Confession time...I've never been a huge fan of the Bourne movies. Never been a fan period. Nothing against Damon. I saw the first one, which a good action movie. The second one was enjoyable. The third...for me was a complete let down. The problem for me is that all the “tension” in these movies was so artificial and overblown that by the time the third movie came around I was scratching my head going “what the hell is going on here and why should I care?”. Also, Paul Greengrass has been so neck deep in the shacky cam style I have me own personal vendetta against him. Seriously, I was so mad at the shaky cam in THE BAURNE ULTIMATUM (2007) I was yelling at the television (really Greengrass, a shaky little close up every time someone talks? Suck it. How bout that?). Man, hard to believe it was that long ago.
So anyway, I was dragged to THE BOURNE LEGACY by my significant other and was actually surprised by a solid, enjoyable action movie. Read on to see why this is the Bourne film to watch.
THE STORY AND THE PEOPLE WHO GET PAID TO TALK...
I think we have reached a new era of the Hollywood prequel/sequel obsession...we now have the sidequel!!! Those are movies that take place while other movies are going on (In movie time I mean.). It's interesting, and a bit cheap, but at least we finally get some answers from this thing.
Why am I not starring in Avengers again?
Directed by Tony Gilroy (MICHEAL CLAYTON (2007)), who was also involved in writing all three of the previous Bourne films, this movie literally takes place during the behind the scenes turmoil of the third film. We get to meet the government and corporate overlords that are responsible for whatever program that birthed Jason Bourne. So there's lots of back room deals, lots of talking about numbers, and “it”. Lead by Ret Col Eric Byer (excellently played by Edward Norton) and Retired Admiral Mark Turso (played by the always iconic Stacy Keach) they basically go on a campaign to eliminate all the assets of the program. Those are other agents in the field with Jason Bourne like abilities.
Want to play spot the sequel?
They largely succeed, except for one stand out agent named Aaron Cross (played by exploding star Jeremy Renner) and a civilian, Dr. Marta Shearing (played by Rachel Weisz). They go on a journey of survival to get Cross the meds he needs to stay Bourne like (or something) and generally keep Dr. Marta from getting capped.
It's more interesting than I make it sound. Trust me.
WHAT'S ACTION A GO GO...
Well, considering that this is a blog dedicated to ACTION in movies you might be surprised that my favorite part about this movie...is the acting and the science. You see, I watch those other Bourne movies and didn't glean anything of substance. No real explanation of just what Bourne was, or what he was supposed to be. He was awesome and could run...a lot! With this movie they actually explain the chemistry that goes on in these super soldiers, and what it does to their bodies. In other words, they explain just what the hell is going on, and all the “mystery” bullsh** is left behind. This probably should have happened in IDENTITY or SUPREMACY, but as far as I could tell Bourne was too busy running around and the CIA was too busy arguing to explain this stuff.
Also, the action was good, well shot, and while the shaky cam was still present it was toned down enough so that you could make out what was going on.
Mary Cybulski/Universal Studios.
Oh, and Jeremy Renner does the business. He's intense, sincere, and very likable. Now, this is a Bourne movie, so “acting” isn't numero uno for the main lead, but he is fun to watch, and there are some (seemingly) unedited shots that are just awesome.
WHAT'S ACTION A NO NO....
Mostly logic stuff...basically, this movie shouldn't exist. After three movies if you still have this much to explain...the basic stuff really...then they didn't do all that good of a job in the first place.
Besides that the story isn't that meaty. It has a lot of cameos from other actors from the previous movies to tie everything up, and Jason Bourne has a heavy “presence”, but again, if you need to rely on a lot of the tension that occurred in another movie you are doing something wrong here.
THE VERDICT...
Beside those foibles, this is a really solid, fun action movie. The acting is fine and it keeps things moving. I think if you watch all four movies this would fit right in, which is good, and this can stand on it's own to a certain extent.
Should Hollywood keep going prequel crazy? No. They need to get off it. As beautiful as PROMETHUES (2012) was it showed that the baggage can be a bit too much to deal with.
Should the sidequel keep going? No. The madness must stop. This movie was fun but it would have been better to start from the beginning with something fresh, or just sever itself from the Bourne Legacy, which, let's honest here, isn't the strongest of a Legacy out there to begin with.
For instance, this could have been an excellent HAWKEYE movie for instance. But whatever, we can dream, and I’m sure that will happen soon enough J
P.S in case you were wondering, here are some glamour shots of Rachel Weisz. Just cause…
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