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The Bourne Identity (2002 film)

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The Bourne Identity
Directed byPaul Greengrass
Written byNovel:
Robert Ludlum
Screenplay:
Tony Gilroy
William Blake Herron
Produced byRobert Ludlum
Doug Liman
Frank Marshall
StarringMatt Damon
Franka Potente
Chris Cooper
Brian Cox
Julia Stiles
Clive Owen
CinematographyOliver Wood
Edited bySaar Klein Christopher Rouse
Music byJohn Powell
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
United States June 14, 2002
Australia August 22, 2002
United Kingdom September 6, 2002
Japan January 25, 2003
Running time
119 min.
Countries United States
 Germany
 Czech Republic [1]
LanguageEnglish
Budget$60 million[2]
Box office$213,925,107[2]

The Bourne Identity is a 2002 film loosely based on Robert Ludlum's novel of the same name.

It stars Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, an amnesiac attempting to discover the truth of his identity amidst a conspiracy involving the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of which he is the center. Along the way he teams up with Marie, played by Franka Potente, who assists him on his globe-trotting journey to learn about his past and regain his memories. The film also stars Chris Cooper as Alexander Conklin, Clive Owen as The Professor, Brian Cox as Ward Abbott, and Julia Stiles as Nicky Parsons.

The film was directed by Doug Liman and adapted for the screen by Tony Gilroy and William Blake Herron from the novel of the same name written by Robert Ludlum, who also produced the film alongside Frank Marshall. Universal Studios released the film to theaters in the United States on June 14, 2002 and it received a positive critical and public reaction. The film was followed by a 2004 sequel, The Bourne Supremacy, and a third part released in 2007 entitled The Bourne Ultimatum.

Plot

During a stormy night, a group of Italian fishermen find a man (Damon) floating in the Mediterranean Sea off Marseille, with two gunshot wounds in his back and a device with the number of a Swiss bank account embedded in his hip. Suffering from retrograde amnesia, he finds he is versed in several European languages and can perform basic tasks such as writing and tying knots, but he cannot remember anything about himself or how he got there. When the ship docks in Oneglia, he sets off for Zürich to investigate the bank account.

At CIA headquarters in Langley, Deputy Director Ward Abbott finds out about a failed assassination attempt on deposed African dictator Nykwana Wombosi. Alexander Conklin, the head of the black ops group Operation Treadstone, assures Abbott that he will destroy any evidence connecting them to the field agent responsible for the operation. He activates three operatives to take down the agent: Castel, Manheim and the Professor. In the meantime, the mysterious man finds out he is very proficient in hand-to-hand combat and has a strong knowledge of firearms when he subdues two police officers effortlessly. At the bank in Zürich, the man opens his safe deposit box to find several passports with his picture, large amounts of money, and a gun. With still no idea what his name is, he assumes the one from the first US passport, Jason Bourne. When American and Swiss authorities attempt to capture him at the US consulate, he gives Marie Helena Kreutz $20,000 to take him to Paris, the city of the address on his Jason Bourne passport.

File:Bourne wall.jpg
Damon as Bourne, scaling the wall of the US Consulate in Zürich.

En route to Paris, Marie, who is nervous and rambling on, gets upset when Jason doesn't respond to her conversation. He then explains that he doesn't know who he is, nor does he know what to expect when they arrive in Paris. When Bourne arrives at the address on his passport, he is immediately recognized by the building superintendent, and based on the contents of his apartment, concludes he is in the shipping business. In search of more clues, he hits redial on his phone and is connected to the Hotel Regina, who recognize one of his aliases, John Michael Kane. They tell him that Kane was a guest who died two weeks before in a car crash. A few moments later, Castel blasts through a window and engages Bourne in hand-to-hand combat. After Bourne subdues him he attempts to interrogate him, but Castel jumps out the window, preferring suicide. Marie finds wanted posters in Castel's bag with both her and Bourne's pictures on them.

