Less Action, More Plot But Just As Good

Rating: 8/10 (8 August 2012)

Since Matt Damon decided not to reprise his role as Jason Bourne the filmmakers decided to continue the Bourne franchise without him- the result is the Bourne Legacy. Although it has less action than Damon's earlier trilogy it is still quite entertaining and proceeds along a breakneck pace, never slowing down to be boring and is a welcome addition to the Bourne franchise.
Jeremy Renner takes over as lead protagonist Aaron Cross but Damon's presence is constantly being reminded to us since the previous supporting cast from the Bourne Ultimatum (Albert Finney, Scott Glenn, David Strathairn and Joan Allen) all make cameos to make sure that we are firmly within the same universe. In fact the whole movie's timeline takes place at roughly the same time as the Bourne Ultimatum and the constant narrative shifts makes one even anticipate a Matt Damon cameo.
So what's the story about? Well it seems that Jason Bourne wasn't the only assassin in the Treadstone project but now it is revealed that there were other projects beside that one too. Because of the public fallout with the Jason Bourne expose the powers that be decide to shut down these other projects by killing everyone involved. Naturally Renner survives and with the help of surviving scientist Rachel Weisz tries to make sense of it all before they themselves are killed.
Renner's assassin is slightly different than Damon's since he is neither conflicted nor does he have amnesia but is instead addicted to some sort of blue pills that makes him more deadly. Jeremy Renner does an able job filling in for Matt Damon and the plot and action whirls fast enough to satisfy most moviegoers (though a workplace shooting may hit too close to home for some) but the younger crowd might bemoan the lack of constant massive explosions. For everyone else, its good enough to warrant more. The only weakness is that the ending is somewhat abrupt and seems to hint at a sequel due to a number of unresolved plot and character issues.
Here's to hoping Matt Damon and Jeremy Renner teams up in the future with another Bourne movie!