Written by Robert Ludlam and Tony Gilroy
Directed by Paul Greengrass

Spoilers contained herein for The Bourne Identity – You have been warned!!!

Matt Damon is back as Jason Bourne, a man programmed by our government for covert operations, specifically assassinations. At the end of The Bourne Identity, he reunited with Marie (portrayed by Franka Potente) who had helped him figure out his past. He and Marie are now living in India. There’s no explanation about how they got there from their previous location in Greece at the end of the last film. She had stayed with him when he was trying to work through figuring out just who he was and what he had done during The Bourne Identity.

The implication is that they are still on the run from the CIA. When Jason spots an agent in a marketplace one day, he rushes to grab Marie. The agent spots them and soon there’s a car chase through the streets of a bustling Indian town. The result of the chase is that Jason and Marie plunge off a bridge…

Meanwhile, in Berlin, a CIA operation goes wrong. Two men are dead and a significant amount of money is missing. A fingerprint is found at the scene which leads the investigator, Pamela Landy (portrayed by Joan Allen) to a secret file called Treadstone. She has to ask for a higher level clearance to access it, but soon learns all about Jason Bourne, to whom it seems the fingerprint belongs.

The events in India shift Jason’s attitude. No longer is he content to live on the run. Instead, he uses the skills he has been trying to suppress for the past two years to go on the offensive. This is at the same time Pamela wants to track him down, believing he was responsible for the deaths.

Bourne knows he does have a link back to some of the people involved in events in Berlin, but he’s unable to remember what it is. The game is afoot as Pamela races to bring in an agent she thinks is on the wrong side of things and Jason attempts to figure out what is really going on.

First, what was right, Matt Damon continues to dazzle me in this role. It’s not one I would have chosen for him before seeing him in it. I never thought of him as the action hero type, but more the boy next door. Perhaps that is why he works so well in the role since his appearance is that he’s not the type of person who will stand out as an assassin. There are no huge muscles nor does he have the imposing figure of a Jean-Claude Van Damme or Arnold Schwarzenegger. Until he seems to switch over to his identity as an assassin, he seems more likely to be beaten up and have his lunch money stolen. However, he can convey an entirely different personality once he is pushed. He is cold and calculating which serves him better than all the steroid-built muscles out there.

Pamela Landy is an interesting character, and I wasn’t sure what to make of her and still aren’t. Joan Allen is fine in her performance and she seems to capture the essence of a woman who isn’t on either “side” per se. She’s more interested in the truth, as sordid as it is. That’s not to say she was “a good guy” because she seems to show she had a steely side that will let her order things to be done she feels are necessary. But Allen kept me feeling that Pamela was distinctly human, not a one-note villain.

That role seems to go to Brian Cox as Ward Abbott. He seems to be filling the Chris Cooper role from The Bourne Identity. Although he was holding some secrets, he didn’t seem as menacing as Cooper did. I think the “badness” was distributed in The Bourne Supremacy and I’m not sure it worked as well. That’s not Cox’s fault and he does fine with his material.

Julia Stiles is back as Nicky, simply because she’s in Berlin and she’s worked with Bourne before. It would seem like an excuse to bring her back, but there’s more to her story as will eventually be revealed. Stiles does a great job in the role because Nicky comes off as intelligent and capable in a way that many young actresses can’t pull off.

Now for what I didn’t like. Especially during the fight scenes, the camera movements, which I would guess are supposed to create a more realistic feel, were giving me a headache and making it difficult to follow the action. This happened a number of times throughout the film and each time I hated it. I found out I prefer a steady shot rather than all of the jerky movements and quick cuts back and forth. I realize it was to create an effect of the frantic pace of the situation, but I just didn’t care for it. I wish Directors would use this less, but it seems to be a favorite technique of Paul Greengrass in particular.

Europe doesn’t look as exotic this time either. Things appear more dank and cold. It’s due to the season, but it also seems to set a different tone than The Bourne Identity did. I enjoyed the scenery and beauty in contrast to what was going on and the visuals were stunning. In The Bourne Supremacy, they could have been almost anywhere and it wouldn’t have mattered.

That said, The Bourne Supremacy is definitely worth watching. The acting is fantastic and the pace and action are excellent as well. If you can get past the camera movements, you’ll enjoy the film quite a bit. Since that doesn’t happen all the time, it is doable.

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