Bourne continually advises Marie to leave him as he's trying to figure out who he is and why people are after him. He tells her to go to the police and explain everything to them; she chooses to remain with him and encourages him to figure it out. After eluding the Paris police and spending the night, they follow the trail to the Hotel Regina. There, Marie asks for John Michael Kane's hotel records. Meanwhile, Conklin plants a body in the Parisian morgue to fool Wombosi into thinking Kane is dead, but Wombosi knows that the body is not his assailant, and Conklin has Wombosi killed in his home by the Professor. Bourne investigates the incident, the previous assassination attempt, and John Michael Kane's contacts, and concludes that he is the failed killer. He and Marie escape the city into the country to stay at Marie's stepbrother's house, where Jason decides that he no longer wants to know about his past.

In the morning, the Professor comes for Jason. Jason realizes he is there when the stepbrother's dog does not show up for breakfast, and the stepbrother confirms the dog always is around for breakfast, meaning someone killed the dog. Bourne uses a double-barreled shotgun to blow up the home's fuel tank to distract the Professor (who was on a hilltop overlooking the home, armed with a SIG 552 modified to be a sniper rifle) and he runs to the woods. Both assassins are in a field, and Bourne shoots the Professor twice with the shotgun, and interrogates him briefly, revealing their connection to Operation Treadstone. The Professor dies almost immediately from blood loss, saying, "Look at us. Look at what they make you give." Keeping $30,000, he sends Marie away with the rest of the money for her own safety. He uses the Professor's phone to arrange a meeting with Conklin, which he uses as a distraction to plant a tracking device on Conklin's vehicle to discover the location of the CIA's Paris safe house.

Bourne uses an electronic device to trigger the car alarms of all the cars parked on the street, and when the noise distracts the guards, he climbs into the operations safe house where Nicky Parsons and Conklin are.

When he meets Conklin, he begins to remember his last mission. He had backed out of the Wombosi assassination after seeing Wombosi's children (realizing that if he killed Wombosi he would have to kill all the children as well to make sure there were no witnesses, since Wombosi's murder was supposed to look like members of his own cartel had killed him), and was shot while attempting to escape the boat, left floating in the water. He tells Conklin that he is leaving Treadstone and to not try to find him. He then realizes Conklin silently triggered an alarm and has backup on the way. Bourne leaves Nicky unharmed, and has a shootout with several CIA agents, and escapes into the night. Abbott decides that Treadstone should be closed down, and has the last operative murder Conklin. He goes before an Oversight Committee and explains that Treadstone's purpose was simply to serve as an assassin-training program then immediately shifts the focus of the hearing to an idea for a new project codenamed "Blackbriar." Some time later, Jason finds Marie in Mykonos, renting out scooters to tourists, and the two reunite as the film ends with Moby's "Extreme Ways" playing.

Production

Director Doug Liman stated that he had been a fan of the source novel by Robert Ludlum since he read it in high school. Near the end of production of Liman's previous film Swingers, Ludlum decided to develop a film adaptation of the novel. After more than two years of securing rights to the book from Warner Brothers and a further year of screenplay development with screenwriter Tony Gilroy, the film went through two years of production.[3] From the onset of filming, difficulties with the studio slowed the film's development and caused a rift between the director and Universal Studios, as executives were unhappy with the film's pacing, emphasis on small scale action sequences, and the general relationship between themselves and Liman, who was suspicious of direct studio involvement.[4] A number of reshoots and rewrites late in development and scheduling problems delayed the film from its original release target of September 2001 to June 2002 and took it $8,000,000 over budget from the initial budget of $52,000,000; screenwriter Tony Gilroy faxed elements of screenplay rewrites almost throughout the entire duration of filming.[4] A particular point of contention in regards to the original Tony Gilroy script were the scenes set in the farmhouse near the film's conclusion. Liman and actor Matt Damon fought to keep the scenes in the film after they were excised in a third-act rewrite that was insisted upon by the studio. Liman and Damon argued that, though the scenes were low key, they were integral to the audience's understanding of the Bourne character and the film's central themes. The farmhouse sequence consequently went through many rewrites from its original incarnation before its inclusion in the final product.[4] Other issues included the studio's desire to substitute Montreal or Prague for Paris in order to lower costs, Liman's insistence on the use of a French-speaking film crew, and poor test audience reactions to the film's Paris finale. The latter required a late return to location in order to shoot a new, more action-oriented conclusion to the Paris story arc.[5] Damon described the production as a struggle, citing the early conflicts that he and Liman had with the studio, but denied that it was an overtly difficult process, stating, "When I hear people saying that the production was a nightmare it's like, a 'nightmare'? Shooting's always hard, but we finished."[6]

