Much better than the book

Rating: 9/10 (4 May 2009)

It isn't often that you can say a movie beats the book on which is was based, but in the case of the Bourne Ultimatum that is certainly the case. The book is a massive monstrosity with a twisting plot populated by unbelievable superheros who have no flaws whatsoever.
What we are given with the film is a far gritter view of life (though certainly nothing as close to the bone as Spy Game; Bourne still depicts espionage as some sort of glamorous game). Both sides are flawed in one way or another, and that is what makes it so intriguing. You cannot be certain in the final scenes if perhaps Bourne is wrong. Of course you know that can't be the case, but there is enough there to make you wonder briefly.
Julia Stiles is sadly under-utilised; I had higher hopes for her character after the events of "Supremacy". She is pivotal, but the amount of screen time felt somewhat limited.
The stunts are once again excellent, and part of the plot without ever becoming the driver in themselves. The narrative is woven well enough to include action set-pieces which feel as though they "just happen", rather than the usual approach (Bond movies in particular) where it feels as though the stunts were performed and then someone wrote a script to fill in the spaces between them.
An excellent musical score underpins the entire enterprise, like the stunts it does not dominate but serves to back the story and round out the experience nicely.
An excellent movie and well worth buying the Blu-ray.