The Start of a Masterpiece Trilogy

Rating: 10/10 (1 December 2012)

As a fan of James Bond, but acknowledging its campiness, clichés and formulas, it was extremely refreshing to see a true spy/action movie with a movie star I already respected, but never thought could pull it off: Matt Damon. Damon did a superb job as Jason Bourne in The Bourne Identity as did the rest of the cast. You rooted for him, sympathized with him and despite the past you soon learn to question, you still wanted him to succeed. Bourne is found without a memory in the ocean by fishermen who attempt to help the young man by dropping him off, with a little bit of cash, near a place, Switzerland, where he might regain his identity. There he learns of extraordinary fighting skills he was unaware of and meets the soon-to-be (and obvious) love of his life, Marie. Both try and piece his past together, while formulating a future together, albeit on the run from a mysterious "Treadstone" organization. The action, when shown, is intense, the intrigue storyline is not only plausible, but on-the-edge of your seat exciting, and the cinematography is stunning – I must visit Paris, France soon. The only flaws I can find (though I didn't look for them) was the obvious pairing of Marie and Bourne, their inevitable sex scene, and Marie's accent (and languages) that jumped from one culture to the next. Other than those minor defects, this was a wonderful, suspenseful and crafty movie. I absolutely loved them reverting (as they did with the as-good sequels) from CGI and made me believe in action again and not the green screen. Also, despite knowing there was more than one book this was based upon and knowing sequels were in the works, I loved this was a completely stand alone feature and is absolutely recommended.