The Bourne Legacy

[Zippykins1]

When I saw this had got a few one star reviews I almost put off going to see this. While I don't know if we needed another Bourne film, this one was perfectly watchable. Nothing special but watchable.

Fans of The Grey, take note, Jeremy Renner gets to square off against some wolves!



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Here's a link to Total Film's 3 star The Bourne Legacy review. Added by Liz. Thanks.

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[Firedragon76]

I agree. It had some lengths, but I liked it. There were some pretty cool stunts in there. It did feel more like a set up for things to come than a movie standing on its own two feet though.

I have to admit I've never been a Bourne fan per se. I saw the previous three and liked them well enough, but I always thought Matt Damon too bland, so I don't know how a real fan of the series is going to feel about this one.

[FBSDeMorgan]

I can only assume that The Bourne Legacy is the first in what is hoped to be another trilogy, but on the evidence of this first entry I’m not sure it really deserves to be. I should point out that I didn’t really care much for the original (Damon not Chamberlain) upon first viewing, I seem to recall picking it up on DVD whereon it started to grow on me, so it may well be the case with this one.

One of the other key differences is that Aaron Cross knows exactly who he is right from the outset so instead of trying to find out his identity he’s trying to find out why he, and his compatriots, are being wiped out.

It appears to have fewer ‘action’ set pieces and none of them compare, in my opinion, to the sequences from any of the preceding trilogy (with the singular exception of a rather spectacular motorcycle accident in the finale). And how many more sequences do we need to see of shadowy government types banging on about an endless list of ‘programmes’ in inadequately lit rooms? Or people in dimly lit rooms filled with computer screens screaming at their subordinates that they ‘need to do better’?

At the end of the day it’s not a bad film, it’s just that it doesn’t really have a point and I can’t see how it can go anywhere. It finishes with Cross and the doctor sailing off into ‘anonymity’ much like the original film did with its two leads; where can it go if not following the template of the original sequel? I can’t help but think we’ll be introduced to yet another series of ‘programmes’ and yet another new set of shadowy government types who will hold meetings in rooms with the dimmer switch turned all the way down to the ‘conspiracy’ setting who, in turn, will again bark at their underlings in even darker rooms filled with walls of computer screens showing CCTV footage of Cross....and so it continues.

Anyhoo...good if a little perfunctory.

[ColouredPurple]

If James Bond can go all the way from Sean Connery to Daniel Craig, then surely Jason Bourne can survive the change from Matt Damon to someone else. I think that was never in any doubt. And rightly so.

Aaron Cross is a good Bourne. The flaws in the film are not due to having a new Bourne but due to the way the story is structured. The actor is good, the action is good and the story is decent.

The main problem is that the story takes so bloody long to get going. It takes a whole hour before we see any real action. The rest of the time is spent telling a rather confusing and mostly unnecessary back story. This is in direct contrast to the other Bourne films which all hit the ground running and keep up the pace throughout the film.

I believe that this is what Bourne fans wanted out of this film and it's a pity that it only partly delivered. Thankfully, when it delivers, it's good and the chase sequences are quite exciting.

As other reviews have said, this is far from essential but it paves the way for (hopefully better written) new Bourne films.

[ArwensLover]

Cool film. I really liked it.

I think it was better than Skyfall, which is almost a Bourne clone.