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Breathe In

Play trailer Poster for Breathe In R Released Mar 28, 2014 1h 37m Drama Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
56% Tomatometer 77 Reviews 41% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
Father Keith (Guy Pearce, Memento), mother Megan (Amy Ryan, Birdman) and 17-year-old daughter Lauren (Mackenzie Davis, Terminator: Dark Fate), live a comfortable life--but there is something missing. Megan is never quite satisfied with the way things are, while Keith has given up his dreams of being a musician for the steady paycheck of a music teacher. When beautiful foreign exchange student Sophie (Felicity Jones, Rogue One) comes into their lives, Keith is immediately drawn to her. She's mature beyond her years, and yearns for someone to make her feel safe and loved. Keith and Sophie share flirtatious looks and the occasional touching of hands, which only increases the intensity of their bond. When they finally decide to run away together, they set into motion a series of events that lead to a heartbreaking and immensely moving conclusion.
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Breathe In

Breathe In

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Critics Consensus

Breathe In's plot never quite sparks the way it should, but it remains thoroughly watchable thanks to strong performances from Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce.

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Critics Reviews

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Larushka Ivan-Zadeh metro.co.uk A sombre, low-key, male mid-life crisis drama, full of meaningful glances, unspoken resentment and underlying regret. Sep 5, 2017 Full Review Steven Rea Philadelphia Inquirer There's something flimsy and unformed at these characters' cores, something that no amount of jumpy close-ups, skittering sideways glances, and rainy music can make up for. Rated: 2.5/4 Apr 18, 2014 Full Review Marjorie Baumgarten Austin Chronicle Fine performances barely make up for this melodrama's narrative bankruptcy. Rated: 1.5/5 Apr 17, 2014 Full Review Craig Williams CineVue There's an enquiring restlessness to Doremus' camera, always searching for small gestures and glances which, along with Dustin O'Halloran's beautifully forlorn score and DoP John Guleserian washed-out palates, creates a sensuous, longing atmosphere. Rated: 4/5 Feb 26, 2019 Full Review Morgan Rojas Cinemacy Unfortunately, even a great cast and solid cinematography couldn't combat against a weak script. Dec 16, 2018 Full Review PJ Nabarro Patrick Nabarro A beautifully realised piece of cinema, and Doremus seems to understand that storytelling on film needn't just be about dramaturgy, but also more tactile and ephemeral things. Rated: 4/5 Dec 16, 2018 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Matthew D A perfect film for gazing longingly into Felicity Jones’ spellbinding blue eyes. Director Drake Doremus’ indie romance drama Breathe In (2013) is phenomenal. You get this sultry affair and all these intense feelings of yearning, desire, and understanding. The expressive piano music swirls around these characters all experiencing deep anguish and guilt over this affair they are aware of and how it destroys a family. Breathe In feels very poetic and artful with shocking revelations and really earnest filmmaking. I just loved Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce in this powerful drama Breathe In. Writers Ben York Jones and Drake Doremus craft a tender romance script full of intrigue, tenderness, and passion. I know Drake Doremus had a mostly improvised script for Like Crazy starring Felicity Jones, so I am impressed he just did a 60 page outline for Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce to improvise all their dialogue. I appreciate their foreshadowing with certain characters looking at each other or characters constantly saying be careful of your driving. It’s interesting that Doremus cast Felicity as a foreign exchange student again. She gets to be the enchanting foreigner sweeping a man disillusioned with his loveless marriage, dissatisfying teaching career, and finding comfort in a gifted pianist with a shared love of music. You get every relationship dynamic between a married man going through a midlife crisis, a grown man seeking a younger girl than his wife, a teacher creeping on his young student, a jealous teenage daughter who cannot cope with how horrible men treat her, a wife worried about her husband and marriage, and a sleazy male student lying about the girls in his grade. Breathe In reminded me of other films about infidelity and attraction like Like Crazy, The Piano, The Crush, Unfaithful, Marriage Story, and The Descendants. Casting director Eyde Belasco cast amazing actors and actresses for Breathe In’s strong ensemble. Australian actor Guy Pearce is enthralling as the sorrowful piano music teacher Keith Reynolds, who longs for a job as a cellist in an orchestra. Pearce is fascinating with his sullen looks at his wife who he thinks doesn’t support him or his aspirations. His lustful glances at Felicity and guilty looks at his own daughter are engaging. He really captures the different emotions this villain is feeling. English actress Felicity Jones is precious, subtle, and captivating as the English foreign exchange student Sophie. Her piercing blue eyes convey a sincere desire for love, but also invite us into her guilt. You feel her initial loneliness and wanderlust that turns into musical interest in Pearce’s Keith, then a real lust. Jones is the most natural actress with hypnotizing eyes. I love how you can tell she’ll immediately start flirting with this married