Coyote Cinema: Bourne Legacy

[cyrano]

Up front, solid movie but the weakest of the Bournes. I didn't feel Renner had the charisma of Damon here, and we didn't get as much of the *flash* the earlier movies were good for--the tight, whipsmart combat choreography, and the almost MacGyveresque improvisations that said "this guy is preternaturally smart and quick thinking". There was less action, but there was still the tense moving of chess pieces as the rogue agent worked to stay ahead of the Agency. I loved the way the third movie was woven into this one, and I loved the way Bourne was a phantom throughout without making an appearance. I loved how Rachael Weisz was believably a civilian who still was not reduced to screaming and being saved--a hallmark of these movies. I wish I'd had the chance to rewatch the other movies first, like we did with 'Ultimatum', because I think it would have enriched the experience. The last forty-five minutes or so are a chase scene that's probably about twice as long as it needs to be, but it did put a new twist on the rooftop escape that's in every movie.
Good performances from quite a few of the cast. Suffers from high expectations of a Bourne film. 3.5 wags.

Comments

[missdotti.livejournal.com]

I was bored.

It was all action, for sure. But not enough emotional involvement for me to get even remotely tense about anything. Everything built up quickly then plateaued and stayed there. And the next thing I knew, there were credits and serenity.

The most intense fight scenes were with people you're meant to forget. The confrontation with the Big Bad Guy was anticlimactic. Tim and I actually said "Really??" in unison.

And I'm embarrassingly easy to entertain, so that's saying a lot.

[amanda_lodden.livejournal.com]

I will confess that I thought the Big Bad Guy was poorly implemented. He showed up too late in the film for an extended cat-and-mouse game (which is what he SHOULD have been; he was trained as an operative the same as Aaron Cross, so this would have been a perfect opportunity for Marta to "save the day" by doing something completely civilian and thus unexpected), but too early for a "we've got to up the stakes" round (which would have been best as a post-climax scene establishing him as the main opposition for the next movie). He then went down too early/easily, but he had to because no one wanted a five hour movie. I'm vaguely miffed that his final scene was made to look permanent, because it means that either they don't intend to bring him back for an extended cat-and-mouse movie, or they're going to pull some miraculous-healing bullshit at the start of the next movie.

We also talked in the car about how I felt like the ending was left hanging. CJ says there was plenty to suggest that they had dropped off the grid; I say another 30 seconds of shots with them indicating they were learning how to make their way in an off-grid society (like perhaps helping the fishing boat they were already on drag in some nets or something) and CLEARLY choosing to stay hidden would have wrapped things up better.

Having said that: I still liked the film. I also loved how they wove Bourne in without having him take over. I loved that Marta's scientist got over some of her freakout and did a little saving of her own, while still retaining her civilian-y feel. I loved that they bothered to do enough research to make Marta's science-y explanation of what the program did sound at least a little bit plausible. I loved that Jeremy Renner spent a fair amount of time with his shirt off, and for vaguely believable reasons. (Yes, of course it was gratuitous, but they tried to make it feel less so, and I appreciate that.) I loved that Rachel Weisz kept her clothes on, because while she's pretty and all, having the female lead show some skin has become far too cliche in action films.

[missdotti.livejournal.com]

Big Bad Guy should have certainly been tapped much earlier, and he should have had much tougher scenes. I was left with a "That's the best you've got?" feeling.

[cyranocyrano.livejournal.com]

Hrm. I never saw Beta as The Big Bad--I always saw Ed Norton in that role. And... I also didn't think it was all action, in fact that was one of the differences with the other Bourne movies, was less action and more maneuvering. The Beta was a last resort, and the cat and mouse was what the agency did. The reason that Operative didn't get called in was because he was a loose cannon, and not good with the whole long term planny stuff.

[amanda_lodden.livejournal.com]

No, that's just it. Norton was The Big Bad, until he brought in Beta. And then there was a confusing mix of "who is The Big Bad now?" Up until Beta was brought in, no one had even the smallest chance of taking on Cross, and it was all about the intelligence and the maneuvering and just plain finding them and figuring out where they were likely to be heading. And that was okay, because it was the story of shutting down Treadstone and how Cross and Marta became the loose ends that they were and how they kept one step ahead. And that was believable (in as much as an action spy movie can be "believable"), because no matter how many resources Norton and his agency had, they'd created this super-spy who was too fast, too strong, and too smart for them. And that part was an excellent movie. I *loved* that part of the movie. I loved that they gave Cross an actual backstory and a reason to desperately want to stay enhanced, not just to stay alive.

Then they introduced Beta, and they specifically introduced him as part of a program that was "Treadstone but without the emotional instability" which implies that he's just as fast, just as strong, and just as smart as Cross... but less human and more robotic and unfeeling. (And, in fact, it implies significantly *less* of a loose cannon than Cross or any other Treadstone operative.) Then suddenly they're telling a different story altogether, the story of two super-spies trying to outgun and outwit each other, still woven in with Cross and Marta trying to survive. Except they're *not* telling that story; Beta doesn't have enough time before the end of the movie to bother with establishing himself at anything other than being good at tracking Cross across rooftops, and at no point in the exhaustive motorcycle chase scene does he display any advanced tactics. He doesn't come off as "super-spy from a different program", he comes off as "guy who is really good at tracking."

