Time for a kick-ass action movie — the first of 2007. This time around we've got Jason Bourne, going after some bad-ass government officials who have wronged him... oops, I'm sorry I've got the movie confused. I'm supposed to be reviewing Shooter and I've started to review The Bourne Identity! I've got to stop drinking. Or do I?

After all, Shooter is a damn close match to the Bourne series. While I don't want to point out all the similarities, I'll just highlight a few glaring ones:

• Shooter - marine sniper / The Bourne Identity - covert assassin 
• Shooter - hunted by FBI and army / The Bourne Identity - hunted by CIA
• Shooter - befriends hot chick / The Bourne Identity - befriends hot chick
• Shooter - revenge kills everyone / The Bourne Identity - revenge kills everyone
• Shooter - adapted from a novel / The Bourne Identity - adapted from a novel 

As you can see, the general idea between these movies is awfully close. Hell, they're both adaptations from books, too! The problem is Shooter isn't nearly as good as the movie it copies so faithfully. While both movies require some level of belief suspension, I found myself really questioning the movie's credibility. Little things like:

1. Why is a three-week graduate of the FBI the only one questioning the assassination scenario and manhunt?
2. A presidential assassination attempt has occurred, why wasn't the entire city of Philadelphia on lock down?
3. Why would Swagger turn himself in at the end of the movie if he believed there was government conspiracy?
4. After being cleared of charges, why exact revenge and go on the run after the fact?

Setting aside the questionable storyline of Shooter, there are still a few pluses working for it. One positive is the casting of Mark Wahlberg as Bob Lee Swagger. This character needed to be quiet, reserved, cocky, and tougher than nails. This is without a doubt the perfect type of role for Wahlberg. Many of his best performances have some combination of those traits (see The Departed and Four Brothers). Positive two, Shooter delivers on the core principles of an action movie. There is no shortage of guns and shooting. It has plenty of fights and explosions. It has a beautiful girl (Kate Mara) in the supporting role (who unfortunately doesn't bare anything).

Ultimately, I felt more time was needed to make Shooter a more polished product. There were just too many leaps of faith necessary for me to fully endorse this product. However, I am confident this movie will do just fine as a stop gap measure for adrenaline junkies who can't wait until August for The Bourne Ultimatum.