'Jason Bourne' Review

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. 

Film Assessment: B-

Throwback Thursday Review: 'The Bourne Ultimatum' Review

This week I resume my series of Bourne reviews with only The Bourne Legacy remaining in the lead up to Jason Bourne. Next week I anticipate doing Throwback Thursday Reviews for the live action 2010 Tim Burton adaptation of Alice in Wonderland and X-Men: First Class to correlate with the dual release of Alice Through the Looking Glass and X-Men: Apocalypse. I would also like to introduce a new form of review that week that will be a little different, I'm saving the reveal of what that will be for when it's posted.

'The Bourne Ultimatum' Review

Nominated For: Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing.
Won: Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing.

The Bourne Ultimatum is the third film in the Bourne series. I believe it was intended to be a conclusion for the planned Bourne trilogy, but plans clearly changed. Typically, most franchises tend to become more and more mediocre or diminish with each installment (There are clearly many exceptions that I'm completely aware of). However there are some franchises that revitalize themselves in far-off installments (ie. Mission: Impossible and Fast and Furious).

That is the case with the Bourne series, as each film manages to reinvigorate the franchise (Note: My first time watching these Bourne films have been as I'm reviewing them so I haven't seen The Bourne Legacy yet). One unique aspect of many recent spy films that I've noticed is that they don't rely too much on previous installments, so a viewer could hypothetically jump in and watch any film without seeing the previous ones. Meanwhile, they ensure to reward longtime viewers with some references to previous events and that's definitely the case with The Bourne Ultimatum.

When it comes down to it, up to this point the Bourne films blended together in my mind and it was difficult to distinguish them from one another as it stitched together as an overarching narrative. Each of them are quite similar with Jason Bourne on the run searching to learn who he is while being pursued by the CIA, government agencies, and international authorities.

On that note, The Bourne Ultimatum distinguishes itself thanks to some very memorable sequences with more global awareness (seeing Bourne hop around from location to location) and phenomenal filmmaking. The Bourne Ultimatum takes the intense high octane stunt work and injects it with a fresh helping of energy. The Bourne Ultimatum does this all while maintaining the air of being a more sophisticated blockbuster allowing for a tightly woven thrilling experience with action, compelling characters, and an engaging story.

Paul Greengrass returns and delivers once again. Greengrass maintains a quick pace which leaves some breathing room for the audience to take in the crazy action sequences. The pace is supported by some cool sound design, the incredible score composed by John Powell, the fast paced editing, and clever camerawork. These elements entwine together to bring some brilliant filmmaking to the forefront and they certainly won't be forgotten.

The film also has a well devised screenplay from Tony Gilroy, Scott Z. Burns, and George Nolfi. The three manage to take the spy genre and ground it as much as possible while pitting Bourne against the wall and utilize some clever techniques to bring him out of these sticky situations. The intuition from these writers give what many would gaze upon as a pure popcorn flick the feeling of a more intellectual blockbuster.

The performances further elevate the material as the core cast brings their "A-game." Matt Damon has more than proved he's capable of carrying this franchise as Jason Bourne. Damon gets to delve into the more complex elements of the character as he strives to understand exactly who he is and restore his memory.

Julia Stiles reprises her role from The Bourne Supremacy as Nicky Parsons, a CIA agent now helping Bourne rather than hindering him. I didn't discuss her role in Supremacy as I didn't take too much away from her performance and had no idea she would be more important down the line. Stiles is serviceable, but neither impressed me or disappointed. I also liked that she didn't become a run of the mill love interest but rather a helper of Bourne. 

Joan Allen once again showcases gravitas as high ranking CIA operative, Pamela Landry. Allen gets some great verbal exchanges with Strathiirn and Damon.

David Strathairn holds his own as the shifty CIA statesman and the gravitas he brings about him makes him an interesting morally gray antagonist (Not necessarily evil, but opposing Bourne).

Edgar Ramírez is essentially just another trained assassin who crosses paths with Bourne and is forced to put Bourne in his crosshairs like the other mindless assassins from The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy.

Albert Finney's appearance as Dr. Albert Hirsch was a tad underwhelming, but interesting nonetheless. It was also nice to catch glimpses of Daniel Brühl and Scott Glenn after recently seeing Brühl as Zemo in Captain America: Civil War and Glenn as Stick in both seasons of Daredevil, although neither is very involved in the film as both have fairly minor roles but fill the capacity as needed. 

The Bourne Ultimatum had relatively few dull moments with an engaging plot, phenomenal direction, fantastic technical elements, and some incredible performances to fill in the roles of these compelling characters. It amounted to be the best of the franchise thus far that corrects many of my issues with its predecessors and I probably would have scored it higher had I reviewed it upon first being released but when compared to some of the more recent spy flicks (i.e. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, Rogue Nation, and Skyfall), I found it to be a tad lacking. 

Film Assessment: A-

Throwback Thursday Review: 'The Bourne Supremacy'

This week I continue my Bourne Throwback Thursday Reviews in the lead up to the fifth installment, that was recently revealed to be titled Jason Bourne. I'm reviewing each Bourne flick bimonthly, so the next two reviews will come in May and July. Next week's Throwback Thursday Review will be Iron Man 2 as I'm aiming to review the Iron Man and Captain America films before Captain America: Civil War.

'The Bourne Supremacy' Review

The Bourne Supremacy is the second installment in the Bourne franchise and once again showcases high octane spy action and well coordinated, intense stunt work. This time around, there's a fresh perspective on the character from director Paul Greengrass. Greeengrass gets the ball rolling with a faster paced film, yet at the same time ensures that some scenes are slowed down to provide a proper sense of levity. The camerawork does a great job of making the action seem more intense and intimate for the audience. There's a little shaky-cam but it has a reserved use so it's not too bad. The screenplay is also well crafted by writer Tony Gilroy who provides a great base of support for the performances, plot, and the film in general. Speaking of performances, Matt Damon's back and certainly proves that he can lead a film, and beyond that proves he's more than capable of carrying an action franchise. Damon gets to dive into exploring more of the character's past and even gets to showcase some emotional acting range in a few key scenes that impressed me, at the same time manages to play the hard-edged, supreme spy Jason Bourne. Damon nails it and really seems to have a great understanding of this character. Franka Potente, the love interest from the original, returns but briefly. However her character's explored a bit more and her chemistry with Damon improved since the first film. Joan Allen delivers in the supporting capacity as CIA head, Pamela Landry, and is terrific onscreen. One thing I really enjoyed was her verbal sparring with Bourne that happened a few times. One of my issues though was with the film's weak villain that doesn't really have a purpose. Karl Urban is a Russian spy, Kirill, whose primary purpose in the plot is to frame Jason Bourne for some criminal activities but beyond that doesn't really have much to offer to the plot. It also seems lacking that he's doing this because he was told to rather than personal vendetta or something more interesting. I can confidently say that The Bourne Supremacy improves upon most of the aspects I saw as weaknesses in it's predecessor and ups the strengths making for another entertaining and thrilling spy flick.

Film Assessment: B