A Good Film, But Not Up To The Novel

Rating: Null/10 (6 April 2003)

I thought this was a well done film, and it reminded me of having read the novel about 15 years ago, as well as what a good writer Ludlum could be (he could also be pretty bad, as in The Chancellor Manuscript), but the film was nowhere near as intricate and interesting as the novel. To be fair, there is no way a two hour movie can capture a book of over 500 pages that never lets up on the action. Franka Potente was superb, as was Clive Owen. What I can't believe is the number of people gushing over Matt Damon, who is (a) unbelievable as an assassin because he is so wimpy, and (b) an incredibly BAD actor. As a critic once said about the young Katherine Hepburn, Damon "runs the gamut of emotions from A to B." He is the one glaring hole in the cast, and it is too bad that among the three chief cast members, he is the American. He may be able to write or produce, but all the praise for his acting is just another case of "The Emperor's New Clothes," much like his equally talentless pal, Ben Affleck.