Movie Review for Bourne Identity, The

Summary: The spy thriller opens as an amnesiac is rescued at sea by the crew of an Italian fishing boat. Nearly dead, he carries nothing but the bullets in his back and the bank account number embedded in his hip. Although completely without identity or background, he possesses an array of extraordinary talents in fighting, linguistics and self-defense that speak of a dangerous past. In the present he is disoriented and wary as he is propelled into an urgent search to discover who he is and why his life has taken a perilous turn. A Zurich safe deposit box yields an assortment of passports, a hefty load of cash, an automatic weapon and a name--Jason Bourne--with a Paris address. What it means remains a mystery, but Bourne quickly realizes that although he knows no one, there are people who recognize him--and do not wish him well. When he meets Marie Kreutz, a hard-luck German-born wanderer, he makes a desperate pitch--$10,000 for a ride to Paris. Despite her reservations, Marie takes the cash and begins a journey with Bourne that changes her life forever. The trail of Jason Bourne's past snakes from Europe to CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, where Treadstone, a clandestine operation is based. As Bourne and Marie struggle to stay below the radar in France, all of the stealthy muscle of Treadstone is focused on tracking them and neutralizing Bourne as quickly and efficiently as possible.

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Rebecca Murray of About.com (7/0)
            Matt Damon proves he's more than up to the task as an action star.

By Mike McGranaghan of Aisle Seat (7/0)
            An above-average and massively entertaining international thriller.

By Dan Jardine of Apollo Guide (7/0)
            A great handbook on how to cop ideas from the best spy/ action/ adventure flicks

By Philip Martin of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (7/0)
            ...great kinetic, silly fun.

By Eleanor Ringel Gillespie of Atlanta Journal-Constitution (6/1)
            The film's greatest asset is how much it's not just another connect-the-dots, spy-on-the-run pict...

By Marc Savlov of Austin Chronicle (7/0)
            Like its protagonist, it never hands you explanations on a silver platter, and it makes you think...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Neil Smith of BBC (7/0)
            A fast-paced, unpredictable and edgy yarn that breathes new life into the espionage thriller genr...

By Emily Blunt of Blunt Review (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is an amazing intelligent knock-you-off-your-seat thriller!

By Peter Keough of Boston Phoenix (7/0)
            Who needs an identity when you’re having this much fun?

By Dan Marcucci and Nancy Serougi of Broomfield Enterprise (7/0)
            Aside from turning me away from the CIA, this was a good flick.

By Lawrence Toppman of Charlotte Observer (7/0)
            Identity is one of those rare thrillers where the cops aren't fools, villains don't turn stupid a...

By Roger Ebert of Chicago Sun-Times (7/0)
            Doug Liman, the director of Bourne, directs the traffic well, gets a nice wintry look from his lo...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Mark Caro of Chicago Tribune (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is no mere summer amusement park ride. It's as gray as Go was colorful and a ...

By David Sterritt of Christian Science Monitor (7/0)
            A truly fresh treatment of Robert Ludlum's novel wouldn't rely so heavily on shootouts, car chase...

By Margaret A. McGurk of Cincinnati Enquirer (7/0)
            The movie may not be realistic, but it earns its stripes as high-class escapist fare.

By Jules Brenner of Cinema Signals (7/0)
             This teaming, including a brilliant and freshly adaptive cast combines for a most engrossing bit...

By Joshua Tyler of CinemaBlend.com (7/0)
            Now, our world is much more complex, the enemies much more gray. Bourne Identity is a clear prod...

By Yazmin Ghonaim of Cinephiles (7/0)
            The film fails to explore more intriguing narrative possibilities regarding the psychological eff...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Paul Clinton (CNN.com) of CNN.com (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity, starring Matt Damon, is a blast from the past dressed up as current-day fare...

By Mark Palermo of Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) (7/0)
            The Paris locations are as central a flavour here as they've been in any espionage film since 196...

By Jeffrey M. Anderson of Combustible Celluloid (7/0)
            I complain all the time about seeing the same ideas repeated in films over and over again, but Th...

By Harvey S. Karten of Compuserve (7/0)
            What is exciting prose on the printed page becomes merely prosaic on the big screen.

By Larry Carroll of Countingdown.com (7/0)
            As if trying to grab a lump of Play-Doh, the harder that Liman tries to squeeze his story, the mo...

By Steven D. Greydanus of Decent Films Guide (7/0)
            Sets medium-range goals for itself, and nails them solidly.

