बॉर्न सुप्रिमेसी

I'm making my way back through the "Bourne" movies so I can go see "Jason Bourne" which is in theaters now. Last night I watched "The Bourne Supremacy". While it's been a while since I've seen "Ultimatum", I think "Supremacy" may be the best film in the franchise series.

There's quite a bit to like about this movie. In it we find that Jason Bourne is still struggling with amnesia in the wake of the events of "The Bourne Identity". As the film opens we find that he's making a life for himself far away from the eyes of the CIA, only to be framed by a foreign body such that he winds up on the run from the US government once more. The plot revolves around his attempt to clear his name and bring those responsible for the setup to justice.

Unlike the first movie, this film is more re-watchable in that whereas once you've seen the original film you pretty much know where it's going, the "Supremacy" is a new chapter that stays fresh even on multiple views. In other words, it's hard to forget the gist of the first movie's plot and its eventual outcome--but the "Supremacy" takes the basic concept of the franchise and crafts a tale that could have been told as any chapter in the series. If you've not seen it in a few years, you'll likely find yourself just as engrossed in it upon a second viewing as you were the first go around.

I also find that this film just simply has the best plot of the series, and has a story that keeps you on the edge of your seat. New characters are introduced that make the film fun and exciting, and by the end of the show you feel like you've got your money's worth.

That said, I've given this movie 9/10 stars. I stop short of the perfect 10/10 simply because this is a sequel that a person might be a bit lost on without having seen the first movie. That, and while it's fantastic, it's fantastic in a way that just seems to fall a teensy bit short of iconic in the way that a perfect 10 might. Still a superb movie, though. Extremely well done.

'The Bourne Identity' was a very pleasant surprise, giving a fairly well-worn genre a much needed freshness. It had its imperfections, but was a very solid and even very good film with much to recommend and introduced a cast-against-type Matt Damon in one of his best roles.

It is up for debate as to whether 'The Bourne Identity's' first sequel 'The Bourne Supremacy' is better or weaker. To me, both films are about equal with a couple of improvements at the same time being achieved in 'The Bourne Supremacy'. 'The Bourne Supremacy' may lack the freshness that most of 'The Bourne Identity' had, in terms of basic structure it's a little samey if not exactly routine. The editing, using the shaky camera technique that tends to not sit well with me, does have instances where it does get a bit dizzying and too much. Really didn't like how underused Franka Potente, who brought such a great gutsiness in 'The Bourne Identity' and her and Damon's chemistry doesn't have the chance to register.

As aforementioned, along the way there are improvements. The supporting cast have more rounded and better developed characters, with the actors having more to do. The final act in 'The Bourne Supremacy' is more cohesive, more consistent and less cliché-ridden than 'The Bourne Identity' got towards its end. There is also even more substance and emotion thanks to more emphasis on that and the plotting characterisation than the more action-packed (but still intelligent and exciting) 'The Bourne Identity'.

Visually, like 'The Bourne Identity', 'The Bourne Supremacy' looks slick and stylish with even more breath-taking locations. The editing and camera-work are not perfect, but mostly the technique did intensify the intensity and atmosphere and didn't make anything incomprehensible, some of it is used more artfully than most times shaky cam is used (too often abused to excessive lengths). When it was a problem it wasn't constant and more than not there wasn't a problem. And this, and in no way is this intended to sound superior or conceited, is coming from an epileptic.

Music score is even more dynamic, atmosphere enhancing and more layered this time round, while Paul Greengrass' drama-documentary style and background to his directing is used to full advantage. The script has more prominence here, and is sharp and intelligent without being too talky in a more script and plot heavy instalment. The story is exciting and thrilling with relentless pacing, poignant and dark emotion and with nothing too hard to follow.

Despite less of an emphasis the action is very diverting and choreographed and performed beautifully. The final action sequence and the subway scene have a real adrenaline-rush quality, and in no way does the action strain credibility or get too bombastic while still delivering splendidly on the fun and thrills to edge-of-your-seat effect.

All the characters engage and are interesting, with Bourne well-established in development and the supporting cast have more to do and in general are better utilised. Matt Damon continues to impress in a departure role that proves to be one of his best. In support, Joan Allen steals every scene she's in and Brian Cox is given room for more menace and dimension this time. Karl Urban is chillingly cold-blooded. Only the underusing of Potente disappoints in this particular element.

All in all, a worthy sequel that is just as good (on the same level pretty much) as its very good predecessor. 8/10 Bethany Cox

The Bourne series are, without a doubt, the Bond films of the 21st century. What is even better is that they are the Bond we've been waiting for: one without the cheese, sleaze, camp predictable villains and cheap puns. This second installment in the series is a well-made, engaging adrenaline-booster and surprisingly every bit as good as The Bourne Identity.

Once again, we get to follow Matt Damon as Jason Bourne on the search for his lost identity. He had initially planned on putting his past behind him, but it sneaks up on him in the form of an assassination attempt in Thailand - while he is enjoying his life with Marie (Franka Potente). What I love about Franka Potente is that she is such a natural beauty and not in-your-face gorgeous like Bond girls and the like. It all fits with the low-key style of the film.

This film has mostly moved away from the flashy technology and violent showdowns of its fellow action-thrillers. Bourne Supremacy instead moves back to more traditional kinds of action, just like The Bourne Identity did. Its focus is the chase, not the confrontation or the gadgets. It is extraordinarily refreshing to see an action film like this, even more when it accomplishes everything it sets out to do and has so much brains.

The only minus to The Bourne Supremacy is its shaky, dizzying camera-work. I know a lot of people have complained about this, and usually I would disagree because this kind of cinematography can be a good thing, but it goes slightly overboard in the film at several points.

8/10

Decent film, even if it is weakest entry of the original Bourne trilogy. I'm sure the action scenes were well choreographed too, but it's too bad the cameraman was having constant seizures everytime they happened.

I have never seen a film with so much shakey cam before aside from maybe The Blair Witch. It's so bad I actually felt nauseous at times. By the end I found myself picking up my phone whenever the action started as I knew I wouldn't see it anyway.

But the story isn't bad, so there's that.

I was torn while watching Bourne Supremacy. I'll just go ahead and say this before I mislead. I loved this movie! Unfortunately one key aspect just about dragged this film under the water. The camera was far too unstable. It was obviously done intentionally by design choice, but it was excessively overdone. Through action scenes that had you at the edge of your seat, you'd just come to realize that you were only trying to see what the heck was going on. This made these scenes a little hard to enjoy. But not only was it the action scenes; even during quiet still scenes the camera would always seem to be moving, and eventually was giving me a headache. Just to serve as a warning, it's pretty much like that throughout most of the movie, so brace yourself for an adventure of epileptic proportions.

-- However -- The acting was close to brilliant in my opinion. I don't think the casting for Jason Bourne gets any better than Matt Damon because he fits the part perfectly. The rest of the cast all pretty much played their parts well, so I am pleased to announce that there aren't any exceptionally bad actors or actresses. In addition of the immersive storyline, it created a much enjoyable film. For a sequel, this actually surprised me because I enjoyed this movie as much as I did the first. If you're into action flicks, this definitely will not bore you. If you liked the first movie, then you'll most likely be very pleased with the conclusion.