The former pioneer has become the dinosaur, desperately hunting after its own success. However, in pretty much copying Bourne, they managed to make him obsolete – as proven by “Jason Bourne”. – and emphasize what it is that sets him apart from the competition. Back then, I was very skeptical about this approach, claiming that instead of trying to do Bourne 2.0, they should rather cater to Bond’s strength – the charm, the humor etc. Then there’s the fact that, very much following the Bourne-model, the Bond-reboot with Daniel Craig also went tougher and more down-to-earth. Thus, the action presented here feels strangely out of date. Recently, however, we’ve (thank god) seen a comeback of more comprehensibly shot action, with longer, fluid scenes without any cuts, slow motion etc. Personally, I might not like it, but I still can acknowledge that in the following years, almost all action films followed the template that the Bourne-movies established. The sequels, with Paul Greengrass on directing duty, were also crucial in establishing a new style for action film, for which movie critic Vern coined the phrase “Post-Action”. Bourne was the logical response to that, offering a harder, more serious and also more down-to-earth alternative. By then – as evidenced by “Die Another Day” – James Bond (arguably Bourne’s biggest rival) was stuck in kind of a rut, putting too much emphasis on gimmicks, gadgets, hyperreality and self-parody. When “The Bourne Identity” came around, it felt fresh and new.

However, rarely has a sequel seemed so unnecessary and also kind of outdated than this one. And even though it’s just a rehash, it’s at least still better than “The Bourne Legacy”. Sometimes, with the right team, even that can work (see last years “Jurassic World”).

“Jason Bourne” is yet another one of this year’s sequels that were made solely out of commercial interests, and not because someone had a good and interesting idea for it. Written by Paul Greengrass & Christopher Rouse

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