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| "I give up. Where's Damon?" |
Directed by Tony Gilroy
Produced by Patrick Crowley, Frank Marshall, Ben Smith, and Jeffrey M. Weiner
Written by Tony Gilroy and Dan Gilroy; characters by Robert Ludlum
Starring Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, Edward Norton, Joan Allen, and Albert Finney
***
What goes on in the world of Jason Bourne is not all about the ex-CIA assassin. That much is clear in Tony Gilroy's addendum that occurs during the events of The Bourne Ultimatum. Instead of Matt Damon's popular character, the film's protagonist is Aaron Cross (Renner), a field agent who is attacked by his own organization at a training facility in Alaska. Essentially, the Bourne fiasco has created a situation in which CIA man Eric Byer's (Norton) organization determines that all Outcome agents - Cross included - should be removed from the equation. But Cross escapes and teams up with the scientist Dr. Marta Shearing (Weisz), who takes him across the globe to get an injection that should eliminate the need for the program's enhancement pills he has been using. Then they are chased around a city in the Philippines by a series of government agents. And...that's it really.
This is hardly a bad film, but it is hardly a worthwhile one either. For one thing, the look of the film is not on par with Supremacy and Ultimatum. I don't mean to compare it to those films, because those were actual Bourne films. Still, the fact remains that this looks more like Identity, which is more sleek than gritty. The handheld style is greatly missed here. Performance-wise, there is nothing to complain about, yet nothing to rejoice in either. Renner, Weisz, Norton, and company do just fine. (Where was Joan Allen? Blink and you'll miss her.) This film is pure entertainment from a proven writer/director and a talented cast. And that's ok. The problem is that it's not much besides that. The realism has been watered down to the point that Cross doesn't appear physically weak at all. Granted, he's been taking pills to enhance his mind and body, so that part of the story that gets a halfhearted pass. If a sequel is a must (and it almost certainly is), bring back Damon and Greengrass, so that audiences can have the gravitas incorporated with the action.
This is hardly a bad film, but it is hardly a worthwhile one either. For one thing, the look of the film is not on par with Supremacy and Ultimatum. I don't mean to compare it to those films, because those were actual Bourne films. Still, the fact remains that this looks more like Identity, which is more sleek than gritty. The handheld style is greatly missed here. Performance-wise, there is nothing to complain about, yet nothing to rejoice in either. Renner, Weisz, Norton, and company do just fine. (Where was Joan Allen? Blink and you'll miss her.) This film is pure entertainment from a proven writer/director and a talented cast. And that's ok. The problem is that it's not much besides that. The realism has been watered down to the point that Cross doesn't appear physically weak at all. Granted, he's been taking pills to enhance his mind and body, so that part of the story that gets a halfhearted pass. If a sequel is a must (and it almost certainly is), bring back Damon and Greengrass, so that audiences can have the gravitas incorporated with the action.
1. The Bourne Supremacy - ****
2. The Bourne Ultimatum - ****
3. The Bourne Identity - ****
4. The Bourne Legacy - ***
Oscar Potential: Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing
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