A man found near death in the Mediterranean Sea and suffering from amnesia finds that the only things he remembers are how to elude authorities and kill. Can he discover who he is and regain his memory before assassins on his trail eliminate him?
All Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) has to go on when he reaches shore is a Swiss bank account number found on a laser pointer lodged in his hip. But after making his way to Switzerland and searching his safe deposit box he finds himself sought after by authorities. Escaping with a German tourist named Marie (Franka Potente), Bourne tries to trigger his lost memories whilst CIA operatives led by Abbott (Brian Cox) and Conklin (Christine Cooper) try to hunt him down.
The Bourne Identity is now rightly considered one of the most influential action movies of the century. Without Bourne we would not have had the grounded and gritty Daniel Craig era of James Bond, whilst the Mission: Impossible movies also found themselves heading in a slightly new direction post Bourne’s success. The bombast of 1980’s and 1990’s action movies featuring Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone were considered old hat. Whilst the likes of producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Director Michael Bay were too busy making the likes of The Rock and Armageddon as outlandish as possible. Bourne was a film where the protagonist had a purpose, the government he worked for was filled with shades of grey and the action set pieces felt exhilaratingly real. At the time of release it was a breath of fresh air in the action genre.
Based on a 1980’s spy thriller book written by Robert Ludlum featuring Carlos the Jackal, all but the overarching story was thrown away. Writer Tony Gilroy and Director Doug Liman took the clandestine Treadstone programme that created efficient assassins and its amnesiac leading man and left the rest behind. Liman has since confirmed that the villain played by Chris Cooper was based on Colonel Oliver North, a U.S. soldier that his father had interrogated as part of the Iran-Contra scandal in the 1980’s. The story of high ranking government officials abusing power was something close to his heart.
Liman would never direct another Bourne movie as a result of clashes with producers during the production. But he still remains a fascinating director capable of making uniquely interesting blockbusters with the likes of Swingers, Go, Edge of Tomorrow and American Made all to his name.
The result is a film that still feels fresh more than twenty years later.
Matt Damon, in perhaps what will go down as his greatest role is superb as Bourne. Highly driven, efficient in his methods, but most importantly still a human being trying to understand who he really is. He is not superhuman either with the film showing us how he does what he does, for example when pinned inside the U.S. embassy in Switzerland he finds a soldier’s radio and a floor plan in order to give himself the best chance of escape.
Franka Potente is a superb foil as well. Watching her character try to understand the chaos around her as she falls for Bourne is an art in subtlety given the film’s action beats.
Whilst the likes of Chris Cooper, Brian Cox, Julia Stiles and Clive Owen give great support as various levels of CIA agents. Keep your eyes open for an appearance from Walton Goggins before he became famous as well.
Most important of all though are those trend setting action sequences. The car chase in France where Bourne puts a Mini through its paces, the embassy escape in Switzerland and the close quarters combat sequences all still stand the test of time and almost set the template for Mission: Impossible films.
The Bourne Identity created an iconic character in a grounded spy thriller. One where Bourne grows as a character as he tries to escape his past.
And the moment Moby’s “Extreme Ways” kicks in as the end credits roll is still an exhilarating rush at the end of every Bourne movie.
If you want to read more of my opinions on Bourne check these out:
Phil the Bear's Film Reviews 
5 thoughts on “The Bourne Identity”