Very disappointing...

Rating: 5/10 (5 August 2005)

I really enjoyed the first movie, The Bourne Identity. After watching it, I was eager to read the book series by Robert Ludlum. I read The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy and enjoyed both very much much more than the movies. My problem with the movie lies in the fact that it does not even attempt to follow the book. Besides the main character, Jason Bourne, there are almost no similarities.
The first and most major difference was the characters. Right in the beginning of the movie, Bourne's wife, Marie, is killed when, in the books, she remains an important character until the end. There are other characters that shouldn't have been killed as well, but I saw the movie several months ago and I can't remember them.
The second major difference is the setting and plot. The second book is based in Asia, mainly Japan and China. The plot is based around a Bourne impostor who the original Jason Bourne hunts down and kills. This movie, however, is set in Europe, with Bourne fleeing from the CIA, whose agents play a large role in helping him in the books.
There are many problems with this movie, and I admit that I am biased because I read the books. If you haven't read them, then you will probably love this movie as the other reviewers did. Otherwise, be prepared for a major letdown as far as the book's plot is concerned.