Jason Bourne (Paul Greengrass)

[Henry Gale]

IMDb (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4196776/) / Wiki (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Bourne_(film))

http://www.joblo.com/posters/images/full/jason-bourne-poster-A.jpg

[Henry Gale]

The Bourne Adequacy

The Bourne Decency

The Bourne Perfunctory

The Bourne Minimum

I love the original three films. Liman's original was one of the nicest surprises of a 2002 that birthed many louder, shinier, more expensive types of blockbusters, Supremacy is one of my favourite action films ever, and Ultimatum was an exhilarating, confident victory lap that was as good as any of the others that also sadly began to show just how little backstory might've been left to explore, since its main impetus for everyone's actions in that installment are more or less Bourne remembering he was in a white room with Albert Finney at some point.

So here we are with the true sequel to those, and you can look at it from the perspective of, "Was it worth the nearly decade-long wait?" but honestly, I never even thought we'd ever get it, so having it at all was never an expectation I ever set. Is it as viscerally original or aesthetically wowing as it all once once? No, but the tone and visual language of what the other ones did have become so iconic and commonplace for movies anywhere in the spy action sphere in this milennium that simply sticking to it doesn't feel like either a triumph or a fault, it's just doing it as well as it ever did, just.. again. I will say though, the shaky Greengrass action coverage (which I never really had an issue with) feels like something action movies have pulled away from imitating in recent years, so seeing it all back in full force again is a little harder to digest. (Especially since I had to sit in the fifth row or so.)

The biggest issue with it might be that it simply took so long. I can't decide if it feels like a movie out of time or that it simply didn't need to have this script be the way it was brought back. The quiet beauty of all the other ones was that they all felt like they could be the last, and this one oddly feels the least tied up and self-contained, which is a shame since it being the fourth time out, doesn't leave the unique impression it all used to. But as much as it's not on the overall quality or distinction level of the others, it's still a thrilling, tight, sometimes provocative, propulsive movie so charmingly lo-fi for a franchise film in 2016 that it might simply triumph when it does for simply being such a nonchalant nostalgia blast more than a grand finale or a new beginning.

It was a movie I was looking forward to for a very long time, and now that it's here and done I'm more happy it exists than blown away by anything it does. It's kinda like people who haven't had Crystal Pepsi in decades being able to finally have it again this summer. As much as it might be exactly as they remember it, it's not going to be that same big deal it was to them back then. It just feels like movies have evolved in the nine years since Bourne went away, so as much as it comes back and handsomely does exactly what it's know for, it's kind of a shame the return doesn't feel the need to innovate or compel like it used to.

Still a yay for me, but if you don't have the place in your movie-going heart that I do for the series, I'm not sure you'll find as much in it.

*** / 6.5ish

[Dukefrukem]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYO2Bv_9LA8

[Henry Gale]

just hoping the horribly cliche bits ("My god..", bus driving past Bourne to have him disappear, etc.) are trailer-only creations.

Happy to report this was indeed the case!

[number8]

Happy to report this was indeed the case!

But is the "This is worse than Snowden!" line in there?

[Henry Gale]

But is the "This is worse than Snowden!" line in there?

I didn't even remember that in the trailer so me and my friend burst out laughing when it came up.

It's not even the only time he's mentioned..

[number8]

They're just building up towards the crossover movie.

[Henry Gale]

They're just building up towards the crossover movie.

Indubitably. Can't wait for Stone's movie's post-credit scene.


I gotta say though, as much as I was entertained enough by this movie in the moment and I'm fine enough with it afterwards, it's reeeally not doing much in my mind now other than leaving "what could have been" scenarios of disappointment.

I don't see how this isn't Greengrass' weakest film. But I guess the fact that I still don't hate it backs up why he's one of the best directors working today in my mind. Ultimatum is definitely a more satisfying send-off than this.

My only hope now is that it makes enough money to make a better ending for the series down the line.

[Milky Joe]

Echoing most of what you wrote Henry. BTW, you should seriously have a blog where you collect all of your reviews because they're really good and level-headed.

I thought this was damned good. Not the best Bourne (Ultimatum) nor the worst (Supremacy), but darned close to the original in quality. It pretty comprehensively scratched the itch I had for another one of these films, even if it didn't set my hair on fire.

My one original comment is holy crap, I never knew how much I wanted, needed Vincent Cassel to play a Bourne villain until I saw his blank frog-eyed visage on the screen. I had no idea he was in this and he ended up being my favorite part. Very inspired casting.

[Morris Schæffer]

I welcome the return of Greengrass and Damon and perhaps Ebert said it best (about the original movies). Doesn't really matter why Bourne runs, but what matters is that he does. I'm glad that he does because the pace is once again propulsive, extremely and viscerally exciting, the chaos expertly orchestrated. I had a great time. It's one of the best actioners in a long time.

[Peng]

Very on the fence about this one, and I think the so-much retread and fridging of Nicky tips me into very mild nay for this one.

First thing first: I am never gonna understand the criticism of Greengrass' "shaky cam" style. He has always established a clear spacial relation/space before everything goes even more turbulent, and his camera actually follows through even in that style; there's a fight scene here that starts besides the bus stop and continues into the bus itself, and everytime someone gets thrown, it is shown clearly the trajectory and where they end up, all the while its style increasingly conveying how the fight comes off as a messy, chaotic, and dizzying adrenaline rush to those involved, for the audience to feel. Compare that with Quantum of Solace's opening scene, where it's nearly impossible to gets a bearing of who, where, and how; when I first saw it in theater I almost thought I had some eye problem. Greengrass' use just increases the intensity so much for me, but I recognize people's feeling to his style of camera movement may vary.

That said, even though I still am thrilled by Greengrass' direction, this installment is pretty thin stuff. Feels like they loosely soft-remake the first three into one single film, so character arcs, storylines, and even fight scenes become rushed and get diluted as hell. Vikander's subdued character stands out almost by the virtue of not feeling imported over from earlier films; interesting that she has all the confidence, composure, and steeliness of a bad guy, but is ambiguous to everyone involved except her own ambition.

Car chases and fight choreography dearly miss the freshness or creative verve of Supremacy or Ultimatum, but nice use of highly chaotic crowd in the two best thrilling scenes (riot and mutiple fire alarms), where it raises the difficulty degree for every party and ratchets up the intensity even more a few notches. So yeah, I lightly enjoy the action, and Matt Damon's performance still gets me invested, but this is all pretty surface stuff and a far cry from Greengrass' last two Bourne films.

[Dukefrukem]

But is the "This is worse than Snowden!" line in there?

Yes it is. In the first 90 seconds....

[Dukefrukem]

This movie is bad.

"Bourne has surfaced in Berlin"
"Get the Berlin team up"

"There's a phone in the room... I can use it to delete the files" Wut?

This level of tracking hasn't been so poorly depicted since Eraser.

"One more firewall to crack"

As the shot moves to a computer screen reading: "Firewall A, Firewall B, Firewall C"