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Jeff Vice of Deseret News, Salt Lake City (7/0)
            Compared to other recent action-thrillers, the film is a breath of fresh air -- though it pales r...

By Dawn Taylor of DVDJournal.com (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is the very best kind of dumb action movie. It's a dumb action movie that isn...

By Ben Kenigsberg of East Hampton Independent (7/0)
            The film may be more of a mess than the inside of Bourne’s head, but its quirks, strangely enough...

By Emma Cochrane of Empire Magazine (7/0)
            For once, a sequel would be welcome.

By Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly (7/0)
            Plays like John Le Carré with a couple of burnt-out cylinders.

By Eric D. Snider of EricDSnider.com (7/0)
            The action scenes are generally pulse-pounding and gritty; the problem is that they don't build t...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Kim Linekin of eye WEEKLY (7/0)
            Awfully disappointing coming from the director of Swingers and Go.

By Eugene Novikov of Film Blather (7/0)
            An impeccable Hollywood thriller.

By Walter Chaw of Film Freak Central (7/0)
            A composition of gestures stripped of romance and presented in their barest forms.

By John R. McEwen of Film Quips Online (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is about as effective a thriller as you could want, especially if you don't w...

By Jimmy O of Film Snobs (7/0)
            Liman fails to use his distinct style to dust off this old sky cranker and making Robert Rodrigue...

By Stephen Himes of Film Snobs (7/0)
            If Liman's ambition is to leave IFC to make big Hollywood entertainment vehicles, then I would su...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Michael Dequina of Film Threat (7/0)
            'A new action hero is Bourne.' As incredibly cheesy and precious that advertising tag line for Th...

By David Levine of filmcritic.com (7/0)
            An engaging action thriller painted against some of Europe's most beautiful locales.

By Charlie Brown of FilmStew.com (7/0)
            The result is an intriguingly paced thriller that knows how to milk some excitement out of smalle...

By Michael W. Phillips, Jr. of Goatdog's Movies (7/0)
            An intelligent, well-acted popcorn movie, a little smarter and more sly than most summer offering...

By Eric Lurio of Greenwich Village Gazette (7/0)
            Doug Liman has come up with a really fun piece of eye candy and that’s as much as one should hope...

By Xan Brooks of Guardian [UK] (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is a blockbuster without a point... Despite its good-looking veneer, its brea...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Ross Anthony of Hollywood Report Card (7/0)
             No message, no theme, very little joking around, just an intense and focused espionage thriller ...

By David Poland of Hot Button (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is a quality film that works and it fulfills many of the cinematic wishes tha...

By Steve Rhodes of Internet Reviews (7/0)
            A completely satisfying thriller that will keep your brain engaged and your adrenaline pumping.

By John Paul Powell of Jam! Movies (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is a firm foundation for an espionage film franchise that could very well dec...

By JoBlo of JoBlo's Movie Emporium (7/0)
            The film's overall upbeat tempo and eventful complications made for an entertaining watch.

By Alex Sandell of Juicy Cerebellum (7/0)
            There's a new action hero in town, and I'm sorry Yoda, but he isn't a CGI midget with bad hygiene...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By James Sanford of Kalamazoo Gazette (7/0)
            old-fashioned in the best sense of the term, an espionage tale that rejects the gaudiness and gla...

By Robert Roten of Laramie Movie Scope (7/0)
            A very familiar story, but well crafted

By Jeffrey Overstreet of Looking Closer (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is an intense, violent, bite-your-nails-to-the-quick thriller.

By Kenneth Turan of Los Angeles Times (7/0)
            Laced with great shock moments, Bourne moves along smartly on its own steam, drawing us confident...

By Mark Dujsik of Mark Reviews Movies (7/0)
            A close-to-solid espionage thriller with the misfortune of being released a few decades too late.

By Rene Rodriguez of Miami Herald (7/0)
            As the intended start of a franchise, The Bourne Identity is a bit of a bust.

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Colin Covert of Minneapolis Star Tribune (7/0)
            Liman can uncork leap-out-of-your-seat shocks, draw out suspense scenes with malicious finesse an...

By Gabriel Shanks of Mixed Reviews (7/0)
            Aspires to be both a whammo action blockbuster and an intelligent think piece...a delicate balanc...

By Brian Orndorf of Modamag.com (7/0)
            As much as I adore the Bond franchise, I can’t say I’ve ever been as giddy over one of those film...

