Breaking In [Blu-ray]

Director: Bill Forsyth Bill Forsyth

Overview

In this comedy (which claims a strong pedigree -- it was written by John Sayles and directed by Bill Forsyth), Burt Reynolds plays Ernie, an aging career burglar who knows just about everything there is to know about breaking and entering. One night, Ernie has stealthily slipped into a home only to discover someone else is already there -- Mike (Casey Siemaszko), a guy in his early 20's who likes to sneak into other people's houses so he can raid their refrigerators and watch their televisions. Ernie is taken aback by Mike's recklessness, but is impressed by his skills; he's convinced the kids has the makings of a first-class thief, and offers to make him his protege. Mike agrees, and soon the two are working together, with Ernie trying to explain the importance of playing it as safe as possible while Casey follows every youthful impulse to make some fast money and throw it away just as quickly. Breaking In marked a change-of-pace role for Burt Reynolds, in which he acknowledged his age and played a character role instead of an action hero; the results garnered him some of the best notices of his career.

Product Details

Release Date:	01/11/2022
UPC:	0738329257446
Original Release:	1989
Rating:	R
Source:	Kl Studio Classics
Language:	English
Time:	1:34:00
Sales rank:	5,091

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Burt Reynolds	Ernie Mullins
Casey Siemaszko	Mike Lafebb
Sheila Kelley	Carrie aka Fontaine
Lorraine Toussaint	Delphine the Hooker
Albert Salmi	Johnny Scat
Harry Carey Jr.	Shoes
Maury Chaykin	Tucci
Stephen Tobolowsky	District Attorney
Richard Key Jones	Lou
Tom Laswell	Bud
Frank A. Damiani	Waiter
David Frishberg	Nightclub Singer
John Baldwin	Sam the Apostle
Eddie Driscoll	Paul the Apostle
Melanie Moseley	Young Woman Apostle
Galen B. Schrick	Choir Master,Choir Master
Duggan L. Wendeborn	Faith House Member
K. Gordan Scott	Counterman
Kim Singer	Anchorwoman
Charles E. Compton	Real Estate Agent
Clifford Nelson	Old Man
Earle Taylor	Mr. Withrow
Roy McGillivray	Old Man
Julianne R. Johnson	Cashier
Rod Long	Garbage Truck Driver
Aaron Cooley	Teenage Boy On Skates
Eddie Gove	Scavenger
Daryl Olson	1st Security Guard
Joseph Burke	Ted
Gene Dynarski	Brock
George Catalano	2nd Security Guard
Ted Bryant	Newscaster
Garcia Phelps	Gerry Hacker
John R. Knotts	1st Detective
Jack Esformes	Mike's Prison Buddy
Russ Fast	2nd Detective
Charles Bernard	Judge
Alan Fudge	3rd Detective
Michael Gibbs	Composer
Douglas Mace	1st Prison Guard
Stephan Adam Szymel	2nd Prison Guard

Technical Credits

John Sayles

Bill Forsyth	Director
John Sayles	Screenwriter
Sarah Ryan Black	Executive Producer
Harry Gittes	Producer
Andrew Meyer	Executive Producer

Editorial Reviews

Ernest Mullins (Burt Reynolds) is a safe cracker, and he has his rules: No negative thinking on the job. Check whether the safe is locked before you try to crack it (lots of people never lock them). Don't think about the people you steal from. Always launder your money at the local OTB. Avoid throwing around the money you steal, and always, always be moderate with the nitroglycerine. Thanks to a wry, witty script by co-screenwriter John Sayles and equally low-key direction by co-screenwriter Bill Forsyth (Local Hero, Gregory's Girl), Reynolds does some of his best work in this amiable comedy. Reynolds puts a lot of technique into the role, wearing thick glasses, a paunch, a gray toupee, and affecting a noticeable limp, but never lets any of it interfere with his character's ease. It's a starring role that Reynolds puts himself into, but with modesty, and with none of the torpor that characterizes so much of his work. He shines, too -- one wonders why a man so talented has frittered so much of that talent away in so many forgettable roles. Like Forsyth, whose comedies are so understated they almost qualify as character studies, Reynolds and co-star Casey Siemaszko never reach for the laughs. Breaking In lacks the fairy tale elements that characterize what is arguably his best movie, Local Hero, nor is as sharply observed as Gregory's Girl, but it has its mellow satisfactions.

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