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Album Review: TBA

Friday, August 17, 2007

Film: The Bourne Ultimatum

This is the cinematic equivalent of lighting a high-power repeater firework and having the director strap you to it before you can retreat to a safe distance. It’s insane and it’s the Bourne Ultimatum. The third and final instalment of a trilogy that has raised its genre’s bar to new heights, completing what has been an adrenaline-fuelled rollercoaster ride of emotion through the murky world of government splinter cells, high-tech surveillance and assassins aplenty.

The plot follows along the lines of the previous instalments. C.I.A. official, Noah Vosen (David Strathairn), is a man on a mission to destroy anyone who threatens the secret identity of an illegal government project. This includes killing Jason Bourne (Matt Damon), an assassin suffering amnesia, who needs to reveal the truth so that he may put his fractured and tormented life back together. Vosen’s colleague, Pam Landy (Joan Allen), is determined to separate right from wrong and along with C.I.A. Operative, Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles), they provide uneasy allies for Bourne as he battles an organisation that wields more power than ever before.

This truly is a brilliant film but it’s been built upon decidedly shaky foundations. By this I mean the director, Paul Greengrass, has taken the scattergun approach to film-making and employed the documentary, fly-on-the-wall-style of camerawork throughout, with fidgety shots and rapid-fire cuts. In the quieter moments it’s nothing but distracting, whereas during the action sequences, despite sacrificing information left, right and centre, it’s stunning. We’re in the head of Jason Bourne now and this means when he steps into a scene, we are the ones scanning the area for the nearest way out. We’re the ones seeking out a weapon in case of attack. We’re the ones with sweaty palms.

Here’s just the briefest of examples. Quick-pan left to an out-of focus uphill shot of an empty alley; spin right to shaking image of a distant street; zoom and tighten frame as two policemen career round the corner at the foot of the hill; zoom out, drift up and zoom in to juddering close-up of an open window above street level; pull out to over-the-shoulder shot of a house number, then a series of flashed images: a frame, a door, an exit.

Combine all this with John Powell’s relentless musical score across the most action-packed car-chase or fist-fight scenes, or the simplest coffee-shop conversation and the tension is ramped up to unbearable levels creating a decidedly uncomfortable viewing experience.

Be it lying low in a crowded London train station, dashing across the rooftops of Tangiers, or tearing through New York City in a police car, Jason Bourne makes a fascinating travelling companion and Matt Damon has laid his character’s tortured soul bare for us. This time he’s darker, colder and more ruthless in everything he does. Julia Stiles’ deliberately restrained performance amongst the dizzying action is perfect, and David Strathairn has never been more vitriolic and revels in his role of bad guy.

The Bourne Ultimatum should come with a health warning. I had to peel myself off my seat at the end and it was a relief to get back to the mundane. Something simple like picking out the lumps of seat cover that had somehow got rammed beneath my fingernails.

© Johnskibeat

As Featured On Ezine Articles

Commissioned by Local Secrets online magazine...

11 comments:

joen05 said...

Great review man, I actually still need to check this one out. Keep up the good work!

Paul said...

Top review! I'll be sure to check this one out.

Steven said...

I think Matt Damon needed a good role!! I don't think he did any really good since "Goodwill Hunting"
in my opinion!!!

Real nice entry John!!!

Unknown said...

Joel, Ash, Steven: Thanks for the nice comments! Best action trilogy EVER!

Camiseta: Hello. Agradecimentos para o comentário. O português não é a língua a mais fácil! Seu local do t-shirt olha o divertimento. Sorte boa com isso. Eu visitei Portugal recentemente. Veja minha revisão aqui: Portugal Holiday

Nigel Bird said...

What a top banana great idea for a blog and well reviewed. Will ad you to my link buddies..
Monica
http://usefulquitstuff.blogspot.com/

Karen said...

Hi ! Thanks for popping by ! Like the way you write ! I'll add you onto my friend's links section. ( at www.whymoneymatters.blogspot.com)

Oh, and there are actually places you can submit articles to for free that allow you to link back to your blog. Maybe you could just adjust some of what you post here slightly ( like change the title, or cut and paste a few together) and just submit them.
www.ezinearticles.com
www.searchwarp.com
www.articlemarketer.com
www.helium.com ( this one tries to pay you if people read the articles but it's a miserable 3 cents per read !!)

I've listed more stuff at The Lonely Surfer - http://lonelysurfer.wordpress.com.

Unknown said...

Karen, I'll go check those out! Many thanks...

Calista*Was*Here said...

Hi,
I wonder, is there such a agent like this one?!
Is that possible?!
I think real agents face a lot of (boring) tension and never have fun.

Simon said...

This film is a reminder of what great directing is all about. Nice stuff.

Nigel Bird said...

Hi,
Went to see the BU last Night. Fab!
Another movie I saw which I didn't expect to like was The New Die Hard. I think it may be the best one absolute action city, and funny too.
Do you fancyy putting a link to me on your pageI have done with you:)

Monica
http://usefulquitstuff.blogspot.com/

Daisy said...

This review is a good read. :D Great job!