By Nell Minow of Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity does not have much in the way of plot or characters, but it is a better-than-...

By Kevin A. Ranson of MovieCrypt.com (7/0)
            In addition to a clever plot, intrigue, and a car chase or two, Matt Damon manages to pull off be...

By Mark Ramsey of MovieJuice! (7/0)
            Is this a good movie? Sure. But take my advice: If you're under 30, bring a GameBoy.

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Jeremy Heilman of MovieMartyr.com (7/0)
            It has the reeled-in pyrotechnics and the muted pacing of an intelligent spy film, but it doesn’t...

By Michael Dequina of Mr. Brown's Movies (7/0)
            All the style cannot make up for the flagging energy level of the narrative.

By Stuart Klawans of Nation (7/0)
            ...Liman is also clever enough to make the real action start when the motor stops.

By Widgett Walls of Needcoffee.com (7/0)
            My main concern upon hearing of this project was: will I believe that Matt Damon could kill me wi...

By A. O. Scott of New York Times (7/0)
            Free from the encumbrances of history and of Ludlum's cloddish prose, The Bourne Identity, like i...

By Jim Chastain of Norman Transcript (7/0)
            An edgy thriller that delivers a surprising punch.

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Jeffrey Westhoff of Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) (7/0)
            Damon does not look like a guy who could break your arm like a matchstick, and that’s why “The Bo...

By Spyder Darling of NY Rock (7/0)
            ...somehow manages to escape the shackles of its own clichés to be the best espionage picture to ...

By Frank Swietek of One Guy's Opinion (7/0)
            Exciting and engrossing...doesn't attempt anything innovative, but it succeeds by doing the tried...

By Dennis Schwartz of Ozus' World Movie Reviews (7/0)
            I could sympathize with Damon's character suffering from memory loss, as I too couldn't recall mu...

By Jeanne Aufmuth of Palo Alto Weekly (7/0)
            Kudos to director Doug Liman for injecting textbook spy fare with slick intelligence and a truckl...

By Frédéric Rochefort-Allie of Panorama (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity (...) fait regretter à ce bon vieux James, son absence totale de matière gri...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By J. Robert Parks of Phantom Tollbooth (7/0)
            There's rarely a dull moment, but the movie doesn't descend into cartoonish action/violence like ...

By Jon Popick of Planet Sick-Boy (7/0)
            The slickest, coolest assassin flick since "The Professional."

By Cynthia Fuchs of PopMatters (7/0)
            Not nearly so serious or smug as most spy movies, it affects and celebrates a kind of offbeatness...

By James Kendrick of Q Network Film Desk (7/0)
            Liman is a surprisingly good action director, making even the most routine spectacle seem a littl...

By David Nusair of Reel Film Reviews (7/0)
            ...Damon effortlessly steps into the shoes of an action hero.

By Tor Thorsen of Reel.com (7/0)
            Even if the new Bourne Identity doesn't stick to the letter of his work, the late, great Ludlum w...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Laura Clifford of Reeling Reviews (7/0)
            "The Bourne Identity" creates its own new coherence of indie arthouse and commercial thriller.

By Robin Clifford of Reeling Reviews (7/0)
            ...with “The Bourne Identity” we return to the more traditional action genre.

By Betty Jo Tucker of ReelTalk Movie Reviews (7/0)
            Supporting cast members Chris Cooper, Brian Cox, and Clive Owen manage to convince me of their vi...

By James Berardinelli of ReelViews (7/0)
            Nicely paced and fits the bill for those in search of two hours of spy-based action and martial a...

By Mark Robison of Reno Gazette-Journal (7/0)
            I suspect I’ll watch this movie over and over. It’s simply a blast.

By Jack Garner of Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (7/0)
            Like a lot of fast-paced spy films, The Bourne Identity seldom pauses for character development. ...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Peter Travers of Rolling Stone (7/0)
            In these dog days, Bourne earns what passes as high praise: It doesn't suck.

By Harry Guerin of RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland) (7/0)
            It's a really safe bet that Damon will be Bourne again.

By Charles Taylor of Salon.com (7/0)
            A thriller with some brains and feeling behind it, more attuned to story and character than to sp...

By Jim Judy of Screen It! (7/0)
            For the most part, it thankfully succeeds rather well and comes off as an engaging and entertaini...

