petetherock Posted August 17, 2007 Posted August 17, 2007 Got some free tickets to this tonight Short notes: one word GRITTY tight gritty plot, filled with action with sparsely peppered dialogue Damon Matt says almost as few words as The Terminator, which suits him as he speaks with his action, close quarter punches and poker face but expressive eyes If you are the sort who gets seasick easily then this movie is not for you The camera is often hand held, with no Steady Shot mechanisms causing it to swat frequently Picture quality feels like SD DVD, a far cry from Transformers which felt Hi Def from the word go But this is live action, with no detectable CGI, and plenty of action yet little gore There is good use of the surrounds, and when Bourne appears, the use of drums in tight stataccos signals his presence well Story 4/5 Action 4.5 / 5 Chick factor 2.5 / 5 Julia Stiles doesn't quite cut it, neither was she the tough girl either Audio 4/5 Is this a DVD keeper - yes HD DVD? maybe
Doggie Howser Posted August 18, 2007 Posted August 18, 2007 It would be very beneficial to watch the first two movies before this one, or failing that, just the second one. For the record, I still prefer Identity. It was very fresh when it first appeared, and having just seen the HD DVD again last night... I have to say it still remains fresh. Despite attempts to top the Mini car chase scene in the first movie, I still think it was the best car chase of the 3 movies. :) The improvisations that Bourne uses in his fight scenes in Identity made the story seem more grounded. And the fight scenes were better choreographed. With the Shaky cam in Ultimatum, the fight scenes, especially with the close ups were much harder to make out. Highlight of Ultimatum was the way Bourne outwitted his pursuers. His use of diversion, his awareness of his surroundings and how he put it all together was just awesome :)
petetherock Posted August 18, 2007 Author Posted August 18, 2007 Yeah, I find there is a better plot to show off Bourne's observation skills, and when the quiet moments come, the music keep the momentum up with good ambient sounds and clever replacement of inane lines with well chosen tense music. There isn't a lot of bass boom, even the car chase explosion was dominate by too much vertigo - inducing close up pans rather than a long shot. Those intending to watch this on a PJ at 100" or more should take note, or buy a barf bag... Otherwise its worth watching again for how it wraps up the story yet allows for further development. The refresher at the beginning helps the uninitiated to get some background. Even though the chick factor is low, Julia Stiles is still cuter than the original GF, who appears slightly dismorphic.
Doggie Howser Posted August 18, 2007 Posted August 18, 2007 Actually I just completed watching Bourne Supremacy on HD DVD just now. Picture quality feels much better than the first movie, and the director hadn't gotten too attached to shaky cam yet. What I realized is that the last scene of Supremacy oddly enough doesn't really gel with the opening of Ultimatum ;) The last scene in Supremacy actually takes place in the middle of Ultimatum.
pschia Posted August 19, 2007 Posted August 19, 2007 Actually I just completed watching Bourne Supremacy on HD DVD just now. Picture quality feels much better than the first movie, and the director hadn't gotten too attached to shaky cam yet. What I realized is that the last scene of Supremacy oddly enough doesn't really gel with the opening of Ultimatum ;) The last scene in Supremacy actually takes place in the middle of Ultimatum. Actually it gelled very well. At the end of Bourne Supremacy, an injured Bourne went to Moscow to apologise to the daughter of the Russian politician he murdered. The start of Bourne Ultimatum picked up with the injured Bourne being chased by the Russian police after he had left the girl's place. The other scene you were referring to is probably the scene where he went to inform his girlfriend's brother (from the Bourne Identity) that Marie had died.
Doggie Howser Posted August 20, 2007 Posted August 20, 2007 Actually it gelled very well. At the end of Bourne Supremacy, an injured Bourne went to Moscow to apologise to the daughter of the Russian politician he murdered. The start of Bourne Ultimatum picked up with the injured Bourne being chased by the Russian police after he had left the girl's place. The other scene you were referring to is probably the scene where he went to inform his girlfriend's brother (from the Bourne Identity) that Marie had died. Nope. Watch Supremacy again. The last scene was I guess, to show how Bourne could get at the heart of the CIA if he chose to. It was repeated (but in a different context) in the middle of Ultimatum.
