I went into this movie with high hopes, I really wanted it to be incredible, but it wasn't, it really wasn't. It starts off so well! It happens alongside the events of 'The Bourne Ultimatum', showing the CIA trying to eliminate anything connected to Treadstone and Blackbriar before it goes public and ruins them. This part of the story is the well thought out bit; it is actually interesting to watch, even how they start to pursue Cross is intriguing (it reminds me a bit of 'Eagle Eye'). The story thickens and you realise the extremes they're going to have to go to in order to cover their tracks. So up until a third of the way through the movie I was really enjoying it, there's an awesome fight sequence in a big house which is really entertaining. I might as well move onto the action now, I'm trying to stay on the good part for as long as I can. There are a few good action sequences, including one that looked like it was taken directly from 'The Grey', the house fight sequence which I've already mentioned and a few other small hand to hand combat scenes.
Sadly the action is also something I was disappointed with. Yeah there are a few good hand to hand fight scenes, but they're all really short, and Cross never fights someone had physically match him. He only ever seems to fight cops and security guards (and the occasional agent). You'll also witness the worst assassination attempt ever (not by Cross obviously). This goes through nearly three magazines of ammunition trying to kill six people, it's so stupid and funny! Then the whole film builds up to this big chase scene, but feels really stretched out, has a disappointing end, and then the moves over. Seriously this movie feels so short! It builds and builds, then it's over. It's like someone took a full script, and halved it. The worse part if that the film sets itself up for a sequel, before its even finished. The second half of the film is boring, its just the same cat and mouse game that was done so much better in the first three films.
At least the acting is good. Jeremy Renner plays his role really well, he isn't just reincarnating Matt Damons character. Aaron Cross is an interesting character, he just isn't used to his full potential. Edward Norton plays the primary antagonist Eric Byer. He is the one who recommends that the kill off anything remotely connected to Treadstone or Blackbriar. He is an interesting character and the most interesting scenes were the ones he was in. Rachel Weisz was alright, that's about as much as I can say. She tends to over act everything, she did it in 'The Mummy' too. The rest of the cast doesn't really have enough screen time, what I do like is the small parts played by characters from the previous films. They fill in some of the gaps between the new storyline and 'The Bourne Ultimatum'. They use old footage really well to support the plotline that they're trying to create.
This next paragraph contains a major spoil involving plot, so if you don't want to ruin the film for yourself, skip ahead.
When you lay the story out it sounds ridiculous. Basically we have Operation Outcome, which is a programme that creates agents like Bourne, but they are given medication as well as training. At a certain time they have to take two pills, a green one, which increases their bodies physical attributes, and a blue one, that increases their mental capacity and I.Q. Cross was stupid before he joined the programe, so he relies on the blue pill a lot. So when the Outcome agents start getting killed off, he needs to find a way to get a supply of the pills. He finds out there is a drug that can change his chromosomes in a way that means he won't have to rely on the pills. The rest of the film is him and his doctor friend escaping the country in order to get this drug, then he gets it, and they escape in an over exaggerated chase sequence. So he has no motives, apart from to get this drug, then the films over. No revenge on the CIA for trying to kill him, or anything like that. He doesn't care. They even introduce an agent who is superior to him, and they don't even fight! They drive around on motorbikes and shoot at each other. Basically the best bits of the story are when Edward Norton's character is explaining how they need to handle the situation, and then when we see it out into action, and finally how they track Shearing (Weisz) and Cross.
Certain aspects of this film are enjoyable, but the worse thing is that even to someone who hadn't seen the Bourne films, this film is bad. It's not just bad for a Bourne film, it is bad for a film in general. Plus all the events have nothing to do with Jason Bourne, it isn't about his legacy at all. It's about one event, him giving the paperwork to Landy, but he isn't that one that makes it public. It isn't his legacy. The only thing that makes it remotely related to him is the fact that all of these agents are supposed to be the upgrades from Treadstone, and Bourne was the first Treadstone agent.
I could go for pages and pages about what is wrong with this film. I haven't even mentioned the massive plot holes! If you want to see a few cool action scenes then by all means give it a chance, but don't be expecting much. I was expecting much more from a Bourne movie, even one without Jason Bourne, but in the end, it was a flop. You can see from what I've said that the pieces were all there, the film started off really promising, then it just gives up. It gets us hooked, then runs off with the money we payed for the ticket. I literally felt robbed. I am going to give 'The Bourne Legacy' a 4/10. The first half of this film is what makes it remotely decent.
It is one of those films where the trailer is better than the film.
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