Jason Bourne

Jason Bourne

Starring Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Julia Stiles

Directed by Paul Greengrass

The Story:
After regaining his memories after suffering amnesia, Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) is living off the grid, fighting in illegal underground fights for money.  Meanwhile, former CIA agent Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) is now working against the CIA, and uploads all the CIA black ops programs, including Treadstone, which Bourne was a part of.  She discovers a secret involving his recruitment, and sets out to find him to tell him the truth.

Meanwhile, current CIA Director Robert Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones) is planning on unleashing his newest black ops program, and Nicky's infiltration into the system threatens to stop his plan.  With the help of Heather Lee (Alicia Vikander), the newly appointed CIA cyber ops division, he sets out to find Nicky and in the process put an end to Jason Bourne himself, calling upon an Asset (Vincent Cassel) to take him out.  Bourne comes out of retirement to find the truth behind his recruitment, and unveil a dark family secret as the CIA chases after him once again.

The Synopsis:
Robert Ludlum brought Jason Bourne to life in his classic Bourne Trilogy series of novels, and after all three had been made into thrilling, edge-of-your-seat thrillers starring Matt Damon, it seemed that Jason Bourne was set for retirement.  Yet, both Damon and director Paul Greengrass had future ideas for the hero, and after a disastrous side-movie starring Jeremy Renner, the duo decided to bring the real Bourne back to the big screen in the much-anticipated "Jason Bourne."  The result is a mix of good and bad, but ultimately the strengths of both ends result in a flatline film that's fine enough, but nothing to write home about.

What's positive about "Jason Bourne" is the return of Matt Damon, who will always epitomize the hero on the big screen, no matter how many spinoffs people try to make.  He created Bourne, and he always will be Bourne.  Even at a much older age, he still shows he's got the physical prowess to perform death-defying stunts and also have a deeply humanistic level to the man.  Reunited with director Paul Greengrass, the two brought to life a new vision for Bourne, and it did its job well.  We welcomed Jason Bourne back with open arms, and he didn't disappoint in the action.

A negative is the return of the traditional Greengrass-style filming, which is basically take a camera and shake the crap out of it.  The camera zooms in and out for no reason, and moves for equally the same non-reason.  Sure, it makes otherwise boring scenes (like a group of people in a room looking at computers) seem exciting, but when used for the action-packed sequences, it becomes more distracting and you can't fully grasp what you're seeing on screen.  While the action is very on-point, it's also rather over-the-edge (comparing the Mini Cooper scene in "Identity" to the Las Vegas car chase here is rather striking), and it falls into the Hollywood trap of "we have to make each sequel bigger and better than the last, with bigger explosions, faster action sequences, and over-the-top CGI effects!"

Another positive is the return of Julia Stiles as Nicky Parsons.  She was in all three original Bourne films, but it's in "Jason Bourne" that she really gets some ample screen time and participate in some of the action instead of just sitting in the shadows.  It's good to see her back, as she took a pretty much self-imposed exile from films (appearing in only a few films between 2007 and 2016).  She was a big star back in the early 2000s with hits like "10 Things I Hate About You," "Save the Last Dance" and "The Prince and Me," and here she shows that she still has the acting chops to become a big star yet again.  Plus it was refreshing to see a familiar face from the old Bourne series, and brings the entire franchise full circle.

Another negative is the story.  We're kinda thrown into the middle of something that's already happening, with no backstory as to why it's happening.  Why did Nicky all of a sudden turn rogue against the CIA?  Why is Bourne fighting in underground fights?  Why is the CIA still so interested in a man who's been off the grid for years?  What is Alicia Vikander's motives?  What happened to Tommy Lee Jones' face?  These are all questions that are never really answered, and instead the story is rather simplistic - Bourne returns to find out yet another secret held from him during his time at Treadstone.  It's a good story, but nothing real intriguing, and the big "twist" is something you could see coming a mile away.  The film tries to stay current with references to Edward Snowden and the explosion of social media and the struggle for privacy (the only thing I could think of while watching the film is the phrase "Privacy is an illusion" thanks to "Mr. Robot"), but ultimately there's no real denouement to the argument, as it turns into one explosive action scene after another.

Back to the final positive is the new supporting cast.  Tommy Lee Jones takes on Brian Cox's old role as the CIA director who sets out to find and destroy Bourne at any cost.  The four-time Oscar nominee gives a terrific performance, and is a welcome addition to the Bourne family.  Vincent Cassel is the Asset, taking on the role held by Clive Owen and Karl Urban of old, as the Bourne-like super soldier set out to kill Bourne.  What makes his performance different from the others is that the two have a connected past that makes it more personal than business.  However, it's Oscar-winner Alicia Vikander who steals the show as Heather Lee, who is pretty much an updated version of Julia Stiles' old character.  She performs brilliantly as a woman who desires power, but also seeks the truth.  Her character is very multi-layered, and she was able to perform it superbly.

Yet, there's also a negative to this, and that's the total ineptitude of the CIA to capture Bourne, and creates simplistic caricatures of people.  The Asset is a killer, and there's nothing more to him.  Tommy Lee Jones's Dewey is a man desiring power and protection of his secrets at any cost, which you've seen in countless government films.  It all gives a sense of "I've seen this before," which is never a good thing when you're watching something new.

The Summary:
When it comes to "Jason Bourne," with each swell, there's also an ebb.  Which, in the end, results in a flatline film where it's not really terrible, but yet not really memorable either.  It's just another formulaic Bourne film that you've seen three other times before.  Wash, rinse, repeat.

The Score: A-