The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) Universal/Action-Adventure RT: 116 minutes Rated PG-13 (language, intense scenes of action and violence, mature themes) Director: Paul Greengrass Screenplay: Tony Gilroy, Scott Z. Burns and George Nolfi Music: John Powell Cinematography: Oliver Wood Release date: August 3, 2007 (US) Cast: Matt Damon, Julia Stiles, David Strathairn, Scott Glenn, Joan Allen, Paddy Considine, Edgar Ramirez, Albert Finney, Tom Gallop, Corey Johnson, Daniel Bruhl, Joey Ansah, Colin Stinton Box Office: $227.2M (US)/$442.8M (World)
Rating: ****
In this rare instance, a three-quel turns out to be the best part. In The Bourne Ultimatum, superspy Jason Bourne (Damon) really comes out of the cold and heats things up as he goes after the people responsible for his current set of circumstances. He’s already taken care of the people who killed his girlfriend in Supremacy, now he wants to take down the people who caused it to happen in the first place.
As you may recall, Bourne was part of a program called Operation Treadstone, one of several specially-trained assassins used by the CIA for their most clandestine operations. This time around, the filmmakers give us a full-fledged, kick-ass action flick as the intrepid former assassin makes his way to where it all began for him. He hasn’t completely regained his memory, so he’s not exactly sure where that is, but he has a couple of solid leads and has to get to them before the almighty CIA.
That won’t be easy with a ruthless bastard like Noah Vosen (Strathairn, Good Night and Good Luck) running the show. He’s the CIA deputy director in charge of the new Treadstone upgrade called Blackbriar, an umbrella program that covers all the CIA’s black ops. His final solution to the Treadstone crisis is to put Bourne in a body bag as well as anybody he perceives as a threat to the agency like British journalist Simon Ross (Considine, Submarine) who just received confidential information from an inside source.
Not only does The Bourne Ultimatum work as a kick-ass action flick, it’s also one of the best paranoia thrillers I’ve seen in a very long time. Vosen and his people keep constant track of Bourne’s movements by way of electronic surveillance. Forget about undercover agents following him around; it’s the 21st century. Sophisticated computers do all the work. The young agents sitting at the terminals can track down an individual within seconds. They can have assassins in place to take out various targets within minutes. It’s scary what the CIA can do now.
Paul Greengrass, who directed Supremacy, does another masterful job with The Bourne Ultimatum. The guy knows a thing or two about putting together an action scene which he proves in three bravura sequences- a cat-and-mouse chase in Waterloo Station; a rooftop chase around Tangiers and another destruction-filled car chase, this time in New York City. I guarantee any one of these scenes will have your heart racing.
Once again, Damon turns in a great performance as the titular protagonist. I still can’t believe we’re talking about the same dramatic actor from Good Will Hunting. I never thought I’d hear myself say Matt Damon is a bad ass, but here we are. BTW, Bourne finally finds out who he is and how he came to be a CIA assassin. We also learn something about the psych specialist played by Julia Stiles (Save the Last Dance). I’ll only say she has good reason to want Bourne to regain his memory. Joan Allen (The Ice Storm) projects authority as Deputy Director Pamela Landy (Allen, The Ice Storm) who’s been assigned to work with Vosen by Director Ezra Kramer (Glenn, The Silence of the Lambs). Strathairn does a great job as the film’s primary antagonist. He sees himself as a loyal patriot and believes every one of his vicious actions is for the good of the American way of life. In truth, he’s a megalomaniac and a psycho.
In short, The Bourne Ultimatum is a great action movie and an even better suspense thriller. It’s a brilliant update of the international spy actioner/thriller. It proves one should fear the American government in these frightening post 9/11 times. Who really knows what kind of maniacs are handing the country’s security? Who knows if they’re targeting US citizens? The movie raises some serious questions and that makes for one of the best paranoia thrillers of the 21st century.
