One of my favorite actors, Chris Cooper, whose films I've sought out since I first saw him in John Sayles' Matewan, stars in Breach, a taught spy drama based on the actual case of Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent who fed the Russians secrets for 20 years.

Acclaimed up-and-coming young actor Ryan Philippe portays a rookie agent assigned to assist Hanssen, but in reality he's part of a sting operation that is out to nail the spy.

Judging from the previews, Cooper is all kinds of creepy in this, which is something he excells at - just revisit American Beauty sometime.

A fun evening or series of evenings for me would be to load up the DVD player with nothing but Chris Cooper movies - Adaptation, Silver City and Matewan would be among them.

Breach played in the States back in February, and was released on DVD in June. I'm heartened to see it here on the big screen. With an 84% (fresh) rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it's a winner.

Also opening

• Ponglang Amazing Theatre - The colorful Thai country comedy troupe comes to the big screen with some ghostly hi-jinks. This is the group that features a pair of similar-looking, always-screaming women. Are they twins? Are they sisters? What's their story? I can't tell for sure. They are led by a young guy with a goatee, who's always wearing a kilt, though he is sans kilt in this movie, and is oddly sporting a Star of David pendant. I have no clue what they are on about, yet I watch, transfixed. Truly amazing.
• No Reservations - By most accounts, this is a light, tasteful romantic comedy-drama, starring the ever-so-easy-on-the-eyes Catherine Zeta-Jones as an uptight gourmet chef, who falls in love with a shaggy-haired new cook (the big-chinned lug, Aaron Eckhart). However, at home, Catherine's character is having to figure out how to take care of her 8-year-old niece (Abigail Breslin from Little Miss Sunshine - a movie I have yet to see), who's lost her parents.
• Kitaro - Here's a live-action adaptation of a hit Japanese manga. Critical consensus is that it has its moments, but some of the special effects are underbaked. With English and Thai subtitles at the Lido.

There are more openings on December 5, His Majesty the King's birthday: The Life of Buddha, Bee Movie, The Golden Compass and The Screen at Kamchanod. They are detailed here.