Today’s quick review: Jason Bourne. Haunted by his past as a killer and dissatisfaction with life on the lam, ex-CIA assassin Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) is pulled back into the spy game when his old ally Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) shows up on his doorstep with a USB drive full of classified CIA information. Bourne refuses to get involved at first, but the promise of hidden information about his past and the pursuit of a highly-trained CIA operative (Vincent Cassel) draw him into a journey he has to see through to the end. At stake are secrets about Bourne’s father and Bourne’s recruitment into the CIA’s Treadstone program as well as the fate of the US government’s new surveillance program called Iron Hand. Opposing Bourne in his quest for the truth are Robert Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones), the director of the CIA, and Heather Lee (Alicia Vikander), an up-and-coming CIA cyber security specialist.
Jason Bourne is a tense spy thriller and the fifth movie in the Bourne series. The movie does a good job of following in the footsteps of its predecessors. The soundtrack, the distinctive camera work, various elements of the plot, and the movie’s approach to action are all carried over from the previous Bourne films. The action is as tight as ever, with car chases, gun fights, and brawls where Bourne clashes with the agents who are after him. While his character does not slow down, Matt Damon begins to show his age, and coupled with Bourne’s traumatic flashbacks and purposelessness, this gives a different feel to the character than previous installments. Tommy Lee Jones plays the role of Director Dewey with his usual authority, while newcomer Alicia Vikander delivers a fair but unremarkable performance as Heather Lee.
The one major failing of the movie is its premise. Unlike previous Bourne movies, Jason Bourne does not have a clear-cut reason to exist. The end of the original trilogy marked a satisfying ending for the character. Picking up with him years later and finding that he has no purpose and no clear interest in the new plot is unsatisfying. The plot itself works well enough as a spy thriller: Bourne’s possession of the USB drive makes him a target for the CIA, while in the US Iron Hand enters a critical stage in its development. But Bourne’s personal involvement in the plot is limited to a secret from his past that does not manage to feel unique or interesting. Where the previous Matt Damon Bourne films felt like part of a consistent story, Jason Bourne feels a little tacked on.
Jason Bourne is a well-executed sequel that lacks a clear purpose. You will enjoy it if you enjoyed the previous Bourne films or if you’re a fan of spy thrillers in general. Taken on its own, the plot, action, and direction of the movie are all handled well, and the film is certainly worth a watch. But the premise is not as inspired as it could have been, and fans of the series should go in expecting a good movie but not an outstanding one.
7.0 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 7.0 to 7.5 for being a solid entry in the action genre, held back only by its mediocre vision.