Movie Review: The Bourne Ultimatum - What's In A Name?
Published August 19, 2007
As Jason gradually unearths pieces of the puzzle of himself, much effort is put in by the powers that be to convince Jason Bourne that he was always a willing participant in the creation of the monster they made him. Although they do go so far as to prove that he signed up to be erased and replaced with a killing machine called Jason Bourne, they never prove that they lived up to their end of the bargain. It seems logical to me that there's an inherent promise between an organization that demands, or programs, total fealty and those that agree to give it. If you want blind loyalty, you're promising that your vision is clear enough for both of you. If you train a person to kill for you unquestioningly, based on, say, the argument that the protection of our nation from threats is more important than the soul you're asking them to sacrifice, you're promising that you wont use them to kill the pizza delivery guy for fucking up your order. If an organization, or a nation, wants unquestioning loyalty, it behooves them not to give questionable orders.
I'm not saying it's a reasonable arrangement. Given human nature, it seems doomed to failure. But this is the rationale provided by the organization that created Jason Bourne. "Who is it?" Jason asks the first time he is ordered to execute someone. "It doesn't matter," he's told. The person has been deemed a threat to the nation. The person is dangerous and deserves to die because we say so. To question orders is to question the inherent rightness of your country and its cause. When the black bag is pulled off the head of Jason's first kill, the kid does look an awful lot like the pizza delivery boy though.
"Look what they make us give," a dying agent says to Bourne in the first film. Although the agency which created them both has demanded they become enemies, death reveals they are soul mates. In the final film, Bourne utters these same words, asking the agent about to kill him if he even knows why he's been sent. It's not just Jason Bourne who is the hero, or victim, of The Bourne Ultimatum, but all of the anonymous agents, dutifully destroying their own identities and souls so that men in suits in glass office buildings can keep their twisted secrets safe from each other.
- Movie Review: The Bourne Ultimatum - What's In A Name?
- Published: August 19, 2007
- Type: Review
- Section: Video
- Filed Under: Video: Action, Video: Thriller
- Writer: Kati Irons
- Kati Irons's BC Writer page
- Kati Irons's personal site
- Spread the Word
- Like this article?
- Email this
Save to del.icio.us
Comments on this articleComments
LOL--but Batman could dispatch them both before breakfast!
I don't think so, Batman...like Bond is a gadget freak!
Bourne EATS both of them!
Bourne would flip Batman's cowl over his head and suffocate him.
ahhh-- but you're forgetting Batman's emergency backup. At night, the Dark Knight wins hands down.
Yea...Robin Hood to the rescue.
On a serious note, I loved this movie, and now as a complete trilogy, one of the strongest as being successful.
Tense, taut, gripping, riveting, the Bourne series has been an enjoyable ride.
Actually--I was talking about thousands of bats. Robin never counted.
And also, seriously--I haven't seen this one, but I loved the first 2 Bourne films. Looking forward to seeing this one, too.And I hope that let it go gracefully. Generally speaking, if you can make a trilogy work, leave it alone.
BTw, Katie-- enjoyable review. (Where are my manners?) You piqued my interest even more than it was piqued before. In fact, any more piquing, and I'll be bruised for weeks.
Good Review...Even Better Movie!
F*ck Batman... Spawn would kill all three and he's even more of a mess mentally. LOL!! Honestly,in reality, I think Bourne would clobber most people because he knows that MMA type sh!t and he uses his surroundings like a goddamn pro!
This movie proves my point that you can make killer sequels. It may take a bit more work and this movie may have its down falls but The Bourne movies were fantastic even if they started out as a remake.
Though I did have a name for a review if this movie sucked... Boring Old Tomato
(Yes, that joke was bad...).
Ray,
Check this review out... and tell me if this doesn't excite you. I saw the movie on opening night and read this review a week after.
David Webb or Jason Bourne, whatever name he calls himself, is a dick. He wasn't brainwashed. And at the end of it, the sap didn't really remember anything. Some hero, the murdering prick.
Wow, RAF, did (the imaginary) Jason Bourne kill your (imaginary) dog? You seem a bit upset there.
I'm not sure how you can argue that he wasn't brainwashed while simultaneously arguing that he didn't get his memory back, the lack of memory being a primary symptom of being brainwashed.
But, clearly, you didn't like the film and that is a-ok, it being a free country and all. You'll excuse the rest of us for enjoying ourselves.
This quote may illustrate the point...
"...A Jason Bourne who just buys whatever he is told is no use. A Jason Bourne with no moral compunction is a liability. You need moral certainty. You find a true believer, and break him down into trusting you. He then acts with all of the conviction and dedication of a man of service, but none of the questioning attitude..."
Jason Bourne volunteering for the program is a moral act. Bourne shooting the man without any of his questions answered (which he did after two plus days of being awake [and torture]) is not...but he still did it. He committed. That was the decision point, and he made it...."
I don't believe I made the argument that Bourne was somehow a hapless victim, certainly I didn't intend to. As I said, he clearly chose to sign on the dotted line. My argument is that the people who created him did not live up to their end of the bargain. Instead of using him (and other agents like him) to keep the world safe from evil doers, they use them to kill inconvenient people before they become public relations problems.
Bourne is clearly morally culpable for the acts he committed. That's why the scene in Russia with the daughter of the couple he killed was so powerful. He apologized, but what did it accomplish? Is he going to wander the world apologizing to everyone ever affected by one of his acts? Would it be remotely useful if he did?
Bourne is a troubled mess, as I say, but he's an entertaining troubled mess. It doesn't mean I'd raise my kids to emulate him.
its a film god freaks
relax
Add your comment, speak your mind
(Or ping: http://blogcritics.org/mt/tb/67688)
"..Jason Bourne could kill James Bond using nothing but a tea towel and a phone book. He would use the vodka from Bond's martini to sterilize his wounds, and limp away, there being no sexy woman in a Ferrari to pick him up".
LOL....Yes!!!