pschia Posted August 20, 2007 Posted August 20, 2007 To me, it is just the overlapping of timeline. It is not the same scene being repeated. He just did it to Pamela twice, that's all. In the interview with the Matt Damon in Aug issue of FIRST magazine, he had said that he had always wanted the ending of Supremacy to be 'with Bourne walking out after apologising to the Russian girl, and just sitting on this park bench and bleeding in the snow' but the the director , producer and studio felt that it was just too dark and wanted a more uplifting ending. So, in the Ultimatum, I suppose that Matt Damon had enough clout to get it shot as if Supremacy ended the way he had wanted it to all along. In any case, the much talk-about scene where he evaded all the agents and high-tech surveillance equipment in the chase in UK did not seem too original to me... I mean doesn't it remind everybody of a similar scene in Minority Report where the psychic girl guided Tom Cruise through a crowded shopping mall when they were being chased by the police?
Doggie Howser Posted August 20, 2007 Posted August 20, 2007 I think the point was that Bourne was NOT psychic. It was just how he used basic streetsmarts to buy a prepaid mobile that couldn't be traced and then used his observation to evade capture. Pretty smart I thought.
petetherock Posted August 20, 2007 Author Posted August 20, 2007 A nice review: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/film_reviews/article2265170.ece
petetherock Posted August 20, 2007 Author Posted August 20, 2007 More from business times: http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/life/story/0,4574,245350,00.html?
sebastiansong Posted August 22, 2007 Posted August 22, 2007 Not sure if anyone concur with me that the NYP patrolcar with a working seatbelt tied around one's (at least Matt's) arm is the safest vehicle in the world. overall an entertaining show
Doggie Howser Posted August 22, 2007 Posted August 22, 2007 Not sure if anyone concur with me that the NYP patrolcar with a working seatbelt tied around one's (at least Matt's) arm is the safest vehicle in the world. overall an entertaining show a. I don't think it was for the usual seatbelt protection per se. Just holding on to prevent himself from being flung off the car during the impact. b. I am more curious why all the charbor gotta cut and dye their hair when running away with him but Matt Damon never needed to change his hair color, much less his hairstyle.. no wig??? You'd think the local matas that he got in trouble with in Switzerland, France, Germany, Italy etc etc (in 1st and 2nd movies) would still have him on the Most Wanted List.
louco73 Posted August 22, 2007 Posted August 22, 2007 b. I am more curious why all the charbor gotta cut and dye their hair when running away with him but Matt Damon never needed to change his hair color, much less his hairstyle.. no wig??? You'd think the local matas that he got in trouble with in Switzerland, France, Germany, Italy etc etc (in 1st and 2nd movies) would still have him on the Most Wanted List. Silly question Doggie. Of course he WANTS to get noticed so that he can: a) beat them into pulp b) try and see how fast some crappy car or motor bike can go down stairs c) shoot the crap out of them Boring movie if he keeps moving around without ever getting noticed. ;D Perhaps it would be called Bourne Invisible. ;) I must admit I did think exactly the same thing though ;).
pschia Posted August 22, 2007 Posted August 22, 2007 Did anyone notice that Bourne resembles Wolverine... they both have amnesia over their origins with the accompanying flashbacks... Bourne also have miraculous healing power like Wolverine (or maybe even like the cheerleader in Heroes) being able survive without injuries apart from a couple of scratches, falling from heights and horrendous pile-ups that would have killed us lesser mortals a thousand times over. :o
petetherock Posted August 22, 2007 Author Posted August 22, 2007 Just wanted to get a straw poll Which do you think is the weakest of the 3? I felt it was no 2, and no 3 was best, esp the use of surrounds and ambience
Doggie Howser Posted August 22, 2007 Posted August 22, 2007 I still think the original is the bestest.. in terms of story and cinematography. Part 2 wasn't too bad when I watched it last weekend. Part 3 is more enjoyable because of Bourne was just fast and quick thinking enough to stay one step ahead. Loved how he misdirected the whole CIA team so he could get into the office. And the call Bourne made from the office was just to die for. It was a fitting end to the story. One of the reviewers said what makes Bourne so enjoyable was that the stories made you root for Bourne a lot. All 3 did that. I can't say the same for most other screen heroes.
desray Posted August 24, 2007 Posted August 24, 2007 Wow...sounds good! Will be catching this weekend :)
petetherock Posted August 25, 2007 Author Posted August 25, 2007 des you may wish to sit further behind, the shaky cam is really nasty Wow...sounds good! Will be catching this weekend :)
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