In
Breaking In’s opening scenes, an older man is murdered on his morning run by what looks like a Ford F-150. Shaun (Gabrielle Union), his estranged daughter, goes to the family compound in Wisconsin to ready it for sale. Of course, Pops was into a whole bunch of shady shit, was under investigation and liquidated most of his assets and stuck $4 million cash in a safe somewhere in the house. Of course, bad guys break in (ha) to find the dough the same night Shaun arrives with her daughter and son at the ol’ farm.
The compound’s state of the art security system magically works when the screenplay demands it, and mostly keeps Shaun locked out of the house while the criminals are locked in with the kids. But there are times, all too conveniently, when the security system lets Shaun in. Or back out. Breaking In’s few effective moments—a fight scene between Shaun and one of the crooks; a showdown on the lawn with all the crooks and Shaun—are undercut by the dumber moments, and plot points cribbed from
Die Hard,
Under Siege and
Panic Room.
Breaking In ultimately is a letdown, and a looooooong 88 minutes at that. Union deserves better.
By
David Riedel