Bourne Legacy

Rating : 6/10
Release Date : 10th August, 2012
Time : 132 minutes
Director : Tony Gilroy; Writers : Tony & Dan Gilroy, inspired by the characters created by Robert Ludlum; Music : James Newton Howard
Starring : Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, Edward Norton

Despite its slow, sedate, and, at times confusing start, the Bourne Legacy picks up nicely and leaves things finely balanced for its next installment.

Jeremy Renner is one of the agents from the program that produced Jason Bourne. The agency’s way of giving him a slap on the wrist is to make him freeze his ass off & duel with wolves by sending him to Alaska for special training. Edward Norton is the man who wants to shut the program down. And he cant have these special agents turning rogue so he feels he has no option but to terminate them. And the fact that the agency has been injecting the agents with viruses, designed to improve some of their skills, but for a short period making them dependent on chemicals / pills, makes his life easier. Or so he thinks.

Rachel Weisz is one of the biochemists at the drugs company helping the agency with the program. As she explains later, she is in it for the science, she has given up a lot in terms of research papers, publishing to be part of the program. And despite having met Jeremy thirteen times over the last year or so, he is known to her only as No 5.

The first thirty minutes or so, don’t feel like a Bourne film. Lots of conversations, men in suits and despite Jeremy battling the harsh elements in Alaska, there’s not much tension build up. Things pick nicely after that though and the story moves along at a fair clip after that.

Have always found Jeremy very likeable (The Avengers, MI4, Hurt Locker), shades of Daniel Craig about him. And he fits the role of an agent who likes to talk, likes human contact and is on the run. I found the hugely talented Ed Norton a bit disappointing, unable to impart any shades of grey to his character, coming off as a bit robotic. Rachel Weisz is cute and suits her character, as always.

I like the idea of Bourne growing out of the Ludlum books, the movie character kind of taking over and going to different places. Requires guts and imagination. Have always admired that about Hollywood. Am sure the second one will be better, look forward to it…