The Bourne Ultimatum [Blu-ray]

I always liked the early Jason Bourne movies because they were a new take on the spy genre. Matt Damon as Bourne was a rouge agent suffering from PTSD and trying to end the CIA program that turned him into a killer. What set the series apart from others was that it tried to show more realistic action scenes. There’s no gadgets. There’s no jumping out of airplanes, etc. For instance Damon confronts a killer in an apartment with small confined rooms. It makes the fighting more intense and it’s drawn out rather than being over in a just a few punches. Another little thing I liked was how Damon would play with the CIA officers looking for him. In one scene, David Strathairn is out in the field trying to corner Damon while talking to him on the phone. Straithairn offers to meet to which Damon replies that if he was in his office they would be talking face to face right then. It also highlighted the power of the modern surveillance state where the government can follow and observe people almost everywhere. The theme of the whole Bourne franchise was that he was trying to stop the abuses that would naturally come from holding so much power. That along with the action makes Bourne Ultimatum a game changer in secret agent movies.

The third, and alas, the final installment of the Bourne series has landed, and what a landing it was. The strongest of the three installments (the first two being excellent in their own right) propels the viewer through almost non-stop, high-tense action, leaving the audience on the edge of their seats. For those who have missed either of the first two motion pictures ... and shame on you if you did;), it's a must to see at least the second installment (The Bourne Supremacy) in order not to get totally lost in this one. Do yourself a favor and see both fine films (The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy) before seeing The Bourne Ultimatum.As with the other two films, The Bourne Ultimatum was shot at several different exotic locals (a trademark of this series). "Ultimatum" starts where "Supremacy" left off. Actually, it sort of spans The Bourne Supremacy, telling us what transpired at the end of that 2nd installment that we did not see.Now, when I mean non-stop action, that doesn't mean it's the entire picture. The story of Bourne's identity and his role in "Treadstone" (a CIA Black-Ops program) comes full circle and the scenes inside the CIA (especially the Pamela Landy character, played wonderfully by Joan Allen) are as intense as they are interesting. More important still, nothing is telegraphed in the entire series. We don't know what is going to happen, all the way to (and including) the end. Also, the character Nicky Parsons (played nicely by Julia Stiles) is expanded in the third episode, adding another interesting branch to the Bourne saga.And one cannot (or should not) underrate the performance of Matt Damon in yet another demanding Bourne role. While he puts the "E" in exciting fight sequences, he also puts the "I" in intelligence. His character is thinking every second of every day and has a purpose in everything he does (which is not always known by the audience at the time). Damon brings this out (often subtly) in each film, making Bourne the super-agent of super-agents, but never in an unbelievable or plastic (James Bond) type of way (not to say the Bond series wasn't good at times, but Bond is pretty light fare -- almost comic book in depth -- compared to the Bourne series).This is a hard-hitting series, intelligently written and wonderfully acted and directed. And as had been said by many people, many times, this is exactly what a secret agent movie should be (and very rarely is). The only problem I have with this series is the over-use of the hand-held camera technique. While not as jerky or blurry as the second episode, it can still be distracting at times. However, the use of the hand-held camera tends to put the audience in the middle of everything, giving it that extra intensity and realism not found in most films. And believe me, you will be right in the middle of the action in this brilliant installment ... and at times, amazingly so. This is one heck of a series and one heck of a movie.Because this film essentially completes the trilogy, and I feel it is the strongest of the series (part 1 being very good, part 2 even better, while part 3 the best), I rate this installment the highest of the three. Between 1 and 10, I feel The Bourne Ultimatum deserves a solid 9.Sadly, I think this is the logical end to this series, and for that I am somewhat bummed that we won't see another installment. But hey, this is Hollywood where ANYTHING can happen. I can only hope if Hollywood reprises the Bourne role (and Hollywood is quite renown for doing this), they don't muck it up, and will maintain the integrity and excitement of the other three films. And no, I don't want anyone but Matt Damon playing the lead role, nor anyone but Paul Greengrass directing it.

Before I begin, I'd like to make one thing perfectly clear. This is the third movie in a series. If you haven't seen the first two, you will be lost, especially since this one picks up moments after the climax of the last one. Ready? Then let's begin.Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) is injured and on the run. The Moscow police are after him because of the car chase that ended the last film. When cornered, Bourne explains that he has to find out who is after him and who he is once and for all before he escapes.The action skips ahead six weeks. Bourne has once again slipped under the radar. The latest flashbacks in his memory are connected to his early training at the CIA. But his motive is the death of his girlfriend. He may have caught the person responsible, but he wants to know why that person was sent after him in the first place.Meanwhile, British reporter Simon Ross (Paddy Considine) is writing a series on Jason Bourne. He has a secret source in the CIA. And he's attracted the attention of Bourne as well as Noah Vosen (David Strathairn), the head of a secret program at the CIA. Who is Simon's source? Will it lead Bourne to the secrets of his past? Or will Noah have everyone is site killed first?I'll admit I am not the biggest fan of the first two movies. I found them overly complex and hard to follow with some big plot holes. But this one was actually straight forward, so I was able to sit back and enjoy. Yet you do need to have seen those first two, and recently, because they weave in lots of plot points from those films.Now that's not to say the movie was boring. There are lots of great action scenes here. I was on the edge of my seat for most of the movie. Heck, an extended scene in Tangier had my stomach in knots.One complaint that holds true is the lack of character development. With the exception of returning characters, we really don't get to know anyone. Of course, that does make it easier to root for our heroes. And this isn't a complaint about the acting, but it was all wonderful as always.My biggest complaint is the shaky camera work. It makes it harder to follow the action at times. I wish this fad in camera work would end because I don't think I will ever appreciate it.This is the first film in the franchise to make me interested in reading the books, so I'd say it was a success. There's always a possibility they will come back for a fourth film, but if not, this ending should satisfy fans of the series.

Great movie

Bomb ass movie

Bourne never fails to deliver!

Another action packed movie. This movie is awesome because it's mostly all action. I also like how it literally picks up right where part 2 left off.

love this series

A great action movie which I loved. I did try watching it using the HD-DVD playback software installed on my PC and every time it crashed this app (despite the fact other HD-DVD's played back fine using that software) - hence it didn't get 5 stars.

quality film even in standard definition.

as described, not much else you can say except that this is a great film!

Terrific film in a terrific steel case don't get better than that.