4.5 stars. Rated PG-13, for intense action and violence, and brief profanity
By Derrick Bang • Originally published in The Davis Enterprise, 7.29.16
Wow.
Director Paul Greengrass certainly
hasn’t lost any of his juice. This newest installment in the Bourne franchise
is relentless: It hits the ground running, never lets up for two full hours,
and is bookended by a pair of spectacular action sequences.
I wouldn’t have thought
Greengrass ever could top the mano a mano
melees in 2004’s Bourne Supremacy,
but he has ... and then some. Jason
Bourne is a taut, breathtaking experience, its giddy momentum the result of
equally fine work by editor Christopher Rouse, a longtime Greengrass colleague
(and Academy Award winner, for 2007’s The
Bourne Ultimatum).
Greengrass and Rouse also
collaborated on the timely, ripped-from-the-headlines script, which references
the “safety or security?” argument at the heart of the recent spat between
Apple Inc. and the FBI. The players have been altered to avoid lawsuits, but
there’s no question which side of the fence our filmmakers occupy. Having
navigated conspiracy-laden waters for more than a decade, Greengrass clearly
doesn’t trust government agencies to have their citizens’ best interests — or
privacy — at heart.
And with paranoia running rampant
these days, this film definitely captures the national zeitgeist.
When last seen, Bourne (Matt
Damon) had successfully back-tracked his actual identity, along with those responsible
for the CIA training that transformed him into a hardened assassin. The victory
was pyrrhic, as it left him without friends or a country. Convinced that the
CIA would have him “erased,” he simply vanished.
Having remained off the grid for
nearly a decade, Bourne has become a ragged, rootless shell, subsisting on meager
earnings from underground bare-knuckle boxing matches. Damon’s grim features
are weary and despondent during this introductory montage: the quiet despair of
a man lacking purpose.
Then, suddenly, a blast from the
past: He gets a message from former CIA colleague Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles),
who — also long on the run — has joined a hacking collective with the goal of
exposing CIA dirty tricks. Her quest has borne fruit: 30 years’ worth of black
ops files that include Operation Treadstone — which “created” Bourne — and
something new called “Iron Hand.”
Even more damning, Nicky has
uncovered additional details pertaining to Bourne’s actual identity — David
Webb — along with the strong suggestion that his father, Richard (Gregg Henry),
was directly involved with Treadstone. This revelation lends context to another
of Bourne’s still fragmented memories: something having to do with a long-ago
lunchtime meeting with his father.
Unfortunately, Nicky’s hacking
efforts were spotted by young and ambitious CIA analyst and social media
“influencer” Heather Lee (Alicia Vikander), who alerts director Robert Dewey
(Tommy Lee Jones). The latter, a seasoned veteran of black ops programs, has no
love for Bourne; he immediately activates the enigmatic Asset (Vincent Cassel),
an anonymous assassin with — it would seem — many of Bourne’s skills.
The relevant parties intersect
during a ferocious nighttime riot in Athens — with establishing footage of
actual Greek civilian/police skirmishes — as Bourne attempts to link up with
Nicky. Asset is ordered to prevent that, at all costs; the stage is set for a
massive fracas involving thousands of protestors, hundreds of baton- and
shield-wielding cops, Molotov cocktails, shattered cars, gunplay, motorcycles
and pell-mell pursuits, given even greater intensity by the throbbing,
pulse-pounding David Buckley/John Powell score.
Truly, we’ve never seen anything
like it.
Treadstone’s legacy aside, Dewey
is occupied further by events in his own back yard. He has orchestrated a clandestine
“arrangement” with Aaron Kalloor (Riz Ahmed), founder and CEO of a globally
popular social network dubbed Deep Dream. Graced with the charisma of a certain
late and deeply lamented Apple luminary, Kalloor is in the process of unveiling
his network’s latest iteration: one that guarantees
privacy for users.
Except that this is a lie:
Kalloor secretly has granted Dewey back-door access.
At least, Kalloor agreed to do so ... but that was before he
learned of the recent hack into Agency mainframes. Now understandably concerned
that Snowden-style leaks could expose this relationship — and never really
comfortable with it in the first place — Kalloor threatens to back out.
Well, Dewey can’t have that.
And, throughout it all, Bourne —
Webb — struggles to assemble additional bits of his shattered memories.
Damon’s performance has evolved
over time, much as we’d expect during the course of 14 real-world years (since
2002’s The Bourne Identity). He’s no
longer confused and aimless, responding to external threats only as they
surface; he now has regained the savvy to anticipate, prepare and strike first.
But these resurrected skills have come at a price; he laments the ongoing
reminder that he’s little more than a reflex-honed assassin.
It’s an important remnant of his
core humanity. Unlike Asset, Bourne isn’t a soulless killing machine ... and
yet there’s also a duality, and Damon conveys the agony of such indecision. He
clearly derives grim joy from doing his job well, as it reminds him of his
original purpose. Could it be, as Heather theorizes to Dewey, that Bourne — in
his heart — actually wishes to be welcomed, once again, into the CIA’s loving
(if duplicitous) embrace?
Jones is at his cold-blooded, reptilian
best as the ruthless Dewey, whose smiles are more fearsome than his scowls.
(Either way, we expect to see fangs.) He lies blandly, capriciously and
convincingly; if he threatens, it’s usually by implication or inference, the
“victim” never quite sure what s/he has just heard. At the same time, Dewey is
outwardly the picture of bonhomie and paternal devotion, particularly to
Heather.
Jones hasn’t had this much fun
since his Oscar-winning performance in 1994’s The Fugitive.
Vikander’s Heather is a tougher
read. As introduced, she seems the pluperfect CIA stalwart: unflinchingly loyal
to Dewey, and secure in her belief that the Agency is defending the nation. But
as with all mentor/apprentice relationships, this one is colored by underlying
tension.
Heather is troubled by Dewey’s
agitated, end-justifies-the-means response to Bourne; it feels old-school and
antiquated, whereas she thrives in the modern Internet era. As with every
blossoming child, Heather begins to wonder about her father-figure. The subtle delicacy
of Vikander’s performance lies in the way she conveys such doubts via uneasy
expressions and increasingly wary body language. We also begin to hear an edge
in her snap-to acknowledgments of Dewey’s various orders.
Stiles, always a pleasure, has
blossomed as Nicky has weathered these many adventures. No longer the callow sacrificial
lamb who barely survived her first encounter with Bourne, she has grown into a
hardened, cynical underground patriot: quietly furious over the way that she,
Bourne and many others have been exploited.
Cassel is persuasively vicious as
the unstoppable Asset; Ato Essandoh is appropriately watchful as Craig Jeffers,
Dewey’s deputy. Ahmed displays the captivating, mildly arrogant aura of Tech
Entrepreneur.
The film’s production values are top-notch
across the board, with shout-outs going to cinematographer Barry Ackroyd and
production designer Paul Kirby, both of whom deserve credit for orchestrating
and capturing the opening Athens sequence. Stunt coordinator Gary Powell also
deserves a bow for those suspenseful 10 minutes; not since 1998’s Saving Private Ryan has a drama made
such a breathtaking first impression.
Given the ferocity of that
opening salvo, viewers can be forgiven their concern that Greengrass has
emptied his cannon too quickly. Fear not: This escapade concludes with an
equally dynamic — and entirely different — set piece.
There’s no question that the
Bourne series re-shaped the cinematic spy thriller mold, with the other major players
— notably Bond and the Mission:
Impossible franchise — doing their best to keep up. Jason Bourne has upped the ante yet again, and it’ll be fun to see
what follows.
Because one thing is certain,
from this film’s final scene: Bourne will be back.
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