sort of tension… Or panic.
“Breaking In” is a good example of a potential wasted because of bad writing. McTeigue has his days but, with this movie, it’s hard to believe that he ever directed a thought-provoking movie back in ‘06. Anyway, I would recommend watching other movies than this.
1/5
