rose_griffes (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rose_griffes) wrote2007-08-19 10:23 pm
rose_griffes) wrote2007-08-19 10:23 pm
Entry tags:
That Bourne whatsit movie
I wasn't going to post today, then I stumbled across this hilarious fan-made vid: The Bourne Friendship. "That omnilingual freak is stalking us!" Hee!
So, um, saw The Bourne Ultimatum last night. Do I lose girliness points for liking these movies but not crushing on Matt Damon?
Okay, maybe I crush on him just a little.
I'm sure I read at least the first Bourne book by Robert Ludlum. Can't remember if I read the other two or not. Anyway, I enjoyed them as much as I liked anything by Ludlum--his books are a bit like the Bond movies, full of action sequences, occasional forays into sex scenes, lots of spy vs. spy moments. I haven't read a Ludlum novel in over a decade, probably. They're definitely dated by now, because technology has changed so much.
Anyway, I liked Matt Damon as Bourne a LOT in the first movie, and continued to appreciate him in the other two. It's interesting, he's got such a cute face with that little snub nose that he wouldn't have been my first choice for Bourne. I was thinking that someone with a more generic face should play the role of spy who can blend in anywhere. But the movies haven't really pushed that aspect of the character, and Damon brings a gravity and grimness to the role that balances out the difference.
This movie picks up right after the second film--Bourne is in Moscow, on the run. In other words, we start at a heart-thumping pace, and the movie never lets up. It's hard to notice if there are plot holes because we're never given time to think. Frankly it's a plus--I didn't pay to see this movie for long idyllic scenes in the countryside, heh.
Things I liked:
more fight scenes using whatever weapons are on hand--makes for lots of creepiness to think what could be used as a lethal weapon
in the same vein, Bourne using whatever tools he can collect along his way--no super-spy gadgets, just him on the run using his brain and whatever he can buy or steal
the revelations about Jason's choices when he was David Webb--not surprising, but appropriate to who he became later
the flashbacks to Marie
Nicky's moments reflecting Marie's actions from the first movie--and the fact that this film chose not to have a Jason/Nicky sex scene
The believable moments in big cities--on-location filming, realistic crowd movement, etc.
Jason's choice (again) not to be the stone-hearted killer--even knowing what he now remembers about his past
the cat-and-mouse game in Tangiers--especially Bourne jumping from one home to another via windows and balconies, heh
Things that could have annoyed me but I ignored:
more of The CIA Is Evil! yeah, like that's news to anyone
I love Joan Allen as Pamela Landy, but I think she should have to eat twenty cheeseburgers before she goes onscreen again
I'm okay with the handheld camera effect--it does add intensity--but there's a whole lot of it
What truly bothered me:
As in the second movie, the car chase scene is nauseating--too much camera movement. (My favorite Bourne car chase moment is still from the first movie--when Jason stops to look at a Paris map before starting the car engine. That car chase scene was amazing, but watchable rather than dizzying.)
General conclusion--a very enjoyable movie, though I still love the first Bourne movie the best. (This is often my reaction to trilogy movies.)
When I perceive a character onscreen as intelligent, where does that perception come from? The dialogue written for the role? The charactor's actions? The actor's interpretation? The actor's actual intelligence? What I want to see as spectator? Jason Bourne as played by Matt Damon definitely seems intelligent. So does Pamela Landy (Joan Allen).
boring meetings all this week, blah...
So, um, saw The Bourne Ultimatum last night. Do I lose girliness points for liking these movies but not crushing on Matt Damon?
Okay, maybe I crush on him just a little.
I'm sure I read at least the first Bourne book by Robert Ludlum. Can't remember if I read the other two or not. Anyway, I enjoyed them as much as I liked anything by Ludlum--his books are a bit like the Bond movies, full of action sequences, occasional forays into sex scenes, lots of spy vs. spy moments. I haven't read a Ludlum novel in over a decade, probably. They're definitely dated by now, because technology has changed so much.
Anyway, I liked Matt Damon as Bourne a LOT in the first movie, and continued to appreciate him in the other two. It's interesting, he's got such a cute face with that little snub nose that he wouldn't have been my first choice for Bourne. I was thinking that someone with a more generic face should play the role of spy who can blend in anywhere. But the movies haven't really pushed that aspect of the character, and Damon brings a gravity and grimness to the role that balances out the difference.
This movie picks up right after the second film--Bourne is in Moscow, on the run. In other words, we start at a heart-thumping pace, and the movie never lets up. It's hard to notice if there are plot holes because we're never given time to think. Frankly it's a plus--I didn't pay to see this movie for long idyllic scenes in the countryside, heh.
Things I liked:
more fight scenes using whatever weapons are on hand--makes for lots of creepiness to think what could be used as a lethal weapon
in the same vein, Bourne using whatever tools he can collect along his way--no super-spy gadgets, just him on the run using his brain and whatever he can buy or steal
the revelations about Jason's choices when he was David Webb--not surprising, but appropriate to who he became later
the flashbacks to Marie
Nicky's moments reflecting Marie's actions from the first movie--and the fact that this film chose not to have a Jason/Nicky sex scene
The believable moments in big cities--on-location filming, realistic crowd movement, etc.
Jason's choice (again) not to be the stone-hearted killer--even knowing what he now remembers about his past
the cat-and-mouse game in Tangiers--especially Bourne jumping from one home to another via windows and balconies, heh
Things that could have annoyed me but I ignored:
more of The CIA Is Evil! yeah, like that's news to anyone
I love Joan Allen as Pamela Landy, but I think she should have to eat twenty cheeseburgers before she goes onscreen again
I'm okay with the handheld camera effect--it does add intensity--but there's a whole lot of it
What truly bothered me:
As in the second movie, the car chase scene is nauseating--too much camera movement. (My favorite Bourne car chase moment is still from the first movie--when Jason stops to look at a Paris map before starting the car engine. That car chase scene was amazing, but watchable rather than dizzying.)
General conclusion--a very enjoyable movie, though I still love the first Bourne movie the best. (This is often my reaction to trilogy movies.)
When I perceive a character onscreen as intelligent, where does that perception come from? The dialogue written for the role? The charactor's actions? The actor's interpretation? The actor's actual intelligence? What I want to see as spectator? Jason Bourne as played by Matt Damon definitely seems intelligent. So does Pamela Landy (Joan Allen).
boring meetings all this week, blah...