By William Arnold of Seattle Post-Intelligencer (7/0)
            Its scenes and sensibility are all more than familiar, but it exudes a kind of nostalgic spy-movi...

By Rich Cline of Shadows on the Wall (7/0)
            Twists and turns keep the story increasingly complex and gripping, even if director Liman doesn't...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Ed Gonzalez of Slant Magazine (7/0)
            It may not work as a full-fledged spy thriller or as an identity crisis pot boiler yet, thanks to...

By Bruce Bennett of Spectrum (St. George, Utah) (7/0)
            Provide[s] nail-biting suspense and credible characters without relying on technology-of-the-mome...

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat of Spirituality and Practice (7/0)
            The screenplay never lets us forget that Bourne was once an amoral assassin just like the ones wh...

By Rob Blackwelder of SPLICEDWire (7/0)
            There's nothing more satisfying during a summer of event movies than a spy thriller like The Bour...

By Gerry Shamray of Sun Newspapers of Cleveland (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is much like a Jackie Chan movie, only with Mr. Matt Damon performing the sup...

By Tony Toscano of Talking Pictures (U.S.) (7/0)
            A captivating spy thriller well worth the ticket price.

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone of TheMovieChicks.com (7/0)
            Bourne, Jason Bourne. He can scale a building like a super hero, he can out-stealth any agent, he...

By Scott Nash of Three Movie Buffs (7/0)
            Typical light summer fare.

By Tony Medley of tonymedley.com (7/0)
            One of the many problems, other than Damon’s lack of emotion, is the fact that there’s no suspens...

By Audrey Rock-Richardson of Tooele Transcript-Bulletin (Utah) (7/0)
            Some say this movie lacks character development...but I’d like to know exactly how you develop a ...

By Ken Fox of TV Guide's Movie Guide (7/0)
            [A] savvy adaptation of Robert Ludlum's action-clogged 1980 bestseller.

By Urban Cinefile Critics of Urban Cinefile (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity delivers everything you ask for in a thriller – nail-biting suspense, awe-ins...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Mike Clark of USA Today (7/0)
            The Bourne Identity is what summer screen escapism used to be in the decades when it was geared m...

By Matthew Turner of ViewLondon (7/0)
            In short, The Bourne Identity is an excellent thriller and is well-worth checking out.

By Jeffrey Chen of Window to the Movies (7/0)
            A well-executed spy-thriller.

By Susan Granger of www.susangranger.com (7/0)
            You need more than generic flash, dash and martial-arts moves to make a memorable thriller. Or do...

By Michael Szymanski of Zap2it.com (7/0)
            A taut, fast-action thriller, but Matt Damon just doesn't cut it as a spy.

By Steven Snyder of Zertinet Movies (7/0)
            While Bourne’s ultimate identity is not as surprising as we might like, enough fun has been gener...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Phil Villarreal of Arizona Daily Star (3/4) No reference
            Anyone familiar with the better work of Damon or director Doug Liman will see their jacked-up exp...

By Christopher Smith of Bangor Daily News (Maine) (6/1) No reference
            A sleek espionage thriller that reduces the world to the size of a postage stamp. Matt Damon is ...

By Christine James of Boxoffice Magazine (3/4) No reference
            The climax lacks the punch and satisfaction it could have delivered in a true clash of the titans...

By Luis Martinez of Cinenganos (3/4) No reference
            Buen thriller de espías con una gran cantidad de acción, pero desgraciadamente con otra buena de ...

By Bill Pearis of Citysearch (3/4) No reference
            Director Doug Liman brings an indie sensibility to Bourne that has more in common with gritty '70...

By Gary Mairs of culturevulture.net (3/4) No reference
            State of the art Hollywood genre filmmaking: impersonal, efficient and exciting.

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Christopher Tookey of Daily Mail [UK] (3/4) No reference
            It resembles one of those travelogue thrillers of the 1960s, that were blown away by the success ...

By Garth Franklin of Dark Horizons (3/4) No reference
            SNEAK REVIEW: I was very disapointed with the rough cut. It unfortunately succumbed to the demise...

By Steven Rosen of Denver Post (3/4) No reference
            Overall, Liman has done a good job of making this old Cold War thriller seem born again.

By Susan Stark of Detroit News (3/4) No reference
            Although the exposition effectively invokes cool, the gradual warming trend finally gives this fi...

By Sean O'Connell of Eclipse Magazine (3/4) No reference
            Confirms that espionage can be compelling without being sexy, even with Matt Damon in the starrin...