man with her certain side looks as well as the boyfriend of his daughter. While she rejects the boyfriend’s drunken advances, you can tell through Felicity’s expressive eyes she really lingers on Guy and matches his yearning. American actress Amy Ryan is fascinating too as Guy’s wife Megan Reynolds. You can tell she is suspicious and forlorn until Amy’s character really understands the depths of her husband’s betrayal. She’s very nuanced in her gestures. Canadian actress Mackenzie Davis is excellent as the hurt teenage daughter Lauren Reynolds. She starts out as happy and friendly, then turns to despair and hopelessness as she realizes what is happening around her. Breathe In is a devastating supporting actress role for Mackenzie Davis. American actress and comedian Alexandra Wentworth is funny as the family friend Wendy Sebeck. Kyle MacLachlan is hilarious as her sleazy husband Peter Sebeck, who gazes at Felicity and comments on her body to Guy Pearce. It’s a very funny quick cameo. New York actor and Alexandra Daddario’s brother Matthew Daddario is really creepy as the sleazy high schooler Aaron, who previously slept with Lauren. Him lying about sleeping with a girl to his friends is so casually cruel. Editor Jonathan Alberts’ gently dreamy cutting style lets each scene flow with a natural poetic style. Every scene in Breathe In allows the audience into the intimate moments. He emphasizes the particular gaze of someone’s eyes locking with another with yearning. Cinematographer John Guleserian shoots the most mesmerizing close up shots of Felicity Jones’ pretty eyes. Production designer Katie Byron’s cozy home sets are quite nice and realistic. Composer Dustin O'Halloran’s serene film score sounds so romantic. His gentle piano playing delivers a tranquil atmosphere for his lovely film score. All the real classical pieces performed by the orchestra are beautiful as well of course. Sound designer Jesse Pomeroy, Andy Hay, and Paul Stanley capture every soft note and spoken word with clarity and little ambient noises. Costume designer Emma Potter gives Felicity Jones the cutest dresses, blouses, jeans, sneakers, and swimsuits. In all, Felicity Jones and Guy Pearce are simply marvelous for all 98 minutes. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/04/25 Full Review Brian M I utterly loved this film. I thought the quietness of the character played by Felicity Jones came with really charged intensity. It was very easy to see how the father, Keith (played by Guy Pearce), would have fallen for the hypnotic alure of Ms Jones' character. Oh, and the music. Wonderful. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/21/25 Full Review Abigail M i was constantly annoyed by that one girl. shes like the main character but i dont even remember her name. it was a very odd movie with a confusing ending. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 07/01/23 Full Review Emilliano S Like a forgetful mellow drama: breathe in, breathe out. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/03/23 Full Review Shock Therapy R Mr Holland's Opus 2. But the sequels always suck. In this rendition the young, freedom-inspiring girl is blamed for the tryst, AND we don't know what Mr. Holland actually decides in his quest for youth and passion. However in this case, Mrs. Holland kind of has it coming with the constant put downs and sarcasm. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 12/28/22 Full Review Audience Member Can a 18 something teen of half the age of a talented musician disrupt the happy family life, the reply shall be not usually. The director with excellent team has convincingly dramatized the story of mid-life crisis when a man in his forties finds himself attracted to a teen that lives with his family as a foreign exchange student. There is neither an ideal nor any bad character in the family drama ; for a sensitive human being it shall not be easily forgotten. I recommend the movie , it is one of the 20 best films ever watched by me during the 21st century; characters and situations may be seen by the audience with open eyes as fully lived in instead of merely portrayed. It is not perfect like life (with a sigh...) Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Breathe In

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Movie Info

Synopsis Father Keith (Guy Pearce, Memento), mother Megan (Amy Ryan, Birdman) and 17-year-old daughter Lauren (Mackenzie Davis, Terminator: Dark Fate), live a comfortable life--but there is something missing. Megan is never quite satisfied with the way things are, while Keith has given up his dreams of being a musician for the steady paycheck of a music teacher. When beautiful foreign exchange student Sophie (Felicity Jones, Rogue One) comes into their lives, Keith is immediately drawn to her. She's mature beyond her years, and yearns for someone to make her feel safe and loved. Keith and Sophie share flirtatious looks and the occasional touching of hands, which only increases the intensity of their bond. When they finally decide to run away together, they set into motion a series of events that lead to a heartbreaking and immensely moving conclusion.
Director
Drake Doremus
Producer
Steven Rales, Mark Roybal, Jonathan Schwartz, Andrea Sperling
Screenwriter
Drake Doremus, Ben York Jones
Distributor
Cohen Media Group
Production Co
Super Crispy Entertainment, Indian Paintbrush
Rating
R (Some Language)
Genre
Drama, Romance
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 28, 2014, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 13, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$88.1K
Runtime
1h 37m
Sound Mix
Datasat, SDDS, Dolby Digital
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