I'm feeling generous-3/10

Rating: Null/10 (23 August 2004)

Having enjoyed the Bourne Identity I was looking forward to this latest installment. But.... having ditched Doug Liman as director and brought in Paul Greengrass, the producers have ditched a sense that the events may be real-in the sense that the plot elements of,say, 'From Russia with Love' are realistic,as opposed to 'Moonraker'-and introduced a 'docudrama' feel.
Unfortunately what is being dramatised isn't a spy-on-the-run story but what it's like to suffer migraine whilst undergoing a 90 minute epileptic fit.
Bourne has a few fights-there's a blur of bodies moving around and loud sound effects,then the camera steadies for half a second-and Bourne has won!!!! Why not fade to black and post a card saying,'with one bound Bourne was free?'It's just as informative -and entertaining . Again, there's a car chase.Between its start and conclusion there's just a blur of cars,lights,screeching tyres.There's no tension because we can't see what's happening and therefore we can't get involved so we just ENDURE until it's over.
If I'd been watching this on video I would have switched off after 10 minutes of pretentious hand-held close-up pseudo art house nonsense not because I object to these things per se but because their extensive use is inappropriate in a film of this nature.3/10