Lovely as a shiny new silencer

Rating: 8/10 (6 July 2002)

One thing, after watching this three times in the theatre (You might think I'm a fanatic; I just like to really know what I'm reviewing before I review it) one thing stands out in my mind...Watch this movie! I mean it. Real good, sometimes cliched entertainment, the sort that's titled Heart Pounding and edgeofyourseat, fun, it gets you involved with the characters in a way in which, I gotta say, the book never did. Acting is excellent, cinematography is original, really fantastic, gave the film a stylistic twist on the jump cutting of your usual thriller. Now, remember, If this great little movie is cliched, it's because it comes from a book written when spy-thriller cliche wasn't much of a problem. This was the original; the 70's invented the spy novel, and that's where the movie comes from. So not only is The Bourne Identity sleek, told with flair and creativity, it's also got an excuse for it's old -hat plot; that's something most movies don't have, an excuse. The music's great, too, if a little retro-seventies French pop. I've been what you might call a rabid fan of Powell and Gregson Williams for a while, and this stuff by Powell is really good. My mother and I keep comparing this movie to Spy Game, one of my favorites, and I have to say, it really gives Spy Game a run for it's money! It aspires to being less cerebral than that lovely film, but the Bourne ID has enough brains of it's own. It never lost my interest even the third time I went to see it; it drives right along at a glorious pace, propelling you through France with delightful, if not dizzying speed. Treasure a spy movie that actually gets you involved in deciphering the character's personalities, James Bond this is not, and doesn't suffer from the comparison. I probably could find some negative comments to make about it, but I don't want to take the time right now. Just see it. P.S. The car chase you've heard is good, and the best part of the movie really is.