Review of The Bourne Legacy (2012) by 28Director — 31 Aug 2013

NOTE: There are grammatical errors and some duplicated words in this review that aren't my fault there must be a problem with the software.

There are a lot of good things about “The Bourne Legacy”, with Jeremy Renner and Rachel Weizs being the top two. They’re both good; Renner as a spy targeted for disappearance by his own government, and Weizs as a laboratory doctor, assisting in a secret program to develop genetically enhanced spies. Unbeknownst to her, she, too, has just been added to the dispatch list.

The film opens in the snowy and spectacular wilds of Alaska, where Renner has been sent to meet another ’participant’ in the program, who will give him the medications he needs. The cautious, distrustful conversations they have set the tone for the film; a calculating, ruthless world even for the most cynical among us. As Dr. Sheering, Weisz is wonderful; a sympathetic and credible soul, capturing the bewilderment of a physician caught up in machinations far over her head. “Who’s… who’s ‘they?’”, she pleads. “I don’t know anything!”. It's just one of her many excellent scenes.

The original books were by Robert Ludlum, written many years ago. This film was written and directed by Tony Gilroy, and it's hard to imagine much of the story came from Ludlum, other than the main character.

The story is better in its first half; the pace slows, later on, and ends weakly with a retread of the rooftop chases that were the dramatic highlights of the first three films. In “Legacy” this final chase is anti-climactic; Gilroy seems to have turned the script over to the stunt department, with orders to dream up something new and it feels contrived.

There are several shots that deserve note. A close-up of Renner at a remote, icy river’s edge, that pulls back till he’s a mere speck in the distance. And later, as government agents close in on Weisz, Renner quickly scales the outside of her three story house, surging through an upstairs window to surprise an agent a split second before she can fire. The athleticism is remarkable enough, but even more impressive is the technological feat; the camera swoops up after Renner in one fluid motion, then passes effortlessly through a small window, and without a pause, it pivots sharply as he shoots the agent just as she looks up. It’s the kind of cinematography we take for granted, but is just one example of the superb filmmaking being done in the Bourne films, and many others. I looked up the credits on “Legacy”, and there were well over 500 names attached to this film. Some talented people.

The editing is excellent alternately staccato or placid, shaking you out of your seat, or giving you a moment to catch your breath. The sound design is unobtrusive but vita to the filml. Casting is first rate up and down. If we’re going to quibble, Doc Sheering (Weisz) never really does much can’t the female lead at least throw a punch, or ride her own cycle? Gilroy treats this woman like a figurine. Smart, but helpless.

Finally, Republicans will doubtless find this story unfulfilling. While it’s a slam-dunk portrayal of a rogue US government, silently subverting the Constitution, and killing off Americans left and right, the filmmakers don’t even hint that Obama is behind it all an unforgivable omission. Unless....wait! what if...