Breaking In

Just in time for Mother's Day comes a thrill-free, home-invasion thriller about a mom (Gabrielle Union) who'll stop at nothing to keep four bad guys from killing her two kids. Buy a ticket to this dull, dim-witted con job and you'll want to break out.

James McTeigue has a fleet, efficient visual style that keeps the suspense set pieces percolating.

There is a familiarity to its characters and story, which doesn't do much at all in terms of reinventing the genre, but very much meets its own expectations.

"Breaking In" is broken.

Without suspense, all the audience has to go on are the plot mechanics, which are no great shakes, and the characters, which are paper-thin.

Breaking In mirrors the incompetence of its crooks, in the sense that it doesn't feel like much thought went into plotting it out.

Should have been Die Hard in a McMansion, but this Mother's Day-coinciding release - an obviously intended paean to fierce moms - unfortunately dies easily.

'Breaking In' is a lackluster thriller.

Does she get to say: "You broke into the wrong house"? You bet she does.

Some stylish direction can't compensate for some massive logical gaps and eye-rolling twists.

A ratty little thriller that knows just how trashy is the right amount of trashy.

Action hero may not be what [Gabrielle] Union does best, but her versatility stands her in good enough stead; here's hoping this potboiler makes enough money to bring her vehicles more worthy of her.