Jason Bourne is the fifth installment in the Bourne franchise, the fourth starring Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, and the third helmed by director Paul Greengrass arriving nine years after the completion of The Bourne Trilogy in 2007 (The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, and The Bourne Ultimatum) and has no relation to The Bourne Legacy (Thank goodness!). I had high expectations for this film considering I loved the previous two Bourne entries, The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum, but when I saw the critic reviews drop online I became concerned that this wasn't going to be a high brow intellectual blockbuster like the previous Greengrass/Damon Bourne flicks.
Thankfully I was wrong, sorta... Jason Bourne has it's merits in show stopping action and enriched vengeance plot. Yes, this is once again another Jason Bourne movie which focuses on a hunt for Bourne from a government organization control room involving action sequences ranging from exhilarating chases to grounded, gritty hand-to-hand combat. That's what makes the film a Bourne movie. Sure, it's formulaic but that's the formula of a Bourne flick we expect to see. Paul Greengrass ensures the pacing is quick, the action is breathtaking, and the plot is engaging.
Greengrass sets up remarkable large scale action sequences staging them in chaotic environments to increase the stakes and up the tension, two notable action set pieces include a motorcycle chase through large protests in Greece and an insane car chase through the streets of Vegas. Greengrass and editor Christopher Rouse develop a screenplay that feels all too derivative of Bourne's past ventures and includes a tacked-on subplot involving government surveillance to appear relevant.
This side plot only detracts from the film as it distracts the viewer from Bourne's path of vengeance and feels meaningless as neither writer was able to speak out about their opinions of government surveillance, which I found disappointing considering that it's been done better in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. The misfortune is that this side plot is completely unrelated from Jason Bourne's side of things and only used as a means to the end of the story bringing everyone together for a visceral third act. What holds this mediocre written material together though is the remarkable talent assembled in front of the camera.
Matt Damon's Jason Bourne is a worn, weary Bourne seeking serenity and Damon isn't afforded the chance to deliver a lot of dialogue but he does an incredible job conveying Bourne's sensibilities through facial expressions and subtle movements. Damon's done more than enough to prove his worth as an action star capable of keeping this franchise afloat. Julia Stiles returns as Nicky Parsons and serves as a nice emotional touchstone to help motivate Bourne and progress the plot and is serviceable in that capacity.
Alicia Vikander joins the fray as expert CIA hacker Heather Lee and makes for an interesting third party voice between Bourne and the CIA, as her motivations are shifting throughout making her a shady force in the mix of things. Tommy Lee Jones gets to delve into his morally gray territory as CIA Director Robert Dewey and while he's not the best of the enigmatic authoritative figures in opposition to Bourne from a control center, Jones' gravitas makes him a compelling prescence onscreen.
Meanwhile, Vincent Cassel is "The Asset", an assassin called upon tout down Bourne but unlike the previous ones, there's a mutual vendetta between the two of them that makes him more compelling than the previous Bourne hitmen as he plays by his own rules and will do anything for revenge. Riz Ahmed also delivered a terrific performance as a conflicted tech billionaire who wants his innovations to aid humanity rather than infringe on their privacy and while his storyline may have been tangential, I'll admit he did a great job with the material provided.
While I wish Greengrass and Damon had taken the road less traveled by with fresh direction for Bourne to traverse, I can't deny that the familiar, beaten path was a terrible option. Regardless of it's inability to break new ground, Jason Bourne is an enjoyable entry into the franchise that delivers rousing action, engaging onscreen presences and makes sure to leave room for future outings that I'm game to see.
No comments:
Post a Comment