Supreme!!!

Rating: 9/10 (1 November 2004)

The sequel to surprise hit The Bourne Identity is a superb accomplishment and is even better than the first film. This is a superbly intelligent and polished thriller and like the first film harks back to great espionage films from the 60's. It's delightfully reminiscent of classic films like The Ipcress File.
The story this time has Bourne hiding away in Goa with his girlfriend Marie (Franka Potente.) He is found by a German spook (Karl Urban) and is on the receiving end of an assassination attempt, Bourne survives and Marie does not. The idea is to finally kill Bourne and then frame him for the killing of CIA agents after a botched deal, headed by Pamela Landy (Joan Allen.). Bourne now wants revenge and goes to Berlin to find out what happened he wants to face the Feds head on. The story naturally is full of double crossing and intrigue as any good spy thriller should have and it all unravels nicely. This story develops Bourne's character even further and the impact of Marie's death has great dramatic affect throughout the film as Bourne also begins to have memories of a mission he did in Berlin that holds importance to events happening now.
Like the first installment, Matt Damon is excellent. He perfectly balances the inner fragility with the outer sternness and composure of Bourne's secret agent personality. Also as before Brian Cox is superb and his dodgy dealings come full circle. Karl Urban who is an up and comer thanks to his appearance in Lord Of The Rings 2 and 3 is also very good and has a presence in the film similar to Clive Owen in the first. Joan Allen is also very good and I have to say looking sexier than ever!
The action in this film is pulsating. It's documentary like and puts you right in the action and the centre piece car chase is the action scene of the year, no question. The fact that all the car chases are reality based is something I love about this and indeed the first film. In amongst all the over the top, surrealistic action sequences in blockbusters (which I like in their own way) this is a refreshingly exciting collection of action scenes that feel realistic, there are no 100 ft high explosions or cars that hurtle 50ft through the air. It's crunching, superbly choreographed stunt work, real crashes, real physics and real carnage. Much like the superlative car chases in Ronin the chases here are amazing.
Overall this is a great thriller narrowly beating out the first film. It's great to have an action film with character, acting, an intelligent script and also with genuine tension and atmosphere. Not to be missed. ****½