THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
A film review by David N. Butterworth
Copyright 2007 David N. Butterworth
** (out of ****)
Part 3 of the Jason Bourne trilogy, "The Bourne Ultimatum," is one
heck of a hectic movie. Run, jump, crash. Run, jump, smash. Nobody
stands still for a second.
Matt Damon, in the well-honed guise of BourneâeTMs well-honed killing
machine, is back as is director Paul Greengrass, who steered Damon and
his espionage cronies through 2004âeTMs "The Bourne Supremacy," aka Bourne
Part 2 (Doug Liman helmed the original "âeTMBourne Identity" two years
earlier).
Between Bournes 2 and 3 Greengrass made the remarkable "United 93,"
which shares some of the manic intensity of "âeTMUltimatum" and
"âeTMSupremacy" but shouldnâeTMt really be compared to these films let alone
referred to in the same sentence as them. But itâeTMs interesting to note
how the frenetic, fast-paced action and editing in that 9/11-focused
drama generated a credible, hyper-intensive atmosphere whereas the
frenetic, fast-paced action and editing in "The Bourne Ultimatum" simply
creates a frenetic, fast-paced mood.
Bourne, if youâeTMve seen the previous films and/or read Robert
LudlumâeTMs books on which the series is based, is still trying to figure
out his true identity only, following the unfortunate elimination of his
girlfriend, "this time... itâeTMs personal" (to quote from "Jaws: The
Revenge"). The CIA are still on his case/heels--David Straitharn, Scott
Glenn, and Albert Finney all play big-shot government officials with
questionable allegiances to the high-powered assassin they
trained/brain-drained as a lad--while sympathetic agents Pamela Landy
(Joan Allen, reprising her role) and Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles,
likewise) continue to give J.B. the benefit of the doubt (well, he is
rather *handsome* after all).
The disarming Paddy Considine ("Hot Fuzz," "Cinderella Man," "In
America") is, alas, wasted as a "Guardian" newspaper reporter, Simon
Ross, who hops about LondonâeTMs Waterloo station trying to avoid
GreengrassâeTMs un-steadicam. "Run, Lola, Run"âeTMs Franka Potente, who
played BourneâeTMs former love interest Marie, is sorely missed here.
While harder hitting than most James Bond 007 movies (Bourne has
often been referred to as the anti-Bond), "The Bourne Ultimatum" is no
less ludicrous, primarily because Bourne emerges from most of his
sorties with little more than a few scrapes and bruises (case in point:
a clangorous car chase that leaves his adversary *du jour* near death).
Bourne leaps through windows, crashes through glass, dodges bullets,
and goes mano-a-mano with some seriously armed killers yet still manages
to keep one step ahead of the opposition. If you accept Jason Bourne as
a superhero rather than a super spy then youâeTMre likely to wring more
enjoyment from the picture.
I wasnâeTMt exactly bored but I could have done with a little more
downtime, a little more human contact/interaction amid the constant
running and jumping (and crashing and smashing). Not unlike Bond,
Bourne trots all over the globe to the point where "âeTMUltimatum" is more
earnest travelogue than thriller. Lots of action. Lots of stunts.
Lots of noise. "The Bourne Ultimatum" has all these in spades. And
while itâeTMs certainly fast and undeniably furious itâeTMs sadly not a whole
lot more than that.
--
David N. Butterworth
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