Going to be a great series....

Rating: 9/10 (24 July 2004)

I won't repeat everything already said plot wise. Matt Damon is excellent, and Joan Allen and Brian Cox give outstanding support. It makes all the difference when you shoot ON LOCATION, not the streets of LA. There is a scene in a Munich apartment for example: It could have been shot anywhere by lazy filmmakers. But the cars on the street are European, the outside of the building is European, the inside of the apartment is European....you get my drift. The Berlin hotel is, well, a BERLIN HOTEL. It really makes all the difference. 2 minor flaws: I agree there is too much hand held camera work that moves around WAY too much. It kind of dilutes the fight scenes. And the relationship of the Russian husband and wife to the other Russian gangsters is a little hazy. Otherwise, this kind of film really shows how sad the whole Bond franchise has become. THIS is how international spy films should be done! Can't wait for the third one.