bourne, baby, bourne
Bob RossThe Bourne Ultimatum (opens Aug. 3)
(PG-13; 111 minutes)
The pulse-pushing tension starts early and never lets up. “The Bourne Ultimatum” completes a thrill-flick trilogy on a dizzying but satisfying note, with amnesiac super-agent Jason Bourne racing from Germany to England to Spain, Morocco and the good old USA on a deadly quest to learn his true identity and find out who messed up his memory. And why.
Matt Damon continues to impress as a stone-faced killer who senses that he was once a relatively normal young man in the service of his country.
Too bad he was working for a renegade agency run by shadowy, sinister bureaucrats. David Strathairn (”Good Night, and Good Luck”) steps in as the latest power-monger to put Bourne on the double-secret hit list. You’ve seen it a hundred times: The bad boss mutters to his minions, “I want him dead. Now.” Or words to that effect. We love watching an actor of Strathairn’s caliber play the calm manipulator who gradually loses control as his schemes misfire, backfire or simply decompose in the face of Bourne’s masterful evasions and counterattacks.
Sure, Bourne has lost his identity. But he hasn’t lost a bit of the deadly training he got from his ruthless spymasters. He can outfight, outrun and outsmart whatever murderers the villain sends after him.
Whenever some supervisor learns Bourne’s location, and the order is given to “lock it down” or “form a perimeter,” we know that our hero is going to find a way out. The fun is watching the spectacular chases (car and foot), the bone-crunching fistfights and the way Bourne manages to be witty without cracking a smile.
Two women provide much-needed assistance. Joan Allen and Julia Styles return from previous installments as CIA types who sense that their bosses are up to no good.
The series’ last chapter is also its fastest, nastiest and most nerve-wracking. That’s a good thing: Director Paul Greengrass, who directed “The Bourne Supremacy” and who got news of his Oscar nomination for “United 93″ while shooting ”Ultimatum,” knows how to make any scene look real — even when our brains tell us we’re seeing pure spy-genre inventions. He uses crazed camera moves, impossible angles and dazzling editing to involve the audience — at the risk of causing vertigo among the unprepared. A percussive score enhances the action.
Grittier than James Bond and just as tough, Jason Bourne might not be quite finished with his adventures. One possible title: “Three Is Not Enough.”
We usually avoid ultimatums, but this one merits a big B+.
You can always find more movie madness at BobRossMovies.com
Loading ...
August 3rd, 2007 at 11:35 am
I’ve always wanted to see this trilogy.
I hear it’s real good. Great review!
September 24th, 2007 at 4:21 pm
[...] bureaucrats. David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck) steps in as the latest source: Bourne, baby, Bourne, Sticks of Fire: a Tampa [...]