The best action-thriller franchise since the 60's and 70's

Rating: 8/10 (18 August 2007)

It is fairly simple to put a finger on just what makes this movie in particular and the Bourne trilogy as a whole such superior action films. Just compare The Bourne Ultimatum to another summer action-vigilante extravaganza, Live Free or Die Hard. While the filmmakers clearly had a blast making the latter film, it must be taken with a grain of salt and requires quite a lot of suspension of disbelief. And indeed, most of the stunts, action scenes, concepts and characters in that film are so incredibly unbelievable they are borderline parody. But the Bourne movies have this relentless knack of keeping it real  real-world settings, great attention to detail and protocol, on-set action and car chases, and just an overall realistic and totally believable feel to them. Indeed, it is this ultra-realistic, totally believable aspect and tone that makes me appreciate the Bourne series far more than other spy franchises such as Mission: Impossible, Jack Ryan, and, dare I say it  James Bond.
But that's not all that makes the Bourne films unique and sets them apart from most of the other movies in its genre. In most action-adventure films, the sides are very clear and present: The main character is the hero and operates solely for the side of good, while the villains are also clearly outlined. But in the Bourne films, these relations are far less black-and-white. Jason Bourne himself is clearly the protagonist, but obviously doesn't operate for the "greater good". He's on a personal crusade, seeking revenge and information, and on the way, breaks all sorts of laws and rules and kills whoever stands in his path. On the other hand, all the various CIA operatives working to catch him, it could be said, are just doing their job. We don't have any super villain masterminds; we just have a bunch of men and women doing their job trying to catch someone who clearly is dangerous and a threat. It is these ambivalent and conflicting motives of the films' characters that make them such a treat to watch.
Specifically on Ultimatum, Paul Greengrass and all the technical crew do a stellar job of creating the Bourne world and relaying the realism and believability of the story. Greengrass again utilizes his hyper-realistic documentary style of film-making that featured in all his previous films, most recently United 93. It's disorienting and confusing, but the style serves the film's purposes perfectly. It is also absolutely wonderful to see an action-thriller movie that prominently features on-set, practical stunts and effects, as opposed to using lots of CGI to tweak up the action and to make things easier. And what action sequences this film has! From the first scene Bourne grabs you, and we the audience literally run through the movie right along with him. It's just fascinating to see how Bourne's mind works; how he thinks on the spot, always sees the broader picture, and of course does his fair share of close hand-to-hand combat  those scenes in particular are breathtakingly well choreographed. It is also worth mentioning the insane chase sequences, both on foot and in vehicle, and I'm particularly glad that the film's advertising didn't give too much away of the film's grand finale car chase, which is one of the most thrilling and outstanding action sequences I've seen lately.
One can't review this film without mentioning the cast. In all of its installments the Bourne series was blessed with some fantastic supporting character talent  in the first film we had Chris Cooper and Brian Cox both deliver outstanding work. The Bourne Supremacy added the unexpected but more-than-welcome casting of Joan Allen, one of the most underrated actresses working today. And in this film, we are introduced to characters played by David Strathairn and Albert Finney, with Strathairn in particular delivering absolutely stellar work. But the true star and the one who ties it all together is, of course, Matt Damon. Damon is an actor I have grown to appreciate more and more in recent years, and especially in light of last year's release of The Departed, I am very surprised that Damon only has one acting Oscar nomination. His work on the Bourne films is far subtler as his character does a lot more running and fighting than he does talking. But Damon succeeds in doing what most A-list actors fail to do: He disappears into the character. During most of the film, I forgot that I was watching Matt Damon because I was so engrossed in the action and into his character. This level of disappearance is one that actors such as Tom Cruise are simply unable to do. And for that, I commemorate Damon all the more. Julia Stiles, on the other hand, doesn't deliver a bad performance per se, but one would think that a more established or talented actress would be able to do much more with the character than she does. Still, she's not a burden nor a distraction like Katie Holmes in Batman Begins, so her casting is more than forgivable.
Director Greengrass, his crew, Damon and the rest of the cast do an absolutely magnificent job on this film: The story is delivered outstandingly, the action is directed to perfection, and just the whole overall tone and energy of the film is pitch-perfect. Also worth mentioning is composer John Powell, whose percussion-based score more than enhances the pace and adrenaline of the film. In the end, everything comes together to create a brilliant, well-executed and just pitch-perfect action-thriller spy film, and the success and quality of this third installment in the Bourne series undoubtedly seals the trilogy's fate as one of the strongest, unfailing film trilogies in recent years, and probably the best action-thriller movies since the 60's and 70's films like The French Connection or Bullitt.