La Mémoire dans la peau

James Bond and Ethan Hunt take notice. "The Bourne Identity" is my new standard for contemporary spy thrillers. Gone (or almost gone) are the special effects that James and Ethan rely on all too heavily. Hell, in those franchises the special effects have virtually replaced story and characters. "The Bourne Identity" has a very straightforward story to tell, a mystery that slowly unravels. Spycraft is not all about technical gizmos, but requires human brains and human brawn (and a fair amount of gunplay and car chases).

Set in various locales in Switzerland and France during the winter much of the visuals for "The Bourne Identity" are gray and damp. That's a plus, Monte Carlo and like locales can get boring. Mat Damon is great as Jason Bourne, fished from the Mediterranean mostly dead by gunshot wounds. A total amnesiac, he slowly realizes that he possesses the deadly skills of a well-trained assassin, and that someone is out to kill him. Franka Potente is equally good as the young woman swept up in his life and forced to run with him. Run or be killed.

I can't say enough good things about this movie. Doug Limon, thanks, you did a great job.

I can sympathize with reviewers who had read the book and were disappointed by this film and the liberties it apparently took with the story. I've had that happen with books I've enjoyed and it can spoil a film you might otherwise have liked. I never read the book, so I was able to appreciate this film on its own merits - slick, tough, fast-paced and refreshingly devoid of the kind of nonsense that has made the Bond films harder and harder to sit through.

I'm especially impressed by the fights, which, as other reviewers have pointed out, are among the most believable martial-arts-based fight scenes ever seen. No big grand gestures or Olympian kicks - just fast, nasty moves designed to inflict maximum damage with minimum effort.

The cast is uniformly good - even Damon, who is no fave of mine, comes across believably as a man who's trained to hold it all in, but isn't sure what it all is that he's holding in. Cooper, Cox and Owen shine in their all-too-brief screen time. Potente is attractive in a real person sort of way (sigh of relief for this genre) and possesses an inner strength that makes her character's actions and reactions ring truer than what we'd get from the traditional Hollywood eye-candy girlfriend these films normally feature.

From the gritty bowels of the trawler, where Damon awakens to his situation, to the field where he confronts his most deadly assailant, the locations are the antithesis of the travel poster hotspots that Bond so frequently visits. Despite its breakneck pace (handled so well by Liman and so poorly in the sequel by his protégé), the film manages to convey a sense of melancholy that lifts it a bit above the average action thriller. Sorry book fans - it may not be your cup of Ludlum, but it's still a damn fine little action flick.

Matt Damon plays Jason Bourne, a highly trained, U.S. spy whose wounded body is found floating in an ocean by a fishing boat. With no memory of who he is and what happened to him, he has to piece together how he came to be shot in the back and left for dead; and most importantly, who and what he is. But Damon must do it fast, as time is running out and the ones he worked for are sending assassins to find him. "The Bourne Identity" is top-notch spy movie, filled with action, suspense, and a mystery that is slowly explained as the movie goes on. Matt Damon is well suited for the role, and with the help of fancy editing, he comes off as a martial arts expert who can quickly dispatch multiple foes in a few seconds. The movie moves along very fast, making the near two hour running time feel like it's thirty minutes shorter than it is. Fast pacing and a likable hero (Damon) are two big strengths of this movie that fans of spy/thriller/suspense movies should not miss. My most memorable, movie moment of "The Bourne Identity" is the scene when Damon evades the police with an original Mini car! Hey, it's not the car, it's the driver that counts.

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Maybe its me, but it gives me a familiar feeling when I see a guy in a turtleneck sweater, an overcoat and a rifle. I know its a cliche, but why would this movie re-invent the medium anyway?

I also like car chases through foreign cities, passports and accents. So with all that intact, I liked 'The Bourne Identity' very much. It has all the elements of the genre. You know what you're getting and you get what you want.

There is no point in going over the plot. It gets confusing about 3/4 in but it does not matter that much. Its fun for two hours and that's it.

I have been a huge fan of Franka Potente since becoming mildly obsessed with 'Run Lola Run' and she does not disappoint. She has some real chemistry with Matt Damon and has a very sweet, inviting way about her. She is not traditional leading actress material, thank God, and I credit the producers for hiring her. Even more so when you realize that Julia Stiles has a small part in this movie. I am sure someone wanted a bigger 'name' to be Matt's female lead and it might have occured to more than one exec to switch Franka and Julia, but obviously I am glad that did not happen.

Clive Owen adds another strong performance to his resume. He has only one big scene, really, but makes the most of it. Chris Cooper and Brian Cox are known for their sturdy work and they also deliver here.

Excellent, summertime entertainment. 8/10.

This story has been done several times in the past, most recently in "A Long Kiss Goodnight". It's also true that Doug Liman and the producers created their own Jason Bourne mythology,since this movie is different in many ways to the book. But the truth is Liman takes an old story and puts a new fast paced spin on it.

Matt Damon stars as the enigmatic assassin who just wants to figure out who he is. As he travels from city to city he's followed by CIA agents who want to dispose of him to save their own jobs. He's helped along the way by Marie played by the brilliant Franka Potente. Together they come face to face with the people that want them dead.

The cast is great and so is the story. This film should be on everyone's top ten list.