Despite Solid Action, This Finale Offers No Comparison to its Predecessors

Rating: 7/10 (8 August 2011)

I've read that the producers responsible for this series had never intended to make a third film, but faced with mounting pressure from the studio, they chose to invent a few excuses to get their amnesiac action hero back under fire. That's certainly evident in Ultimatum's story, which does have its moments but never really shakes the feeling that it's just another adventure for Bourne and not an integral part of the arching primary storyline. I had trouble investing in the hunt for the new government goons after Supremacy effectively wiped out the last remaining string pullers of any circumstance, and it's never adequately explained what interest the new goons have in capturing, hunting or killing Jason. Julia Styles is positively crammed into the same wide-eyed, good looking field liability that Franka Potente played in the first film, but doesn't have the same kind of connection with Matt Damon that made the original relationship work so well. Ultimately, the enhanced role granted to her character feels like an unnecessary step backwards. The action is still good, though, with a rooftop parkour chase through Tangiers being the highlight and another high-speed street chase that does its best to mimic the successes of the previous one (even ending in, basically, the exact same manner). However, the abundance of hand held shots this time around are way over the top. Rather than relegating the technique to the action scenes, where it makes the most sense, this time around we get the shaky treatment everywhere from baggage check at the airport to a sit-down conference in the pentagon. I still enjoyed Ultimatum for what it was - it's a high speed thrill ride - but one that pales in comparison to what came before.