Liman's directorial method was often hands-on. Many times he operated the camera himself in order to create what he believed was a more intimate relationship between himself, the material, and the actors. He felt that this connection was lost if he simply observed the recording on a monitor. This was a mindset he developed from his background as a small-scale indie film maker.[7]

A wide range of actors were approached by Liman for the role of Bourne, including Russell Crowe and Sylvester Stallone, before he eventually cast Matt Damon. Liman found that Damon understood and appreciated that, though The Bourne Identity would have its share of action, the focus was primarily on character and plot.[8] Damon, who had never played such a physically demanding role, insisted on performing many of the stunts himself. With stunt choreographer Nick Powell and trainer Jeff Imada, Damon underwent three months of extensive training in stunt work, the use of weapons, boxing, and eskrima. Damon eventually performed a significant number of the film's stunts himself, including hand-to-hand combat and climbing the safe house walls near the film's conclusion.[7] Franka Potente's performance in Run Lola Run prompted Liman to approach her for the part of Marie Helena Kreutz. Liman desired to cast an actress who was unfamiliar to American audiences yet would be a suitable opposite for the Bourne character.[3] Filming took place in Prague, Paris, Imperia, Rome, Mykonos, and Zürich; several scenes set in Zürich were also filmed in Prague.[3]

The acclaimed car chase sequence was filmed primarily by the second unit under director Alexander Witt. The unit shot in various locations around Paris while Liman was filming the main story arc elsewhere in the city. The finished footage was eventually edited together to create the illusion of a coherent journey. Liman confessed that "anyone who really knows Paris will find it illogical," since few of the locations used in the car chase actually connect to each other.[5] Liman took only a few of the shots himself; his most notable chase sequence shots were those of Matt Damon and Franka Potente while inside the car.[3]

The inner workings of the fictitious Treadstone organization were inspired by Liman's father's job in the National Security Agency (NSA) under President Ronald Reagan. Of particular inspiration were Liman's father's memoirs regarding his involvement in the investigation of the Iran-Contra affair. Many aspects of the Alexander Conklin character were based on his father's recollections of Oliver North.[3] Liman admitted that he jettisoned much of the content of the novel beyond the central premise, in order to modernize the material and to conform it to his own beliefs regarding United States foreign policy. However, Liman was careful not to cram his political views down "the audiences' throat".[3] There were initial concerns regarding the film's reception in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks, but these concerns had no ramifications.[3]

Cast

  • Matt Damon as Jason Bourne: an amnesiac assassin out of Paris who is being pursued by his former employers. Main protagonist.
  • Franka Potente as Marie Helena Kreutz: a Bohemian German traveller helping Bourne.
  • Chris Cooper as Alexander Conklin: the coordinator of Treadstone and Bourne's immediate superior.
  • Brian Cox as Ward Abbott: a CIA Deputy Director and Conklin's immediate superior.
  • Julia Stiles as Nicky Parsons: a CIA field operative coordinating logistics for agents; she operates out of Paris.
  • Clive Owen as The Professor: a Treadstone operative based out of Barcelona.
  • Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Nykwana Wombosi: a deposed African dictator who was Bourne's last target prior to his amnesia.
  • Gabriel Mann as Danny Zorn: Conklin's assistant and a key member of Operation Treadstone's control team.
  • Nicky Naude as Castel: a Treadstone operative based out of Rome.
  • Russell Levy as Manheim: a Treadstone operative based out of Hamburg.

