The Bourne Identity

I still remember what they did to this great Robert Ludlum novel when they adapted it for television and threw Richard Chamberlain in the lead and for this reason I was gravely concerned when I heard Matt Damon was chosen to revive the roll for the silver screen. As fate would have it Damon was the perfect choice and not only did he bring the character of Bourne to amazing life, he managed to spin it into a fine trilogy of which the latest and no doubt last chapter will be relesed tomorrow. I won't give away the plot other than to say and injured Bourne is found floating in the ocean and deosn't have a clue who or where he is. Hey, we all have mornings like that, shame is we don't get paid the big bucks for doing it. Sadly, Ludlum passed away while the film was in post-production which is a shame as I'm sure he would have greatly enjoyed the success this project received. I had the pleasure of meeting him in the mid 90's and he was just a gem of a man. The running Lola, Franka Potente is superb as the female lead here and Chris Cooper makes a wonderfully convincing nemesis. Also on board is Clive Owen who doesn't seem to be acting whatsoever in his role as a hitman. Spinmaster Moby provides some fine original music in the score and if I have any complaint at all about THE BOURNE IDENTITY it would have to be with the casting of Julia Stiles in a minor role. As talented as she may be she simply look like the proverbial "deer caught in the headlights" here. Oh wait....she always looks like that...nevermind. In all, if a believable and sincere espionage film is on your ticket for the evening THE BOURNE IDENTITY will certainly fit the bill.