By Brent Simon of Entertainment Today (3/4) No reference
            Spry and alive with possibility [but] also dramatically consequential... the first spy thriller i...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Staci Layne Wilson of Fantastica Daily (3/4) No reference
            I am giving The Bourne Identity a marginal nod, but if you're looking for a classic-style espiona...

By MaryAnn Johanson of Flick Filosopher (3/4) No reference
            Okay, sure, Affleck’s Jack Ryan saves the world from nuclear war while Damon’s Jason Bourne only ...

By Donald Munro of Fresno Bee (3/4) No reference
            Does The Bourne Identity hang together as a taut spy thriller? Not completely. But Matt certainly...

By Marshall Fine of Journal News (Westchester, NY) (3/4) No reference
            Damon captures the sense of a good man awakening from a nightmare that turns out to have been his...

By Danny Minton of KBTV-NBC (Beaumont, TX) (3/4) No reference
            Liman does such a superb job with the pacing of the film that you almost forget about how little ...

By Ella Taylor of L.A. Weekly (3/4) No reference
            Though it's clearly meant to be character-driven, the movie is thrown out of whack by a total lac...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By John Larsen of Light Views (6/1) No reference
            "The Bourne Identity" reminded me of the great spy thrillers of the seventies like "Marathon Man"...

By Michael Elliott of Movie Parables (3/4) No reference
            A credible and suspenseful spy thriller

By James Rocchi of Netflix (3/4) No reference
            Matt Damon's an amnesiac secret agent on the run in this immensely satisfying and engagingly dire...

By Andrew Sarris of New York Observer (3/4) No reference
            A rollicking adventure yarn.

By Jonathan Foreman of New York Post (3/4) No reference
            A lean, deftly shot, well-acted, weirdly retro thriller that recalls a raft of '60s and '70s Euro...

By John Anderson of Newsday (3/4) No reference
            It wouldn't be measurable in g-forces, but there is enough forward motion in The Bourne Identity ...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Scott Tobias of Onion AV Club (3/4) No reference
            A beneficiary of lowered standards, the film may be a bloodless piece of thriller craftsmanship, ...

By Shawn Levy of Oregonian (3/4) No reference
            The Bourne Identity isn't a bad movie so much as one that feels like an amateur version of materi...

By Jay Boyar of Orlando Sentinel (3/4) No reference
            Liman, of Swingers and Go, makes his big-budget action film debut something of a clunker as he de...

By Wesley Lovell of Oscar Guy (3/4) No reference
            Fast, thrilling and everything that James Bond no longer is.

By Gary Thompson of Philadelphia Daily News (3/4) No reference
            The Bourne Identity is always lucid and rarely boring -- after Bad Company, it seems particularly...

By Joe Baltake of Sacramento Bee (3/4) No reference
            The entertaining new film version of Robert Ludlum's 1980 spy thriller, The Bourne Identity, adds...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By David Elliott of San Diego Union-Tribune (3/4) No reference
            The swiftest and sexiest modern thriller since The Thomas Crown Affair.

By Moira MacDonald of Seattle Times (3/4) No reference
            Bourne aspires only to be a fun popcorn movie -- and, for the most part, it is.

By Todd Anthony of South Florida Sun-Sentinel (3/4) No reference
            The characters are so generic and the plot so bland that even as rogue CIA assassins working for ...

By Chris Hewitt (St. Paul) of St. Paul Pioneer Press (3/4) No reference
            Although it's entertaining, Bourne has a staid, conventional feel. as if it could have been made ...

By Josh Larsen of Sun Publications (Chicago, IL) (3/4) No reference
            Even someone with amnesia would recognize the spy-thriller tactics on display here, but at least ...

By Dustin Putman of TheMovieBoy.com (3/4) No reference
            After a taut, top-notch first 80 minutes, director Doug Liman loses his way as the plotting and a...

                         Reviews of Bourne Identity, The
By Jonathan R. Perry of Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas) (3/4) No reference
            ... a savory sip of cognac in a Pabst Blue Ribbon summer of overbaked fantasy franchises and witl...

By Cory Cheney of Urban Tulsa Weekly (3/4) No reference
            It’s a smart, solid, kinetically-charged spy flick worthy of a couple hours of summertime and a b...

By Desson Thomson of Washington Post (3/4) No reference
            There isn't a dull or dumb moment in this movie.

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