The Bourne Ultimatum: DVD Review

By Prairie Miller

It's possible that espionage thrillers just aren't what they used to be. That is, if The Bourne Ultimatum is any indication of a digital age makeover of spy movies. Those traditional acrobatic agents showing off their death defying moves in virtual gravity-free zones, appear to be on their way to extinction. In the era of elaborate, futuristic anti-terrorist operations, it's apparently gadget-accessorized couch potato sleuthing all the way.

Jumping through familiar cat and computer mouse hoops for the third time following his masterfully elusive outings in The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy, is adrenalin revved up Matt Damon as the fugitive dropout operative, Jason Bourne. Long fed up with the questionable tactics of the CIA, including the hit on his girlfriend in India, Bourne just wants to be left alone. But Blackbriar, a corrupt shadow wing of the CIA, wants him eliminated because Bourne knows too much about their extra-legal activities. And when a British newspaper reveals the resurfacing of Bourne, the chase is on once again.

The sight of a grim but ever resourceful Damon slipping through countless traps set for him in public train stations and on city streets spanning three continents, is exciting to behold - for about the first ten minutes. The remainder of the two hour pursuit as Bourne seems to run around in circles leading nowhere while director Paul Greengrass appears more impressed with his own cinematic gyrations than those of his main character, is just too dizzying and repetitive to fret about.

And all those quick getaway devices with an array of disposable cell phones, palm pilots and hand-held hacking helpmates to ward off armchair spies in suits, eventually preempt the sweaty and frowning humans with perpetual worried stares. Still later, when Joan Allen's Agent Landy finally gets wise to what's going down and switches teams as the movie's reinvented voice of conscience, what's left to say except, what took you so long.

If this elite, state of the art counter-terrorism unit can't bag one guy running around in public through no less than six countries, no wonder Bin Laden is still chilling out in the wilderness somewhere. The Bourne Ultimatum is obviously telegraphing a message in perpetual instant replay about public surveillance overkill and conspiracy phobia today. But let's hope they didn't pick up their decidedly less than effective pointers on just how to accomplish that, from the real anti-terrorism outfits.

Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Rated PG-13
2 stars

DVD Features: Deleted scenes; Feature Commentary with Director Paul Greengrass.
Featurettes:
*Man On The Move: Jason Bourne - From Berlin To Tangier
*Rooftop Pursuit: State-Of-The-Art Technology Filming the Tangier Rooftop Scene
*Planning The Punches: Matt Damon and his Complicated Fight Training
*Driving School: Matt Damon Behind the Wheel for the New York Chase Scene
*New York Chase: Insider's View on How the Chase Sequences Were Filmed