Movie Review: Bourne Legacy

Not as good as any of the previous Bourne movies. Bourne Legacy tries to copy a lot of the elements of the previous trio of films, but falls short in a lot of ways. Jeremy Renner is not as compelling as Damon was, and has a weaker motivation for his search for answers. They couldn’t just copy the memory loss meme, so the film makers concocted a different reason for Renner’s Aaron Cross to need to run around killing people. The movie tries to tie into the timeline and events of Bourne Ultimatum, but it’s a weak tie in, and the govt bad guys in this movie aren’t quite as devious or intimidating. While the original Bourne movies took you all over the world, this one basically only does two interesting locations. Lastly, Legacy tries to replace some of the behavioral modification and brainwashing of the Bourne trilogy with what I’ll only describe as some relatively unbelievable pharmaceutical storyline that seems to belong more in a sci-fi movie than in a traditional spy thriller.

Legacy has pretty good action, and the characters are decent, although not fantastic. The movie is shot in a more traditional style, as opposed to the quick cutting style of the Bourne trilogy, although most of the score seems exactly the same. There’s the normal amount of violence to be expected, but nothing particularly gory. All in all, this felt like a lazy attempt to score more box office dollars from the Bourne name. It was entertaining, but certainly not up to expectations.

good to know. I will go with lower expectations on a matinee.
What are the two locations?

I thought it was a solid reset of the entire franchise. I like Renner, but he isn’t as good as Damon. A solid 7/10 for me.

The next one will determine whether the theme has run its course or whether Bourne can continue as a 007-type franchise.

What city is the setting?

That’s part of the appeal of the Bourne movies.

I don’t want to give too much away, but you get Alaska and the Phillipines. More rooftop chasing.

My son and I left the movie feeling like they forgot to write an ending.

It was an OK movie. Definteily not as good as the last Bourne movie.

An ok movie but the original Bourne was MUCH better. Bourne was cold & calculating, the new character is way too touchy-feely. The same type of chase scenes and encounters with local police. Too much bs talking that is not needed. Won’t be holding my breath for the next one.

Interesting. I’ve not yet seen the Bourne Legacy, but the WSJ film critic (who seems to call it like it is) wrote a positive review of this movie.

Bourne was cold & calculating, the new character is way too touchy-feely.
Renner’s character seems equally as calculating but by contrast, despite the enhancements, seems more reactionary nor as forward thinking as Bourne which I think leads to rash/hasty decissions.