[... there is a character limit, and I'm over it by 150 characters. Continued in the next comment....]

[amanda_lodden.livejournal.com]

[... continued from above.]

Now imagine that instead of sending in Beta, they had woven in the obligatory chase scene somewhere else in the movie, somewhere that it didn't feel tacked on. Then imagine this end to the movie:

* Scene where Cross starts getting sick in the Philippines after viralling out*
Marta comes up to Cross, who is leaning against a pole.
Marta: Are you okay? *half-hearted nod from Cross* Can you walk?
*Cross starts forward shakily, Marta starts to steady him*
Marta: I've found us a room. We'll be safe there.
[I believe that's a slight re-ordering of the existing scene, in that I think she says she found the room first, then asked if he could walk. I want the scene to end with "We'll be safe there", though.]

*Cut to scene with Norton's advisor telling him about Beta and the Jax program*

*Cut to scene with Beta meeting the handler in the Philippines, where she says that everything's in the car*

*Roll credits*

You've got a setup for the next movie, you've handled my problems with the ending, and Beta can spend the next movie being the badass super-spy he was presumably trained to be. Cross and Marta think they are safe, but they're vulnerable and they've got something big coming after them that they don't know about. You could sell pre-paid tickets to the sequel in the hallway outside the theater showing this movie, and I'd fucking buy one right there. Because you've pushed Beta to the next movie, you've got room to show him as highly trained AND a loose cannon, if that's what you want (and a movie in which Ed Norton's character unleashes a super-spy to chase a super-spy and ends up having to deal with TWO rogue super-spies instead would ALSO be a fabulous movie.... or just a movie about two super-spies trying to outsmart the other... or, since Norton didn't know about Jax being up and running until he was told, presumably Jax has a different Head Honcho, and it can focus to some degree on a tense power struggle between Norton and Jax Head Honcho.)

I'm not saying it was a bad movie. I'm saying the last forty-five minutes could have been better. I was disappointed in the lack of clear resolution from Cross and Marta, and I was disappointed in how they spent so much of the early movie setting up that they were shutting down Treadstone in order to protect their other projects from the taint, and then when they brought in someone from another project, one touted as a step up from Treadstone... that operative went down too quickly and too easily.

[cyranocyrano.livejournal.com]

Oh dear gods yes the last 45 minutes could have been better.
(And I thought Norton knew about the Beta, it was Keach who was all butthurt that there were super secret programmes that he wasn't in on.)

[tersa.livejournal.com]

Norton did, he was the one who snapped Keach's nose off informing him

[tersa.livejournal.com]

I had to avoid reading your post until I'd watched it myself yesterday, but I agree with about 95% of what you wrote, other than the assessment of Renner's charisma. I don't think he was quite as good as the super agent as Damon was as Bourne, but he had a chemistry with Weisz that I felt made up for it.

I thought of you a lot while watching it, especially the day we re-watched 1 & 2 leading up to 3 and, like you, I came out of it wishing I'd had a chance to re-watch the original trilogy in order to refresh my memory of those events. I had so many tantalizing half-memories of the various cameos (Allen, Straitharn, Glenn) but couldn't remember any details.

I was once again struck by how much I love these movies for expecting the audience to keep up and not hitting them over the head with the obvious stick, and how the bad guys aren't stupid. I loved the juxtaposition of Aaron and Marta flying to Manila with the methodical way the war room tracked them down.

But like a bunch of the other comments mentioned, I intensely disliked the last fourth or so of the movie, basically from the introduction of Beta onwards. By the time the chase scene hit the motorcycle, it was getting too long, there was one moment there (when Marta nearly fell off the bike and Aaron hauled her back up) which completely broke my suspension of disbelief and I didn't feel like I got any resolution.

I mentioned to E-- at the end that, looking back, all the plot was was Aaron trying to break free of the Agency's control, and in hindsight, it reminded me of how I felt coming out of Jim Butcher's Furies of Calderon book: technically there was a plot with a beginning, middle, and end, but it felt incredibly flimsy and more like they were writing the first book (or movie) in a series and doing worldbuilding rather than a strong, standalone story.

[cyranocyrano.livejournal.com]

Ah yes, I remember that motorcycle moment and thinking "uh. no." Because if you force me to think about physics in a movie, then it's bad for everybody.

I missed Franka Potente, but I always like Rachel Weisz. As far as charisma, though, I meant over all. Renner seemed quietly capable and competent but when Damon was onscreen it was *everybody look at the screen now because at any moment I'm going to do something badass*.

[tersa.livejournal.com]

As far as charisma, though, I meant over all. Renner seemed quietly capable and competent but when Damon was onscreen it was *everybody look at the screen now because at any moment I'm going to do something badass*.

That's true. Renner was...perfectly servicable as an action hero, but didn't have that spark.

[ebonlock.livejournal.com]

I thought the final car/motorcycle chase was one of the worst I've ever seen, and I saw Transporter 2... But I freely admit my requirements for this film were at least two shirtless scenes with Jeremy and I did get that (plus bonus wet, yay!). Though I did ask LA and I shall also ask you, how does Ed Norton's character hang onto his job after so consistently failing to stop these "super soldiers" time and time again? At least David Strathairn's character seemed to be having to justify his existence at the very end.

[cyranocyrano.livejournal.com]

My guess? Isolation, compartmentalization, and plausible deniability.