The Bourne Identity (2002)

User Review

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  Barneyonmovies

  9 / 10

  WHAT I LIKED: Doug Liman's 'The Bourne Identity,' doesn't generally get the same credit that Paul Greengrass' slightly more political franchise efforts often do, but in actual fact this is where the revolutionary stylistic approach really came from, and it's arguably the best of the whole bunch as it focuses the most on its central character. Yes on the one hand what this first installment does - and what it doesn't always get the credit for - is to take a great piece of source material and go down a very unusual cinematic route with it as Liman uses frantic hand-held camera work and fast edits that give the whole thing an almost thriller-esque quality to keep you in the thick of the action and on the edge of your seat throughout. That's something that Greengrass' documentary-style filmmaking plays with also of course, but the fact that Liman was brave enough to make moves like that with a movie this big is very admirable indeed.
  Equally though, it's not just the revolutionary style that this first movie pegs down, as it also crafts a perfect introduction to Bourne as a character - giving Matt Damon plenty of room and an arc that's as tragic as it is investing. It's this that really makes it such a gripping movie, and in many ways puts it a cut above the rest overall, and regardless of whether you agree with that, it's impossible to deny that without these great foundations, this franchise would never have been the ground-breaking thing that it is today.
  WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: It's not as politically potent as Paul Greengrass' later attempts, but that's just not Liman's style.
  VERDICT: An engaging and gripping start to a game-changing franchise that makes some bold stylistic choices that were further utilised by Greengrass, 'The Bourne Identity,' not only gets far too little credit, it's actually probably the best of its bunch.

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