Stars Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Vincent Cassell, Riz Ahmed and Julia Stiles Directed by Paul Greengrass Despite the return of Paul Greengrass and Matt damon to the Bourne franchise with this new entry, one can’t help by note the loss of Tony Gilroy, whose pen guided the last four entires. Here we have Greengrass along with Christopher Rouse (Greengrass’ editor on his recent films including the previous instalments) seemingly reworking their version of The Bourne Ultimatum, in that almost beat for beat, we have a rehash of that movie. What’s slightly different is the play of technology within the world of Bourne, as surveillance technology has improved by leaps and bounds since Damon and Greengrass were last in this world. So, kicking things off is the return of Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles), last seen being sent underground by Bourne in the midst of the Ultimatum shenanigans. Nicky hacks the CIA and grabs a few files on the old Treadstone and Blackbriar operations as well a new surveillance program, Iron Hand. Included in all that is a key to Bourne’s past and his initial involvement in Treadstone (with a welcome appearance by Gregg Henry), but it’s not fully explored. It’s here you get a sense of losing Tony Gilroy, who’s always had a way to tie in the political machinations of the program into the plot. What then follows is an action set-piece set in Athens that feels reminiscent of the London train station scenes, and Bourne following the trail that would lead him home (again), with London taking over the Tangiers set-piece and Las Vegas replacing the New York set-piece. While there was the hope for something a little different or new, like that new program that involved Aaron Cross (The Bourne Legacy), instead we have a tackle on the whole surveillance problem (and as a fan of Person of Interest TV series, this feels a little old-hat). Granted, Greengrass can handle the chaos of a mob on screen better than anyone else, giving the movie a sense of immediacy and projecting a visceral sense of danger, although the early sense of setting Bourne’s fighting skills diminishes the final fight a bit. The Athens chase set piece was beautifully shot and edited while the cat and mouse of the London set-piece is the stuff most thriller flicks which they could pull off. The final vehicular chase Las Vegas, while crunchingly spectacular that could give the Fast and Furious franchise a run for its money, feels rather superfluous. It’s there for the sake of being there and the reputation for needing a good car chase scene. Still, the lack of CGI effects does give the movie a kinetic energy that props up the rather lacking story. Damon has the Bourne character down cold and has no problems there, even if he hasn’t a lot to say. Tommy Lee Jones is as gruff as ever while Vincent Cassel brings a very understated danger as the new asset hunting Bourne. Alicia Vikander is a little more effective as the somewhat cold and seemingly calculating ambitious CIA tech specialist, Heather Lee. The stars do contribute to the energy of the piece, driving the movie quite a fair bit. Backed by John Powell’s pulsing themes,working with David Buckley, Jason Bourne still manages to be a high-octane pulsing action flick that fits in very nicely with a summer movie line-up. The complex spy shenanigans of the previous instalments have been sidelined for a more straight-forward story that doesn’t seem to have the (personal) world-shattering effects of Ultimatum. Actions movie fans will be well-served although others looking for the murkier world of loose and compromised morals that permeated through the previous instalments may be left wanting. Rating **1/2 /5 (others can add a * for the action)
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