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The Bourne Legacy (film)

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"Bourne 4" redirects here. For the novel, see The Bourne Legacy.
The Bourne Legacy
Theatrical release poster
Directed byTony Gilroy
Screenplay by
Story by
  • Tony Gilroy
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyRobert Elswit
Edited byJohn Gilroy
Music byJames Newton Howard
Production
companies
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • August 6, 2012 (2012-08-06) (Philippines)
  • August 10, 2012 (2012-08-10) (United States)
Running time
135 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$125-130 million[2]
Box office$60,361,080[3]

The Bourne Legacy is a 2012 American action thriller film and the fourth installment in the Bourne film series, which is based on Robert Ludlum's Jason Bourne novels. It is directed by Tony Gilroy, screenwriter of the first three films and was released on August 8, 2012, in the Philippines and Singapore; August 9, 2012, in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Czech Republic; August 10, 2012, in the US and India; and August 13, 2012, in the UK.

The film uses the same title as The Bourne Legacy, a later Bourne novel written by Eric Van Lustbader, and like the previous three films in the franchise, it has a completely different plot from the eponymous novels.

Plot

Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner) is a member of Operation Outcome, one of the Department of Defense's black ops programs, which provides its agents with green pills that enhance physical abilities and blue pills that enhance mental abilities. He is deployed to Alaska for a training assignment, during which he pretends to lose his supply of pills in order to get more, and meets another Outcome operative, Number Three (Oscar Isaac). Number Three and Cross, codenamed "Number Five", lodge up in a cabin, but a blizzard prevents them from returning to civilization.

Meanwhile, Jason Bourne exposes Operation Blackbriar and the Treadstone Project, leading to CIA Deputy Director Pamela Landy (Joan Allen) and Operation Blackbriar supervisor Noah Vosen (David Strathairn) being investigated by the FBI. Upon learning of this, CIA Director Ezra Kramer (Scott Glenn), also under investigation, calls Eric Byer (Edward Norton), a retired USAF Colonel responsible for overseeing the CIA's clandestine operations, for help.

Byer decides to eliminate all Outcome assets and deploys a Predator to destroy the cabin where Cross and Number Three are located. Cross leaves to survey the area just as a missile destroys the cabin, killing Number Three. Cross uses a sniper rifle to destroy the Predator and, realizing that his superiors have ordered his assassination, removes a tracking device in his thigh, which he forces a wolf that attacks him to swallow. A second Predator deployed to eliminate Cross strikes the wolf, and Byer mistakenly assumes Cross has been terminated.

Byer also instructs the handlers of Outcome's other assets to replace their green and blue pills with yellow pills that kill them in a matter of hours, and captures one of Outcome's scientists, Dr. Donald Foite (Željko Ivanek), chemically brainwashing him into killing his colleagues. The only survivor is Dr. Marta Shearing (Rachel Weisz), who escapes after Foite commits suicide in order to avoid being questioned by security. Shearing is later attacked in her house by CIA agents ordered to kill her, and rescued by Cross, who convinces her to help him. Shearing reveals that Cross was genetically modified to retain the benefits of the green pills without need of continuous consumption, a process they call "viralling off". Cross and Shearing decide to travel to Manila, where the pills are manufactured, to "viral off" the blue pills into Cross' body.

On the way there, Cross confides in Shearing that he is Kenneth Kitsom, a U.S. Army soldier who was "killed" by a roadside bomb in the Iraq War. He and other Outcome assets had below average intelligence that was enhanced by the pills, and threatened with withdrawal from its benefits if they didn't comply to their superiors' orders. Meanwhile, Byer learns of their plans and activates Larx-03 (Louis Ozawa Changchien), a super-soldier that had both pills viralled off into his body and brainwashed into becoming a remorseless killer, eliminating Outcome's perceived inconsistency of emotional compromise. Larx receives orders to eliminate Cross while he is weakened by the viral off process. Byer also learns that Landy is expected to face charges for assisting Bourne, while Vosen is expected to be declared innocent and returned to duty.

In Manila, Cross and Shearing arrive at the factory where the pills are produced and Shearing assists Cross in viraling off the blue pills. Byer contacts the factory's supervisor and orders a lockdown, but Cross and Shearing are able to escape before Larx arrives. They take shelter in a local apartment, where Shearing helps Cross through his recovery from the process, during which he hallucinates of his initiation in Outcome under Byer's supervision.

