The Bourne Supremacy (film)
From AwardAnnals
| Film: | The Bourne Supremacy |
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| Director: | Paul Greengrass |
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| Distributor: | Universal Studios |
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Reviews
Amazon.com
Good enough to suggest long-term franchise potential, The Bourne Supremacy is a thriller fans will appreciate for its well-crafted suspense, and for its triumph of competence over logic (or lack thereof). Picking up where The Bourne Identity left off, the action begins when CIA assassin and partial amnesiac Jason Bourne (a role reprised with efficient intensity by Matt Damon) is framed for a murder in Berlin, setting off a chain reaction of pursuits involving CIA handlers (led by Joan Allen and the duplicitous Brian Cox, with Julia Stiles returning from the previous film) and a shadowy Russian oil magnate. The fast-paced action hurtles from India to Berlin, Moscow, and Italy, and as he did with the critically acclaimed Bloody Sunday, director Paul Greengrass puts you right in the thick of it with split-second editing (too much of it, actually) and a knack for well-sustained tension. It doesn’t all make sense, and bears little resemblance to Robert Ludlum’s novel, but with Damon proving to be an appealingly unconventional action hero, there’s plenty to look forward to. —Jeff Shannon
Barnes and Noble
This rousing sequel to The Bourne Identity, again starring Matt Damon as the amnesiac ex-spy created by bestselling author Robert Ludlum, boasts a stronger cast, muscular direction, and quicksilver pacing. It begins with Jason Bourne and his lover (Franka Potente), also repeating her role from the original) enjoying life in a tropical paradise—that is, until she is killed by an assassin gunning for Bourne. Believing that the CIA is behind the attack, Bourne relentlessly pursues his old boss (Brian Cox), who’s now dealing with a female administrator (Joan Allen) even more ruthless than he is. And it gets worse: Although Bourne doesn’t know it, he’s been framed for the murder of a CIA operative in Berlin—which means his former colleagues are as eager to find him as he is them. The boyishly handsome Damon, whose casting as Bourne originally raised eyebrows, plays the preternaturally gifted spook with remarkable intensity. He’s grimly convincing whether jury-rigging high-tech gadgets or dispatching experienced combatants in unusual settings. Interestingly, Damon’s is a performance that’s carried by pantomime: he has very little dialogue, and we understand much of what he’s doing by his facial expressions and body language. Frequent cutaways to the opposition heighten the tension, especially because the Cox and Allen characters are working at cross-purposes; their dialogue exchanges are also wonderfully tart. Paul Greengrass (Bloody Sunday) rates kudos for vividly capturing exotic foreign locations while staging high-powered action sequences, including the best car chase we’ve seen in years, and maintaining an unflagging pace. Ed Hulse
Related works
The Bourne Supremacy: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Novelist Robert Ludlum’s amnesia-plagued, tough-as-nails spy/assassin Jason Bourne again proves that success begats sequels, be they literary or cinematic. As he did for the saga’s initial big screen installment, composer John Powell concocts an electro-orchestral fusion score that seasons its tense, bristling rhythms with dollops of melodicism, synth-atmospherics and staccato string figures. Those welcome touches hearken back to composer’s similar work on the ‘03 action-thriller The Italian Job, with Powell initially evoking the film’s exotic locales by…
The Chinese vice-premier has been brutally slain by a legendary assassin. World leaders ask the same fearful questions: Why has Jason Bourne come back? Who is paying him? Who is the next to die? But U.S. officials know the shocking truth: There is no Jason Bourne. The name was created as cover for David Webb on his search for the notorious killer Carlos. Someone else has taken the Bourne identity—and unless he is stopped, the world will pay a devastating price. So Jason Bourne must live again. Once again, Webb must utilize his lethal skills—because once again, like a nightmare relived, the woman he loves is suddenly torn from his life. To find her, trap his own impostor, and uncover an explosive secret plan, Webb must lauch a desperate oddyssey into the espionage killing fields. But this time, survival will not be enough. This time Bourne must reign supreme.
Freely adapted from Robert Ludlum’s 1980 bestseller, The Bourne Identity starts fast and never slows down. The twisting plot revs up in Zurich, where amnesiac CIA assassin Jason Bourne (Matt Damon), with no memory of his name, profession, or recent activities, recruits a penniless German traveler (Run Lola Run’s Franka Potente) to assist in solving the puzzle of his missing identity. While his CIA superior (Chris Cooper) dispatches assassins to kill Bourne and thus cover up his failed mission, Bourne exercises his lethal training to leave a trail of…
Matt Damon returns as highly trained assassin Jason Bourne, who is on the hunt for the agents who stole his memory and true identity. With a new generation of skilled CIA operatives tracking his every move, Bourne is in a non-stop race around the globe as he finally learns the truth behind his mysterious past. Loaded with incredible fight and chase sequences, it’s the exhilarating movie with “mind-blowing action” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times) that you can’t afford to miss!
