Violence/Gore: A lot of peril and violence, some graphic, and characters are killed. Depressingly little actual gore though.

Sex/Nudity: A very mild sex scene. Nothing you’d be embarrassed to watch with your mom.

Best Line: “What is the French word for ’stakeout,’ huh? May as well hang out a sign that says ‘Don’t come back.’”

Score:

Not being a fan of the political/spy/assassin-type thriller (Bond notwithstanding), I let this movie pass me by when it first appeared in theatres and on video. Then, one night, alone in my apartment, I happened to catch it on cable. I was mesmerized, entirely caught up in this story of a man with a bad case of amnesia who, in trying to recover his identity, discovers that he is a black-ops government assassin.

Jason Bourne (who only knows his name because he saw it on one of many passports that all contain his photo) is sent on a mission to assassinate an exiled African leader and fails. Shot twice, left adrift in the Mediterranean, and rescued by Italian fishermen, Bourne suffers acute memory loss and thus fails to report back to his superiors, leaving them with two things to believe - he’s either dead or gone rogue. When he is spotted in the American consulate in Zurich, they’re convinced of the latter.

Despite the fact that this is a modern film with very up-to-date technology and story line, THE BOURNE IDENTITY is very much a ‘retro’ film, a throwback to ’70s Cold War paranoia. Its lean, taut style is reminiscent of THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR, and not since THE FRENCH CONNECTION has there been a better car chase (in a Mini no less!). The fight scenes alone are refreshingly realistic-looking. After seeing so damn much wire-fu these days, it’s good to see something lean and spare and minimalistic. It’s basically a lesson in how to seriously mess someone up with the least amount of show and effort.

The movie has less character study than I would prefer, but considering the theme it’s rather difficult to deeply probe into the psyche of a man who doesn’t even know himself. The movie doesn’t really spend time with anyone other than Jason and Marie, and because of the movie’s very immediate plotline, no in-depth characterization really occurs. However, in THE BOURNE SUPREMACY, the character of Bourne is explored more thoroughly…but that’s another review.

Despite its somewhat formulaic elements, THE BOURNE IDENTITY is never trite or boring. The middle of the film moves a bit slowly and with some fairly pointless plot twists, but comes up strong in the end. The DVD contains an alternate ending, but after viewing both, I wholeheartedly prefer the ending of the theatrical release. After seeing Damon’s strong debut as a lead in GOOD WILL HUNTING, I was disappointed by his follow-up films until now. Although I have been guilty of calling HUNTING a fluke, it appears I may have been a bit unfair. Damon seems to have found his niche with Jason Bourne, and I look forward to the third film in the series.

DVD Extras: Extras include an Alternate Opening and Ending; Deleted Scenes; The Birth of the Bourne Identity feature; Moby’s “Extreme Ways” music video; Extended Farmhouse Scene; Audio Commentary by director Doug Liman; the theatrical trailer; production notes; and profiles of Matt Damon, Franka Potente, Chris Cooper, Clive Owen, Brian Cox, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Tony Gilroy, William Blake Herron, Robert Ludlum, and Doug Liman.

SS