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Published on June 17th, 2002 | by Erich Becker

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Review: The Bourne Identity

Even with lackluster reviews, previous to our own, and opening up against Windtalkers and Scooby Doo and with Spider-Man and Star Wars still at the box office, The Bourne Identity still managed to haul in close to $30 million dollars in it’s opening weekend.

While Identity falls into the cliché following of James Bond and other action spy movies, serious or not, it still manages to make a name for itself for a number of reasons.

The biggest draw to the movie is the fact that it has been a highly successful novel for sometime. Updated for the big screen, Bourne Identity features Matt Damon, sans Ben Affleck, as Jason Bourne a covert-ops agent who has lost most of his memory and is found floating in the Mediterranean Sea just off the coast of Europe. The movie focuses on Jason’s employers attempts to capture and subdue what they believe to be a rogue in the system.

While the movie tries to bring Matt Damon into the role of an action hero, leaving behind chose rolls in independent films, he is never really that believable, but it still works for Universal for the women. Besides the off-color attempt to bring Damon into new roles, Bourne doesn’t really fail terrible on any levels. The biggest problem is the fact that the plot is very loose, and seems almost too open ended, like the director and screenwriter want the audience to figure out what is going on, rather than telling you, the problem with this is, they never give you enough information to figure it out on your own.

Two standing achievements shouldn’t be missed, and one is worth the price of admission alone. The fight sequences are some of the very best seen on the big screen, they totally rock. While the sound effects may seem as far fetched as they come, it adds to the atmosphere of the movie.

The second achievement, the one worth admission, is the car chase scene halfway through the movie. Seeing Matt Damon pilot a manual POS through the streets of Paris was amazing. The abuse this car took, corners at 90 degrees, going the wrong way on an express way, it was amazing, it took my breath away, it made the movie for me. Although I have a hard time picturing Julia Stiles as a covert agent, let alone know how to even use a computer.

So in the end, The Bourne Identity managed to steal some of my hard earned money for the weekend, and I’m glad I decided not to give it to Scooby Doo. If you want something to hold you over till Die Another Day, Bourne Identity will surely do.

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About the Author

Thirty-something with a love of everything we cover here, and a few things we don't. Erich has run Entertainmentopia since the site's inception in 1999, countless redesigns, a few crashes, and a lot of media later, here you have it!



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