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Review

The Bourne Supremacy

Director

Paul Greengrass

Year

2004

Rating

Reviewed by

José Ruiloba a.k.a. Morris

Review date

Wednesday, September 05, 2007

Everybody knows it is very difficult for a sequel to top the original. In this decade we’ve had a few of those exceptional cases, but mostly sequels are a rehash of the ideas that worked in the prior movie and that start to feel tiring. That said, I was thrilled to hear The Bourne Supremacy was a good movie. And since I really liked the first one, The Bourne Identity (2002), I couldn’t wait for this second outing.

Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) is living a quiet life with girlfriend Marie (Franka Potente) in India. That is, until he becomes a target once again and a tragic incident takes place. Meanwhile, CIA agent Pamela Landy (Joan Allen) and Bourne’s old boss Ward Abbott (Brian Cox) suspect him after he’s framed for the death of two of their men, and a cat-and-mouse game begins as they keep trying to get him, he is still going in pursuit of the truth and a third party is looking to kill him.

Director Doug Liman directed the first installment with great panache and expertise. For the sequel it was Paul Greengrass that took his place, working from a script by Tony Gilroy, loosely based on Robert Ludlum’s novels. The choice paid off. Greengrass is better known for his grittier style of filmmaking and it suited this movie to a tee. He is able to keep the movie fast, intelligent and entertaining, an adrenaline rush that only makes an abrupt stop when a heart-breaking, and pivotal, scene takes place at the end.

Character-development is barely existent apart from what we’ve seen in its predecessor, although Jason is trying to uncover the truth and so are we every step of the way. Still, there are a couple of brief scenes at the beginning that show some of his back-story and from then on it is pure action baby. So much so that when the movie was about to end I couldn’t believe a whole 100 minutes had gone by already!

The Bourne Supremacy is, in a nutshell, a well-conceived espionage thriller. First of all, it takes place all over Europe, and since it was shot on location it adds a little extra for it is a pleasure to watch solely on a visual level, and it also gives it an exciting international flavor. There are also the quintessential secrets, twists, games and plans, but at the core there’s always Jason, a man we can all identify with and who we want to see make it through.

I have to give a special mention to John Powell’s terrific score. In action movies the music almost never surpasses the material, but in this case it plays a central role and does so in a beautiful way. I loved it.

There’s also a chase sequence in the second half that ranks up there with The French Connection (1971) and Ronin (1998) as one of the best of its kind in cinema history. No condescending there, it is visceral, stirring and as real as it gets.

Matt Damon is once again excellent as Jason, a troubled man with a strong façade that is in desperate need of answers and revenge. He is accompanied this time by an extraordinary Joan Allen, who brings poise, elegance and determination not only to her character, but to the movie itself. Brian Cox has a larger role and chews the scenery, while Julia Stiles appears briefly and leaves a strong impression. Franka Potente, Karel Roden, Gabriel Mann and Karl Urban all do top-notch work. Chris Cooper appears unbilled, and look for Michelle Monaghan in the background as one of the CIA operatives trying to track Jason.

“Get some rest Pam. You look tired.”

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Review

The Bourne Supremacy

Director

Paul Greengrass

Year

2004

Rating

Reviewed by

Gon Curiel a.k.a. Groucho

Review date

Sunday, November 21, 2004

The sequel to The Bourne Identity (2002) is also an adaptation of a Robert Ludlum novel, the second from his Bourne trilogy. I’m willing to bet that once again, this adaptation is not even close to being faithful to its literary source, but there’s also once again no denying that the result is a knockout film which, in my opinion, tops and surpasses the original.

This time around, while living a hard-earned peaceful life next to Marie (Franka Potente), Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) gets horrific flashbacks during nightmares that simply don’t leave him alone. His paranoia increases even more when he feels an assassin is behind him, and when this turns out to be true, and something quite terrible happens, Bourne becomes a killing machine if there ever was one, thirsty for vengeance, and absolutely unstoppable.

Though Bourne is clearly (to us) being framed, obviously setup to be thought the killer of a CIA agent in Berlin, he blames his former employers for his current unhappiness, and has them as targets while they’re after him. It’s crazy because despite Bourne’s hot head and the CIA people’s clear picture, both sides are deadly and incredibly destructive. But Bourne has more enemies than meet the eye, and he just gets deeper and deeper into his mistake as he goes.

On the CIA side, there’s Ward Abbott (Brian Cox), who comes back into this installment reluctantly teaming up with Pamela Landy (Joan Allen), the new brain behind Bourne. Aiding them is the logistic girl, Nicky (Julia Stiles), who plays a more important part this time around than she regretfully did before.

In a nutshell, The Bourne Supremacy is a formidable action film, as formidable as it gets. It’s probably as effective as its predecessor in the presentation and editing of its action sequences, only this time it’s even more important to the viewer because we’re much more immersed in the drama. Bourne is a suffering soul, and somehow we still root for him no matter what. Putting Landy against him is a smart move though, as she’s such a likable and intelligent character, and makes us see both sides right on their own way. Of course Cox is still the “bad guy”, but he’s not the only one Bourne is after. The chase sequences, shootouts, and every darn action sequence is magnificent, but it’s more due to the story behind it than the amazing way it’s filmed and presented.

The performances are flawless. Damon once again amazes in what is still an offbeat character for him, and Allen plays it cool and likable and extremely brave. Stiles now has a shot at showing off, and sure does it right, and Cox is excellent as usual. Kudos goes to Oksana Akinshina in a small but extremely important role towards the end, in what is the most moving scene of the movie, and the most significant. How many action films can make you cry? This is one for sure, and this is the scene that sums it all up in that way.

With grand music by John Powell, great cinematography, editing, and direction, and a knockout script by Tony Gilroy, this is one to kick anyone’s ass.

“It’s easy. She’s standing right next to you.”

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