The Bourne Ultimatum - Jason Bourne Discovers Himself

May contain spoilers for The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy - you have been warned!


Matt Damon returns in this third installment in the saga of Jason Bourne. He was found floating in the Mediterranean in The Bourne Identity by a passing fishing vessel. He had no clue who he was or how he got there. Over the course of the past two films, details about who he is and how he came to be where he was have slowly been brought to light.

If you watched The Bourne Supremacy, the last scene of the movie actually ends up taking place in the middle of The Bourne Ultimatum. It might make the movie feel a bit strange at first,

The Bourne Ultimatum opens with a chase through a Moscow train station as he attempts to elude those who were trying to corner him in Russia near the end of the previous film. Jason once again manages to elude capture. He turns up back in Paris at the apartment, Martin (portrayed by Daniel Bruhl). Martin is the brother of the woman who helped Jason in The Bourne Identity and they were a couple for some time. Jason tells him that Marie was killed. As Jason is leaving, he picks up a copy of the Guardian out of the U.K. and sees a story about Treadstone and himself, written by Simon Ross (portrayed by Paddy Considine).

Jason is on his way to meet with the reporter after not being satisfied with how Ross is reporting the story. He asks Ross to come to Waterloo Station for a face-to-face meeting. Unfortunately, the CIA is also already on top of the situation and wants to get their hands of the source as well. Once they see Bourne with Ross, they assume he's the source.

In charge of the CIA investigation is Noah Vosen (portrayed by David Strathairn). He wants to keep Blackbriar, which is the new name of the project Bourne was created under, a covert operation. The fact that there is a leak disturbs him to the point that he will order those he feel threaten the project to be taken out by a sharp-shooter in a busy railroad station. Noah’s methods make Pamela Landy (portrayed by Joan Allen) uncomfortable in a number of ways. Her character wasn’t quite a villain nor was she one of the good guys in the last film. She seems to be treading the line between the two.

What I really enjoyed about The Bourne Ultimatum was the cat and mouse game that went on. It didn‘t seem to be "action" all over the place. There are plenty of action sequences, but it doesn’t seem to be action for the sake of action, but an integral part of the story. Jason does go toe to toe with his enemies inside the CIA, but it seems more like they are trying to outwit each other. The actual pursuit and violence that ensues is secondary.

With a definitive villain opposite Bourne it also helps the story. David Strathairn as CIA Deputy Director Noah Vosen is a fantastic addition to the palate. Now he's always been a favorite actor of mine, so his presence alone is a big plus for the film. Here he is something of a different character than I’m used to seeing him as, and he might not have the steely coldness of other villains but he does have a decisiveness that makes his character a threat.

Julia Stiles is back for a third time as Nicky Parsons. Her role is greatly enhanced here and her character is finally developed a bit more than just a CIA agent in pursuit of Bourne. How she fits into the story and her actions in The Bourne Ultimatum give Stiles a meatier role and she handles it fine.

Matt Damon carries the movie. Had I seen a script for all three before they were shot, I never would have pictured him in this role. He usually comes across as your average Joe, but perhaps that is what makes him work so well in this role. He’s more of a threat because he doesn’t stand out and generally blends in. That Damon can carry something like this that is quite different from other roles he’s had really speaks to his acting abilities.

One of the major complaints I had about The Bourne Supremacy was the terrible movement of the camera. It comes to a degree with the style of filming that Director Paul Greengrass seems to enjoy using, but I generally don’t care for it. The worst of the movements are gone, and The Bourne Ultimatum is much easier to watch than the previous film. However, the movement is still there to a degree.

I thought The Bourne Ultimatum was much more brighter than The Bourne Supremacy, which seemed dark to me. The Bourne Identity was a film that made Europe seem bright and beautiful and an exciting place to be. The Bourne Supremacy had a bleak, dark tone to it. The Bourne Ultimatum has a good degree of beauty surrounding the action that's taking place with locations in Paris, London, Madrid, Tangiers, and Turin.

The Bourne Ultimatum is a good third film in the sequence and has a good resolution. The pace is great while at the same time doing a good job developing the characters and not just letting the action take over. I wouldn’t suggest watching it without viewing the first two, although an effort is made to acquaint new viewers with what’s gone on before.


SPECIAL FEATURES:

• Commentary with Director Paul Greengrass
• Deleted scenes
• Man on the Move featurette
• Jason Bourne (scenes from Berlin, Paris, London, Madrid and Tangier locations)
• Rooftop Pursuit
• Planning the Punches
• Driving School and New York Chase


Other Reviews in this series:

The Bourne Identity ~ The Bourne Supremacy



© 2008 Patti Aliventi