The following day, Larx informs the local police of Cross' location while Shearing is away buying medicine. She is able to warn Cross, who has recovered from the process. He escapes from the police and rescues Shearing before they steal a motorcycle and escape, pursued by Larx. After a chase through the streets and marketplaces of Manila, Shearing kicks Larx off from his motorcycle and into a warehouse pillar, killing him. Shearing and Cross come off their damaged motorcycle but are rescued by a Filipino boatman. They pay him to take them aboard and depart to places unknown.

Cast

Production

George Nolfi, who co-wrote the screenplay for the Bourne Ultimatum film, was to write the screenplay for a fourth film, as always tacitly related to the novels by Robert Ludlum.[citation needed] Matt Damon was also attached to the project from the start.[4] Julia Stiles as well as Joan Allen were asked to join the project at this time. Then this project was abruptly cancelled. When asked whether a fourth film in the franchise would get made at all, Damon said, "We can't keep going forever... we may come back and shoot some other time". Paul Greengrass was slated to return as director; however, on November 30, 2009, he said he would not direct it,[5] and Matt Damon later said that he would not make the film without Greengrass.[6]

On June 9, 2010, it was announced that Tony Gilroy would write The Bourne Legacy[7] and on October 11, 2010 Gilroy was confirmed as the director of the film, and that Jason Bourne would not be in The Bourne Legacy[8] although it retains the name Bourne as to identify it as a continuity to the franchise.

Several scenes were shot overseas, mostly in Manila [9] and in the paradise bay of El Nido, Palawan in the Philippines.[10] Several subway stations and nearby areas in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea were used in some scenes.[11]

Marketing

The first teaser trailer was released on February 9, 2012, confirming the film's August release date.[12] A theatrical trailer for The Bourne Legacy was released on May 31, 2012 and was shown on screenings of Snow White and the Huntsman and showed substantially more action scenes than the first,[13] and was met with mixed feedback.

The Bourne Legacy had its Asian premiere at Resorts World Manila in Pasay City, Philippines on August 5, five days ahead of its opening date in North American theaters.[14]

Soundtrack

Untitled

The soundtrack to The Bourne Legacy as composed by James Newton Howard will be released digitally on August 7, 2012 by Varese Sarabande Records.[15][16]


Track listing

No.TitleArtist(s)Length
1."Legacy"James Newton Howard2:40
2."Drone"James Newton Howard4:15
3."NRAG"James Newton Howard0:59
4."You Fell in Love"James Newton Howard1:42
5."Program Shutdown"James Newton Howard3:00
6."Over the Mountain"James Newton Howard0:51
7."High Powered Rifle"James Newton Howard2:50
8."They're All Dead"James Newton Howard2:48
9."Manila Lab"James Newton Howard2:40
10."Wolves/Sic Ric"James Newton Howard2:19
11."Doctor of What?"James Newton Howard4:28
12."Aaron in Chicago"James Newton Howard1:32
13."Wolf Attack"James Newton Howard2:57
14."Chem Talk"James Newton Howard1:35
15."Flight 167"James Newton Howard3:30
16."Aaron Run!"James Newton Howard1:08
17."You Belong Here"James Newton Howard1:17
18."Cognitive Degrade"James Newton Howard2:49
19."17 Hour Head Start"James Newton Howard3:51
20."Viralled Out"James Newton Howard0:58
21."You're Doing Fine"James Newton Howard1:18
22."Simon Ross"James Newton Howard1:37
23."LARX Tarmac"James Newton Howard1:45
24."Magsaysay Suite"James Newton Howard3:04
25."Aftermath"James Newton Howard2:49
26."Extreme Ways (Bourne's Legacy)"Moby4:51
Total length:63:33

Release

Critical response

Reviews of the film have been mostly positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 61, based on 42 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[17] Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave the film an A-, commenting that "Gilroy, who as a screenwriter has shaped the movie saga from the beginning, trades the wired rhythms established in the past two episodes by Paul Greengrass for something more realistic and closer to the ground. The change is refreshing. Jason Bourne's legacy is in good hands."[18] Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times gave the film a positive review, called the film "an exemplary espionage thriller that has a strong sense of what it wants to accomplish and how best to get there." He especially commended Gilroy's work on the film: "Gilroy knows the underpinnings of this world inside out and appreciates how essential it is to maintain and extend the house style of cool and credible intelligence that marked the previous films."[19]

