The 2000s have given us a few new super-spy franchise attempts but none have been as exciting as the Bourne series. Director Paul Greengrass, who helmed the amazing United 93 and The Bourne Supremacy, returns again to bring Jason home to the states. Ultimatum picks up right where the last one left off and never loses steam. It’s the most satisfying action picture of the year.
Barely following author Robert Ludlum’s source novel, The Bourne Ultimatum opens with Jason (Matt Damon still) fleeing the police in Moscow after an insane car chase. He then travels around the world once again trying to figure out his role in the CIA before a case of amnesia struck his memory (see The Bourne Identity to catch up). When deputy director Vosen (David Strathairn) discovers Bourne is still alive, he puts out an international hit on him to cover up the last mistake the agency thinks it has made. Only they’ve made a new one in the process - Bourne doesn’t take kindly to threats.
With each entry of the series brings more improvement. Greengrass tightened up the chaotic shooting style of the last one without compromising the feel. The cinematography is so engaging; you can’t help but get sucked into the moment. The fight scenes and car chases are edited as if captured from the memory of a witness at the scene.
The DVD has a slew of typical bonus features, including about 10 minutes of deleted scenes, which mostly center on back-stories to the CIA connection. “Man on the Move” is a featurette worthy of note, as it goes through each city the film takes place in and interviews production crew on how shots were set up. Seeing a brief snippet of the camera crew frantically chasing Damon as he does a good portion of the stunt work is quite exciting. A commentary with director Paul Greengrass is ties up the extras.
Fans of the series probably need no encouragement to pick up this disc to round out their collection. If you don’t own any of them yet, you can also pick up the new box set, which includes all three of the films. That would also make a great excuse to revisit the other ones, or provide someone special with a sweet holiday gift.
