For Those Still Debating Paying To See This

Rating: 2/10 (8 September 2007)

Occasionally a film will come along that will leave me feeling totally disconnected from the movie-viewing (or at least the theatre-going) public. This was certainly the case with "The Bourne Ultimatum" (2007), whose popularity with viewing audiences and critics made me feel like I had grown up in some other culture and never learned the language of films. Because my disconnect was so total I have spent a bit of time reading reviews and comments, trying to pin down the reasons for my "somewhat" contrarian reaction. I say "somewhat" not because of my degree of disconnect but because I am not alone in these feelings, a fair number of viewers have had negative reactions as extreme as my own.
So for the benefit of those who are thinking about viewing the film here are a few points that may help you predict your reaction.
1. Have you seen the first two films? "The Bourne Ultimatum" is the third film in a popular trilogy based on a series of popular books. I had neither seen the first two films nor read the books. This is a bandwagon I had avoided (my attendance at the third film was almost accidental-I had some time to kill one afternoon and it was the film that was closest to starting when I arrived at the ticket window). I had avoided them despite being a huge Julia Stiles fan, mostly because I dislike Matt Damon almost as much as Titanic Leo. But my reaction to Damon's performance was unexpectedly positive in "The Bourne Ultimatum" so that turned out to be a non-factor. You probably will enjoy the film more if you know about the franchise and the background of the story. Not so much because it is all that hard of a mental exercise to follow the rather simplistic storyline but because of the second factor I am about to discuss.
2. Can you identify with the Jason Bourne character? I think this was a key reason for my own disconnect. Presumably most of those who who buy a ticket bring a ready-made identification with them, carried over from the first two films. If you don't already have it, don't expect it to happen during film three. At no point did I like, admire, or identify with this character; but I might have had I met him in the earlier films.
3. Can you suspend disbelief during action/conspiracy films that do not feature characters with superpowers or supernatural intervention, where a character exhibits implausible physical prowess? For me personally the Bourne franchise was doomed because of my inability or stubborn refusal to accept silly action sequences that have no credibility. "The Bourne Ultimatum" reminded me a lot of "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" without that film's element of humor. And while this exercise in excess is sometimes tolerable in obvious parody films like "Ultraviolet" or maybe not (insert "Electra" here), it just puts me to sleep when it is supposed to be taken seriously. My guess is that if you enjoyed Ronin" (1998), "The Ipcress File" (1965), and "Enemy of the State" (1998); you will find the "Bourne" movies generally moronic.
4. Do you feel like a displaced person during your occasional visit to your local mega- multi-plex? Outside of some college towns you have to look long and hard to find anyone but wiggers and drones standing in line for Hollywood's latest saturation booked products. I'm not talking about the occasional family film or chick flick, but rather the standard dumbed-down blockbuster (both those that do well at the box office and those that tank). If so you have probably formed the same sort of theories about the sub-group of society that represent the target audience for this stuff and there is no need for me to elaborate.
5. Are you a big fan of computer generated sequences, fast editing, and production techniques that call attention to themselves? Most of the critical comments about "The Bourne Ultimatum" at least mention its reliance on "unsteady cam" filming and flurry editing. Like "The Blair Witch" stuff, these techniques are deliberately employed to create a subconscious disorientation in viewers; it is not the result of poor cinematography or cheap post-production work. Unfortunately they are done to such excess that they quickly call attention to themselves which tends to undermine any impact they might have had on the subconscious. Also, they are lazy ways to stage and to film action sequences, making most of this stuff on the authenticity level of "Electra". Unlike "The Third Man" and "East of Eden", where odd camera angles reinforce off- kilter "moments" in the story, the pervasive use of this stuff means that there are no normal scenes with which it can be contrasted.
Hopefully these five points will help you to determine in advance whether you should hit the theatre for this production. Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.