Rotten Tomatoes has the film rated at 55%, based on 175 reviews and the consensus being, "It isn't quite as compelling as the earlier trilogy, but The Bourne Legacy proves the franchise has stories left to tell -- and benefits from Jeremy Renner's magnetic work in the starring role." Despite mixed reviews, Jeremy Renner's performance as Aaron Cross was acclaimed.[20] Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter commented on his review that "the series' legacy is lessened by this capable but uninspired fourth episode."[21] Peter Debruge of Variety wrote that "the combination of Robert Elswit's elegant widescreen lensing and the measured editing by Gilroy's brother John may be easier to absorb than Greengrass' hyperkinetic docu-based style, but the pic's convoluted script ensures that auds will emerge no less overwhelmed."[22] Michael Atkinson of The Village Voice also wrote a scathing review of the film, saying: "The Bourne films have more than just overstayed their welcome and outlasted the Ludlum books—they've been Van Halenized, with an abrupt change of frontman and a resulting dip in personality."[23]

Box office performance

In its opening weekend, The Bourne Legacy grossed approximately $38.7 million in the United States and Canada and debuted at #1 of the box office charts, surpassing Universal's expectation of $35 million. It grossed $46.6 million worldwide in its first weekend.[3] The film sold approximately 400,000 more tickets on its opening weekend than the first film in the series, The Bourne Identity. Studio research reported that audiences were evenly mixed among the sexes.[24]

References

  1. ^ "The Bourne Legacy". British Board of Film Classification. 2012-07-23. Retrieved 2012-08-12.
  2. ^ Kaufman, Amy (2012-08-09). "'The Bourne Legacy' to dominate 'The Campaign,' 'Hope Springs'". latimes.com. Retrieved 2012-08-12.
  3. ^ a b "the Bourne Legacy on BOM".
  4. ^ Fleming, Michael (October 16, 2008). "Universal moves ahead with 'Bourne'". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved October 20, 2008. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  5. ^ (December 1, 2009). "Greengrass: No Bourne 4". IGN. IGN Entertainment, Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2012.
  6. ^ Billington, Alex (December 4, 2009). "Matt Damon Says No More Bourne Without Paul Greengrass". FirstShowing.net. Retrieved July 26, 2012
  7. ^ "Tony Gilroy Will Write The Bourne Legacy for 2010". The Film Stage. June 9, 2010. Retrieved June 9, 2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  8. ^ "No Matt Damon in Bourne Legacy". Entertainment Weekly. October 11, 2010. Retrieved October 11, 2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  9. ^ "Manila streets closed for Bourne". Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  10. ^ Cruz, Marinel R. (January 11, 2012). "'Bourne Legacy' movie starts filming in the heart of Manila". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved July 19, 2012. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  11. ^ "'Bourne Legacy' Puts Seoul on Hollywood Radar". Chosun Ilbo. June 28, 2012. Retrieved June 28, 2012. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  12. ^ "RlsDate.net". February 9, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ "New Trailer for 'The Bourne Legacy' We May Be in for the Best Chapter Yet". Gordon and the Whale. May 31, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ Interaksyon (July 19, 2012). "VIDEO: "Mga kapitbahay, mga bro!" Bourne Legacy clip raises anticipation with tagalog scenes". InterAksyon.com. Retrieved July 19, 2012. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  15. ^ (November 14, 2011). "James Newton Howard to Score 'The Bourne Legacy'". FilmMusicReporter.com. Retrieved July 27, 2012.
  16. ^ (June 12, 2012). "Varese Sarabande to Release ‘The Bourne Legacy’ Soundtrack". FilmMusicReporter.com. Retrieved July 27, 2012.
  17. ^ "The Bourne Legacy". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2012-08-19.
  18. ^ Schwarzbaum, Lisa (2012-08-08). "'The Bourne Legacy' Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-08-09.
  19. ^ Kenneth Duran (2012-08-09). "Review: 'The Bourne Legacy' lives up to its predecessors". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-08-13.
  20. ^ "The Bourne Legacy". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixter. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  21. ^ McCarthy, Todd (2012-08-06). "'The Bourne Legacy': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
  22. ^ Debruge, Peter (2012-08-06). "Variety Reviews: 'The Bourne Legacy'". Variety. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
  23. ^ Atkinson, Michael (2012-08-08). "'The Bourne Legacy': Who's the New Guy?". The Village Voice. Retrieved 2012-08-08.
  24. ^ Pandya, Gitesh (2012-08-12). "Box Office Guru Wrapup: Bourne Kills the Batman". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixter. Retrieved 2012-08-13.
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