One of the best movies I have seen all year.

Rating: 10/10 (15 September 2012)

I absolutely loved every minute of this movie, but let me start out by saying that I'm not a fan of any of the first three Bourne movies. I will also say that because this story is so different to the previous movies, it would have probably been better to give it a different title. There didn't need to be any reference to Bourne at all.
One of the highlights for me was the level of accuracy in the CIA search team. It was surprisingly refreshing to see satellite feeds from across the world portrayed with their accurate limitations. This made me engage with that part of the story on a much deeper level, and I really felt the tension as the search team grew closer and closer to their target.
The chase sequence is one of the best I have seen. Manila was an amazing choice of location. It had it's one cheesy moment, but I was holding onto my seat the entire time. I enjoyed the lull after the first part of the chase, and I especially liked the very sharp and conclusive ending.
The acting was absolutely spot on.
I loved the details that helped to set the tone for certain scenes. For example, the Australian character at the Manila laboratory really helped to create a general overtone of semi-incompetence, which was crucial to the belief that their break-in and escape was actually plausible.
I loved the storyline, and found it very refreshing after seeing too many movies that deal with revenge or uncovering conspiracies. Perhaps it says something about my personality, but I really enjoyed the premise that all they wanted to do was get away, and live in peace. I thought the suspense was really well managed, during the scene where the border guards were checking their passports. The final scene of the movie released all of this built-up tension, and I think it was a perfect, happy ending. The ending reminded me of the movie 'Limitless', how the character's world can collapse at any moment, but they make it to the end, and are well-prepared to deal with any threats in the future.
So there you go. One 10 star review in a sea of disappointed critics.