The Bourne Ultimatum (film)
| The Bourne Ultimatum | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Paul Greengrass |
| Screenplay by | |
| Story by | Tony Gilroy |
| Based on | The Bourne Ultimatum by Robert Ludlum |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Oliver Wood |
| Edited by | Christopher Rouse |
| Music by | John Powell |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 115 minutes[1] |
| Countries | |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $110 million[3] |
| Box office | $444.1 million[3] |
The Bourne Ultimatum is a 2007 action-thriller film directed by Paul Greengrass. Although it shares its name with the 1990 novel The Bourne Ultimatum by Robert Ludlum, its plot is entirely different. The screenplay was written by Tony Gilroy, Scott Z. Burns and George Nolfi and based on a screen story of the novel by Gilroy. The Bourne Ultimatum is the third installment in the Jason Bourne film series, after The Bourne Identity (2002) and The Bourne Supremacy (2004). The fourth film, The Bourne Legacy, was released in August 2012, without the involvement of lead actor Matt Damon, and the fifth film (a direct sequel to Ultimatum), Jason Bourne, was released in July 2016.
Matt Damon reprises his role as Ludlum's signature character, former CIA assassin and psychogenic amnesiac Jason Bourne.[4] In the film, Bourne continues his search for information about his past before he was part of Operation Treadstone and becomes a target of a similar assassin program.
The Bourne Ultimatum was produced by Universal Pictures and was released on August 3, 2007, and grossed a total of $444.1 million worldwide becoming, at the time, Damon's highest-grossing film with him as the lead. The film received universal acclaim from critics, who considered it to be the best film in the series. It was chosen by National Board of Review as one of the top ten films of 2007 and went on to win all three of its nominations at the 80th Academy Awards: Best Film Editing, Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing.
Plot[edit]
Following his pursuit by Kirill[a], Jason Bourne evades Moscow police while wounded and deals with more flashbacks of when he first joined Operation Treadstone.
Six weeks later, CIA Deputy Director Pamela Landy reveals the audiotaped confession of Ward Abbott, the late former head of Treadstone, to Director Ezra Kramer. Meanwhile, in Turin, journalist Simon Ross of The Guardian learns about Bourne and Operation Blackbriar, the program succeeding Treadstone. Using the ECHELON system, the CIA detects Ross when he mentions Blackbriar during a phone call to his editor. Bourne reappears in Paris to inform Martin Kreutz, the brother of his girlfriend Marie, of her assassination in India.
Bourne reads Ross' articles and arranges a meeting with him at London Waterloo station. Bourne realizes that the CIA is following Ross and helps him evade capture for a while. However, after panicking, Ross ignores Bourne's instructions, and is shot to death by Blackbriar assassin Paz on orders of Deputy Director Noah Vosen. Vosen's team, reluctantly assisted by Landy, analyzes Ross' notes and identifies his source as Neal Daniels, a CIA station chief. Bourne makes his way to Daniels' office in Madrid but finds it empty and runs into Nicky Parsons, a former Treadstone operative who shares a history with Bourne. Nicky tells him that Daniels has fled to Tangier and aids his escape from an arriving CIA unit.
Meanwhile, Blackbriar "asset" Desh Bouksani is tasked with killing Daniels. Noticing that Nicky accessed information about Daniels, Vosen sends Bouksani after her and Bourne, a decision with which Landy fiercely disagrees. Bourne follows Bouksani to Daniels but fails to prevent Daniels' assassination. However, Bourne manages to kill Bouksani and save Nicky; Bourne then sends her into hiding. Examining the contents of Daniels' briefcase, Bourne finds the address of the deep-cover CIA bureau in New York City, where Vosen directs Blackbriar. Bourne travels to New York.