Reaction

The critical reception of the film was largely positive, with the film review collection website, Rotten Tomatoes, giving the film an 83% approval rating.[9] Roger Ebert gave the film three stars and praised it for its ability to absorb the viewer in its "spycraft" and "Damon's ability to be focused and sincere" concluding that the film was "unnecessary, but not unskilled".[10] Walter Chaw of Film Freak Central praised the film for its pacing and action sequences, describing them as "kinetic, fair, and intelligent, every payoff packaged with a moment's contemplation crucial to the creation of tension" and that the movie could be understood as a clever subversion of the genre.[11] Charles Taylor of Salon.com acclaimed the film as "entertaining, handsome and gripping, The Bourne Identity is something of an anomaly among big-budget summer blockbusters: a thriller with some brains and feeling behind it, more attuned to story and character than to spectacle" and praised Liman for giving the film a "tough mindedness" that never gives way into "cynicism or hopelessness".[12] Ed Gonzalez of Slant Magazine also noted Doug Liman's "restrained approach to the material" as well as Matt Damon and Franka Potente's strong chemistry but ultimately concluded the film was "smart but not smart enough".[13] J. Hoberman of The Village Voice dismissed the film as "banal" and as a disappointment compared against Liman's previous indie releases;[14] Owen Gleiberman also criticised the film for a "sullen roteness that all of Liman's supple handheld staging can't disguise".[15] Particular acclaim was directed toward the film's central car chase which was described as an exciting action highlight and one of the best realized in the genre.[16][17]

In its opening weekend, The Bourne Identity took in (USD) $27,118,640 in 2,638 theaters. As of March 2007, the film has grossed $121,661,683 in the United States and $92,263,424 elsewhere for a total worldwide gross of $213,925,107.[2]

Awards

Year Organization Award Category/Recipient Result
2003 ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards ASCAP Award Top Box Office Films: John Powell Won[18]
2003 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA Saturn Award Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film Nominated[18]
2003 American Choreography Awards American Choreography Award Outstanding Achievement in Fight Choreography: Nick Powell Won[18]
2003 Art Directors Guild Excellence in Production Design Award Feature Film - Contemporary Films Nominated[18]
2003 Motion Picture Sound Editors, USA Golden Reel Award Best Sound Editing in Domestic Features - Dialogue & ADR
Best Sound Editing in Domestic Features - Sound Effects & Foley		 Nominated[18]
2003 World Stunt Awards Taurus Award Best Work with a Vehicle Won[18]

Differences from the novel

The film has many significant changes from the source novel. While elements of his journey around Europe as well as his amnesia are retained, the Jason Bourne of the novel is not a real assassin but rather a deep cover CIA operative acting as a fictional assassin to get close to international assassin Carlos the Jackal; he was wounded attempting to prevent rather than perpetrate an assassination. The nature of Operation Treadstone is also different than portrayed in the film: Instead of a network of government sponsored assassins it is a scheme to trap Carlos with Jason Bourne as the sole field agent. The term 'Operation Treadstone' was also changed; in the books it is referred to as 'Treadstone 71', the name of a building on Seventh Avenue in New York City.

While most of the characters in the film share names similar with characters in the novel, their personalities and place in the story are significantly different. The character of Marie St. Jacques is a Canadian economist in the novel (that he uses as a shield to escape capture) as opposed to a young, unemployed German traveler (that he pays an excessive sum to drive him out of Zurich and into Paris). Conklin is a more villainous presence in the film adaptation who, unlike in the novel, does not survive. He is also Jason Bourne's friend. David Webb's (Jason Bourne's true name) brother also has a prominent role in the book, but is never mentioned in the film. In the novelization he dies attempting to protect Jason.

The story thread involving Carlos was also removed as the real Carlos was by this time imprisoned in France. Bourne discovering information regarding his true identity and past — such as his real name — was also removed.[19]

Releases and sequels

On January 21 2003 Universal Studios released The Bourne Identity on VHS, and on DVD in the US in two formats; a single-disc widescreen collector's edition and a single-disc full screen collector's edition. Both contain supplemental materials including a making-of documentary, a commentary from director Doug Liman and deleted scenes. On July 13 2004 Universal studios released a new DVD of the film in the US in preparation of the sequel's cinema debut. This DVD also came in two formats: a single-disc widescreen extended edition and a single-disc full screen extended edition. Both contain supplemental materials including interviews with Matt Damon, deleted scenes, alternative opening and ending, a documentary on the consulate fight and information features on the CIA and amnesia. The alternate ending on the DVD has Bourne collapsing during the search for Marie, waking up with Abbot standing over him, and getting an offer to return to the CIA. Neither contain the commentary or DTS tracks present in the collector's edition. The film was also released on UMD for Sony's PlayStation Portable on August 30 2005 and on HD DVD on July 24, 2007.

The Bourne Identity was followed by a 2004 sequel, The Bourne Supremacy, which received a similar positive critical and public reception,[20], but received some criticism for its hand-held camerawork, which observers argued made action sequences difficult to see.[21] The Bourne Supremacy was directed by Paul Greengrass with Doug Liman returning as a producer and Matt Damon reprising his role as Jason Bourne. A third film, The Bourne Ultimatum, was released on August 3, 2007 and is once again directed by Paul Greengrass and stars Matt Damon. Like The Bourne Supremacy, Ultimatum received generally positive critical and public reception, but also received similar criticism for the camera-work.[22]

With the release of The Bourne Ultimatum on DVD, a new DVD of The Bourne Identity was included in a boxed set with The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum. The boxed set is entitled The Jason Bourne Collection. The new Bourne Identity DVD is called the "Explosive Edition," which includes all the previous extra features as the "Explosive Extended Edition" plus Feature Commentary with director Doug Liman. However, the DVD itself does not contain the commentary, and so far, Universal Home Entertainment has made no effort to correct this problem. The spine number on this version of The Bourne Identity is 61103847.

Soundtrack

Main article: The Bourne Identity Soundtrack

References

  1. ^ "The Bourne Identity (2002)". IMDB.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ a b c "The Bourne Identity (2002)". boxofficemojo.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g The Bourne Identity DVD commentary featuring Doug Liman [2003]
  4. ^ a b c King, Tom. "Bourne to be Wild". Wall Street Journal. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ a b Wells, Jeffrey. "Bourne on His Back". reel.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Wadowski, Heather. "Interview with Matt Damon". Moviehabit.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ a b The Birth of the Bourne Identity DVD Making of Documentary [2003]
  8. ^ Hanrahan, Denise. "Interview with Doug Liman". BBC.co.uk. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "The Bourne Identity". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
  10. ^ Ebert, Roger. "The Bourne Identity Review". rogerebert.suntimes.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ Chaw, Walter. "The Bourne Identity Review". filmfreakcentral.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ Taylor, Charles. "The Bourne Identity Review". Salon.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ Gonzalez, Ed. "The Bourne Identity Review". slantmagazine.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ Hoberman, J. "Zero for Conduct". villagevoice.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ Gleiberman, Owen. "The Bourne Identity Review". ew.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ Beierle, Aaron. "The Bourne Identity DVD Review". dvdtalk.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  17. ^ Clinton, Paul. "The Bourne Identity Review". cnn.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ a b c d e f "The Bourne Identity (2002) Awards". IMDB.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ Robert, Ludlum (1980). The Bourne Identity. Putnam. p. 544. ISBN 0-553-26011-1.
  20. ^ "The Bourne Supremacy (2004)". rottentomatoes.com. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  21. ^ [1]
  22. ^ Corliss, Richard (2007-08-02). "The Bourne Ultimatum: A Macho Fantasy". TIME. Retrieved 2007-08-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

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