The Bourne Legacy

The Bourne Legacy continues the Bourne films but without Matt Damon. You do see a photo of Damon as Bourne, but that's it. I saw one of those Bourne

films, at least I think I did, but the only emotion I remember was boredom. Most of my friends do not agree. However, I am fully onboard with The Bourne Legacy after having seen it. I found it to be puzzling but riveting from beginning to end. The film takes it time setting up, but that's so we can get a good look at Aaron Cross (played by Jeremy Renner) in an Alaskan wilderness environment. While I don't quite get the take-a-pill-on-schedule bit, it's obvious that these are human men who are being inwardly sculpted to be a better warrior than any Bin Laden hunter you'll ever meet. And we sense right away that a lot of this activity behind the scenes is immoral, if not illegal, especially when we hear Edward Norton talk about what's needed for sacrifice. Norton is so quiet, but that's what makes him so good. he gets under your skin. The chase scenes are terrifically done, especially a motorcycle scene in Manila. In fact, they're so good, that some of the action scenes are downright fuzzy. It's impossible to tell what's going on, everything's moving so fast. But rather than lose interest, that heightened the thrill for me as we watch Cross and scientist Marta Shearing (Rachel Weisz). What helps the story tremendously is the casting. Renner is perfect. He shows a bit of vulnerability through his conversation in wooden cabin with another of his kind. And the supporting cast is littered with outstanding character actors, like Stacy Keach, Oscar Isaac, Joan Allen, Albert Finney, David Strathairn and Scott Glenn, some of whom you haven't seen on screen for years. Thumb's up.