The Bourne Legacy

Reviewed by Danny the Demented
Updated Aug 24 2012

So evidently there's still milk in the Bourne franchise's teet, and I am glad they invited me to suck it with them. Yeah that sounded wrong, let's move on.

The fourth and latest installment of the Bourne series, "The Bourne Legacy" tells the story of not Jason Bourne (Matt Damon), but a new protagonist named Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner). Just like Bourne, Cross is a trained government "asset" (or operative, or assassin, or I-can-kill-you-with-my-nose-hair bad ass), but unlike Bourne, Cross is not from Operation Treadstone, but another program called Operation Outcome. After the Bourne story is brought to the public's eyes by Pamela Landy (Joan Allen), Eric Byer (Edward Norton), a high level intelligence director-type, decides to wipe out every Outcome agents to prevent the project from seeing the light of day. Byer managed to wipe out everyone related to Outcome, all except for Cross and a scientist named Marta (Rachel Weisz) who was involved with Outcome's medication development. Now on the run and out of meds that enhance Outcome agents' physical strength and intelligence, Cross must find a way to save Marta, survive from the relentless chase from Byer and his goons, and most importantly, remain Aaron Cross at all costs. 

An admirable directorial effort from Tony Gilroy (the pen responsible for every Bourne movie), the film kept its trademark excellence in producing some of the the best fight scenes in Hollywood. The choreography of the action sequences is as good as they come, with flawless movements perfectly assembled in an electrifying fashion. The roof-top and the car chases are impeccably designed as well. Watching the characters leap from buildings to buildings and jump from floors to floors is nothing short of breathtaking. However, the story is clearly not as strong as its three predecessors. While still captivating to an extent, Legacy lacks the mystery and the designed confusion seen from the previous films. WIth Legacy, Cross knows exactly who he is, and his goal is to stay that way. This is still a viable plot but if the central character is not searching for an identity (the major premise of the Bourne series), then the film is without a sense of intrigue and the journey as the result would seen a bit bland, which is exactly what happened. 

Jeremy Renner gives a worthy performance as the new hero Cross. It is wise of Renner to not portray his Cross as another Bourne (quiet, confused, and emotionally unstable) because Renner lacks the sincere look that Damon has perfected. Renner's Cross in contrast is more talkative, more sensitive, and more human. But it is also because he is more relatable that Cross is a less interesting character than Bourne. This is of course not to take anything away from Renner's prowess. He is still a capable actor on the rise and I will be following him closely (now if someone would pay me to do this, that'd be great, wink wink Hollywood). Rachel Weisz is dependable as ever but her role is quite frankly not relevant enough for me to say anything vital. My biggest beef with the film is the lack of Edward Norton. Yes he was in the movie but not nearly enough. Such an amazing force in anything he's ever been in, Legacy could've used more of Norton's fascinating ability of turning any monologue interesting. Alas, regrets. 

This was nevertheless a worthy fourth attempt and money well spent at the cinema. The fight/chase sequences alone are worth the admission price. Do I want to see a fifth? Not exactly, but with the weak summer lineup in 2012 thus far (not including The Dark Knight Rises), The Bourne Legacy was a much welcomed relief. My name is Danny and I endorse this message.