Movie Series Review - The Bourne Saga

So recently I looked at all the films I have reviewed and of all the spy films, I have never once talked about any of the Bourne films. So today I will rectify this and talk about them. So Matt Damon has done a number of things such as being stranded on a planet, acting as Loki, being a con man, a rugby player and so much more. He's won several awards in his career as an actor and has showed us what he can do. I personally see him as one of the more modern action heroes out there and rightly so as the Bourne films made him just that. So let's have a look at them in this one review that I should have done ages ago:



Identity

Somewhere in the Mediterranean Sea, a man is rescued by a group of Italian fisherman. Suffering from amnesia and having no memory of his former life, the man sees a passport and takes the name Jason Bourne (played by Damon). Upon arriving in Italy and finding said passport, Jason soon discovers that the local police are on his trail and so he must evade them as well as their superiors the CIA while trying to discover who he is and what was his former life. This film and some of its sequels manages to do many things right, but most of all it manages to make us the audience feel like we are in the action as it happens. Its one thrill ride that should not go unnoticed and one that certainly made a name for Matt Damon. Sure he may be typecast to this film and its sequels, but at least it made him a profitable actor if nothing else. 9/10

Supermacy

So interesting fact; the films are actually but loosely based on some books. But that's OK because these films are pretty good. Two years have passed and Jason Bourne (reprised by Damon) is still wondering what his past was and makes a note of the things he remembers. However this peace he has received is short lived when he gets framed for a crime to cover up the true perpetrator. Thinking the CIA are hunting him once again, Bourne goes about hunting those who killed his love interest Marie (played by Franka Potente) of whom he met in the first film and his forgotten past too. Soon enough, he learns of a program he was part of and it isn't long before he gets chased again. Most sequels tend to try and beat the first film and honestly this film I feel is on par with the first film. It has thrills throughout as well as emotional and action packed moments that make it a worthy sequel. Even if it's more or less the same as before, but better in a way. 8/10

Ultimatum

Now most people saw Ultimatum as what should have been the original final film of the series. The fact that you have a word like ultimatum in the end should have hinted this to be the final film. But hey I guess Hollywood wanted more money and there were still a lot of books in the series to make up a saga of films (if only they went down that path). Anyway so picking up directly from where the second film left off, Bourne (reprised by Damon) is in Moscow evading the police and wounded from his encounter with a villain from the last film. Once again, he receives flashbacks of his former self and learns of a British journalist who is also trying to piece together his past. However the CIA become aware of his activities and soon Bourne gets hunted again but this time he may get the answers he's been wanting for a very long time. Most critics have called this the best of the series and given where the next two sequels go for the franchise, it will likely never be beaten as such. And by saying that, I actually do agree with the critics. Had this been the final film, it's the best way to finish the series off by giving us the ultimate ending to Jason Bourne. But there are two more films to go so its not the end yet. 9/10

Legacy

What's important to note here is that while this film is considered the least liked of the franchise, the book its supposedly based on is very different and has Jason Bourne front and centre. But with Damon not wanting to return due to the director of the first three films not returning, this is pretty much what we get. So following the actions of Bourne (reprised via archive footage by Damon) in Ultimatum, Operation Treadstone and Operation Blackbriar become exposed and makes black ops operative and member of Operation Outcome Aaron Cross (played by Hawkeye himself, Jeremy Renner) a target and so he must run for his life in order to get away from those who hunt him. Though all this super solider stuff may get the better of him. Its not as good as the previous films and chances are that it never will be. But if anything, it shows that the filmmakers have more stories to tell in the Bourne saga even if its going away from the books completely. Also Jeremy Renner you are great as Hawkeye, but I'm not sure if being in a Bourne film was a good idea or not. But you are great in Mission: Impossible so I'd say stick to what you are good at. But as for the film, its got all the makings of a Bourne film, but I guess fans want Damon more than Renner in the series. 7/10

Jason

So you got Damon back, the original director of the first three films back and it kind of ignores Legacy in a sense that the director didn't like where the films were going and wanted the focus on Jason Bourne himself. Some may be disappointing by that and others may be pleased. I'm in the middle. One decade has passed since Ultimatum and Jason (reprised by Damon) has fully recovered from his amnesia and is spending a quiet life taking part in fist fighting. However this life soon becomes short lived and so he must evade the CIA once again while also uncovering his past and find his father. You know after four films, you get what fans want but in the end its still not enough to please them. While this film does indeed give us what we want, it still lacks the thrills and excitement that we've come to expect. Its not bad by any means, but it could've been better. 7/10

So I think its fair to say that three films were enough or at the very least stick to what made the franchise great in the first place and don't try and change too much about it. But for what it is, the Bourne films are the films that gave Matt Damon the break he needed as well as putting a name to him if nothing else. 8/10