Bourne’s back! And this time he’s determined to find out his true identity.
The Bourne Ultimatum takes off where the Supremacy ended with Jason Bourne(Matt Damon) trying to retrace his steps, find sources and eliminate adversaries in this frenzied motion picture. Bourne’s quest takes him across Russia, Paris, Morocco, New York(to name a few places) and the movie rapidly develops and gains momentum with each new location. His search for his identity, quickly unearths some skeletons which the CIA would like to keep buried. Helping him this time around are CIA agents Nicky Parsons(Julia Stiles) and Pam Landy(Joan Allen), even while he is pursued by a bevy of agents out to kill him - no questions asked!
I’m going to compare this one with the Bourne Identity since I have no recollection of watching Supremacy even though I have been repeatedly assured that I watched it. No, I’m not a huge fan, though I did enjoy the two I did watch immensely. I guess the good thing is that the movie stands alone so well, a viewer knowing the general premise is quickly and effectively sucked into the plot.
Matt Damon as Bourne is more hard-edged this time around. I always had problems reconciling Damon’s mostly good-boy looks to a role like Bourne, but he’s really fantastically and aggressively believable here. Gone is his ambivalence from the Identity, in this movie he knows he’s a killing machine and he uses that knowledge to get the information that he needs. And his vulnerable eyes in the emotional parts speak to his acting range very nicely. The movie is filled with good performances all around with David Strathaim, Albert Finney, Stiles and Allen all lending their acting chops to make the whole, however, Damon’s really made this one enjoyable for me!
Contributing brilliantly to the effectiveness of the movie is the camera work and direction by Paul Greengrass. While the constant motion did leave me a little sea-sick at the beginning, this technique is brilliant during a chase-and-fight sequence in Tangiers where you are propelled across rooftops, through open windows and with the actor’s punches in a violent fight sequence. The action seems almost as inspired as Casino Royale which upped the ante for action movies. Action sequences seem to be veering towards the visceral, realistic approach so when something like Die-Hard 4 comes around which has most of the action sanitised for the PG-13 audience, it doesnt make as much of an impact anymore! There is a car chase thrown in, (how can there not be one?), but it’s more of a car pounding than an edge-of-your-seat chase. There’s more where the first 2 came from, the action never really lets up, and another scene that stands out is a brilliant game of hide-and-seek(but with higher stakes) between Bourne, a source and a large number of murderous CIA agents in a crowded Heathrow terminal.
We do have a little bit of contemporary politics thrown in with sub-plots about the power given to government in’troubled’ times. However, the’bad guys’ all get their come-uppance at the end, and these plots do not veer much away from the central theme, that of Bourne and the search for his identity. I wont give anything away here, but to those who are curious, yes, he does find out!
The end seemed like a setup for more groan deja vu coupled with one of the weirdest segues of a soundtrack I have ever experienced. However, this doesnt take anything away from the movie. For all you testosterone junkies out there who have been disappointed by the summer’s decided lack thereof, this one is definitely well worth the watch.