Landy receives a phone call from Bourne[b], which is intercepted by Vosen. Landy tells him that his real name is David Webb and gives him the birth date "4-15-71". Vosen also intercepts a text to Landy from Bourne of a location to meet up, and leaves his office with a tactical team. Bourne, however, waits for them all to leave, enters Vosen's office, and takes classified Blackbriar documents. Realizing what is going on, Vosen sends asset Paz after Bourne. The resulting chase ends with Bourne and Paz crashing their cars. Bourne holds the injured Paz at gunpoint, but spares his life.
Bourne arrives at a hospital at 415 East 71st Street, having figured out Landy's coded message. He gives Landy the Blackbriar files before going inside. On an upper floor, Bourne confronts Dr. Albert Hirsch, the man who ran Treadstone's behavior modification program. Bourne now remembers that he was manipulated into volunteering for Treadstone. While fleeing to the roof, he is confronted by Paz, who asks, "Why didn't you take the shot?" Bourne asks Paz if he knows why he is supposed to kill him, and repeats the final words of the Professor: Look at us. Look at what they make you give. Paz lowers his gun, as Vosen appears and shoots at Bourne, who jumps into the East River.
Three days later, Nicky watches a news broadcast about the exposure of Operation Blackbriar, the arrests of Hirsch and Vosen, a criminal investigation against Kramer, and the status of David Webb, a.k.a. Jason Bourne. Upon hearing that his body has not been found, Nicky smiles. Bourne turns out to have survived the fall and swims into the darkness.
Cast[edit]
- Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, a former operative for the black ops Operation Treadstone.
- Julia Stiles as Nicolette "Nicky" Parsons, Bourne's former Treadstone contact in Paris.
- David Strathairn as Noah Vosen, CIA deputy director in charge of the new Treadstone black ops upgrade called Operation Blackbriar.
- Scott Glenn as Ezra Kramer, director of the CIA.
- Paddy Considine as Simon Ross, a reporter for The Guardian who has been investigating Treadstone.
- Édgar Ramírez as Paz, a Blackbriar assassin.
- Albert Finney as Dr. Albert Hirsch, the psychologist who oversaw Treadstone's behavioral modification program.
- Joan Allen as Pamela Landy, CIA deputy director and task force chief, sent in to aid Vosen in tracking down Bourne.
- Daniel Brühl as Martin Kreutz, Marie's brother
Tom Gallop reprises his role as special agent Tom Cronin, Pamela Landy's assistant. Corey Johnson plays Ray Wills, Vosen's deputy at Operation Blackbriar. Joey Ansah plays Desh Bouksani, a Blackbriar asset tasked to kill Bourne in Tangier. Colin Stinton plays Neal Daniels, CIA station chief in Madrid and a former member of Treadstone, who observed David Webb's initiation into the project and his transition to Jason Bourne. Lucy Liemann plays Lucy, a Blackbriar technician. Franka Potente has an appearance in a flashback as Marie Kreutz, Bourne's murdered girlfriend.
Production[edit]
The Bourne Ultimatum was filmed at Pinewood Studios near London and in multiple locations around the world, including Tangier, London, Paris, Madrid (as itself and double for Turin), Berlin (as double for Moscow), New York City including the Springs Mills Building (as the deep cover CIA offices), and other locations in the U.S.[5][6]
Tony Gilroy, who had co-written the screenplays of the first two Bourne films, had intended The Bourne Supremacy to emphasise Bourne's repentance and atonement for his murders, but felt that the released film omitted this focus.[7] Gilroy was persuaded to write an initial draft of The Bourne Ultimatum, but did not participate further, and as of 2009 had not watched the finished film.[7] Gilroy's screenplay draft was subsequently criticized by Matt Damon.[8]
Tom Stoppard wrote a draft of the screenplay, later saying "I don't think there's a single word of mine in the film."[9] Greengrass said the film included several allusions to scenes from previous Bourne films; for example, the opening chase sequence of The Bourne Ultimatum is a continuation of the Russian police attempts to capture Bourne in Moscow near the end of The Bourne Supremacy and takes place soon after Bourne's apology to Neski's daughter.[10]
Paul Greengrass spoke about the characterization of Jason Bourne in The Bourne Ultimatum shortly before its release: