The Bourne Ultimatum
What?
With director Paul Greengrass and all major cast members returning it was always a given that the third Bourne outing would be a complete and utter success. Jason Bourne is now closer than ever to finding what he is looking for, while the CIA are still no closer to catching him. Oh there are going to be casualties.
Have I mentioned how much I loved the first two Bourne films? Would it ever have been a let down if the final slice of Bourne was a huge disappointment and meant the series closed out with a whimper. Fear not for The Bourne Ultimatum is every bit as enjoyable as the first two films and a fitting conclusion to the trilogy. The first two films could never be described as slow burners but ‘Ultimatum shifts into a different gear altogether and moves at break neck speed from start to finish. Reaching over for a sip of beer could mean missing a key moment or at the very least missing Bourne annihilating another bad guy. The film is absolutely relentless, heart pounding stuff. The phrase "on the edge of your seat" is thrown around left, right and centre when describing a thriller but this is what that phrase was designed for. The Waterloo Station sequence should be used as a teaching aid for wannabe film students. Regardless of how many times I’ve seen this brilliantly made set-piece, I still find my heart rate increasing and my eyes widening. If the tension doesn’t get you the action scenes surely will. Again Bourne mixes it with the best of them and despatches numerous bad guys in many inventive ways without ever looking choreographed or clichéd. Roof top foot chases, fist fights and good old fashioned gun fights keep your eyes glued to the screen but the script adds another element. How can you not love lines such as "Give me eyeballs on the street – lets go." or "Sit down, strap in and turn on everything you have." Rumours are rife that more Bourne films are on the way. I don’t think it needs to be said but I will anyway, I’ll be all over them like a rash.
Optics:
The blue/green/grey tint continues but this transfer is definite step up in terms of quality over the previous two films. Detail levels are as good as anything I have seen on a Blu-ray disc. The Tangier street/roof top chase sequence is simply jaw dropping featuring incredible fine detail as well as perfect colour reproduction. Shimmering is completely non existent no matter how busy the back drop and the image has genuine depth. This sequence is pure demo material and is now one of my go to clips when wanting to show just how good Blu-ray can look. Not only is this the pick of the three films in terms overall picture quality, it is one of my favourite Blu-ray transfers to date.
Sonics:
The last time I watched The Bourne Ultimatum was on HD-DVD and although the soundtrack was very good, it was only Dolby Digital Plus. I say only because unlike this DTS-HD track, was not lossless, and strictly speaking, not as good as it could have been. With a full blown lossless Master Audio track plumed in this time around, I am happy to report that this is an absolute corker of a track. The fight scenes feature cracks, thumps and the sound of bones breaking. Gun fire really kicks while explosions rumble like a small bomb going off outside. Not to feel outdone the rear speakers provided numerous, realistic bullet ricochets to help immerse you in the action. And if that wasn’t enough John Powell’s brilliant score, instrumental in building tension at key moments, utilises every speaker and comes through crystal clear. Subtle at times, thunderous at others, this is a brilliantly designed surround sound track.
Extras:
The U-Control video commentary is the highlight, providing loads of pieces of insight and facts, a lot more than the rather more mundane track featuring Paul Greengrass. A U-Control interactive game and text based facts, six making featurettes and a selection of deleted scenes make up the numbers.
Well?
The near perfect AV presentation of a cracker of a spy thriller makes this an essential purchase. Buy all three right now, sit back and enjoy.
Tom Day
With director Paul Greengrass and all major cast members returning it was always a given that the third Bourne outing would be a complete and utter success. Jason Bourne is now closer than ever to finding what he is looking for, while the CIA are still no closer to catching him. Oh there are going to be casualties.
Have I mentioned how much I loved the first two Bourne films? Would it ever have been a let down if the final slice of Bourne was a huge disappointment and meant the series closed out with a whimper. Fear not for The Bourne Ultimatum is every bit as enjoyable as the first two films and a fitting conclusion to the trilogy. The first two films could never be described as slow burners but ‘Ultimatum shifts into a different gear altogether and moves at break neck speed from start to finish. Reaching over for a sip of beer could mean missing a key moment or at the very least missing Bourne annihilating another bad guy. The film is absolutely relentless, heart pounding stuff. The phrase "on the edge of your seat" is thrown around left, right and centre when describing a thriller but this is what that phrase was designed for. The Waterloo Station sequence should be used as a teaching aid for wannabe film students. Regardless of how many times I’ve seen this brilliantly made set-piece, I still find my heart rate increasing and my eyes widening. If the tension doesn’t get you the action scenes surely will. Again Bourne mixes it with the best of them and despatches numerous bad guys in many inventive ways without ever looking choreographed or clichéd. Roof top foot chases, fist fights and good old fashioned gun fights keep your eyes glued to the screen but the script adds another element. How can you not love lines such as "Give me eyeballs on the street – lets go." or "Sit down, strap in and turn on everything you have." Rumours are rife that more Bourne films are on the way. I don’t think it needs to be said but I will anyway, I’ll be all over them like a rash.
Optics:
The blue/green/grey tint continues but this transfer is definite step up in terms of quality over the previous two films. Detail levels are as good as anything I have seen on a Blu-ray disc. The Tangier street/roof top chase sequence is simply jaw dropping featuring incredible fine detail as well as perfect colour reproduction. Shimmering is completely non existent no matter how busy the back drop and the image has genuine depth. This sequence is pure demo material and is now one of my go to clips when wanting to show just how good Blu-ray can look. Not only is this the pick of the three films in terms overall picture quality, it is one of my favourite Blu-ray transfers to date.
Sonics:
The last time I watched The Bourne Ultimatum was on HD-DVD and although the soundtrack was very good, it was only Dolby Digital Plus. I say only because unlike this DTS-HD track, was not lossless, and strictly speaking, not as good as it could have been. With a full blown lossless Master Audio track plumed in this time around, I am happy to report that this is an absolute corker of a track. The fight scenes feature cracks, thumps and the sound of bones breaking. Gun fire really kicks while explosions rumble like a small bomb going off outside. Not to feel outdone the rear speakers provided numerous, realistic bullet ricochets to help immerse you in the action. And if that wasn’t enough John Powell’s brilliant score, instrumental in building tension at key moments, utilises every speaker and comes through crystal clear. Subtle at times, thunderous at others, this is a brilliantly designed surround sound track.
Extras:
The U-Control video commentary is the highlight, providing loads of pieces of insight and facts, a lot more than the rather more mundane track featuring Paul Greengrass. A U-Control interactive game and text based facts, six making featurettes and a selection of deleted scenes make up the numbers.
Well?
The near perfect AV presentation of a cracker of a spy thriller makes this an essential purchase. Buy all three right now, sit back and enjoy.
Tom Day
Director:
Paul Greengrass
Starring:
Matt Damon
Julia Stiles
David Strathairn
Scott Glenn
Paddy Considine
Albert Finney
Joan Allen
Best line:
"Don't second guess an operation from an armchair."
Tagline:
"Remember everything. Forgive nothing."
Description:
Universal
UK
Region free
Rated 12
1Hr 55 Mins
2.35:1
DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio
Deleted scenes
'Be Bourne: Spy Training'
'Man On The Move: Jason Bourne'
'Rooftop Pursuit'
'Planning The Punches'
'Driving School'
'New York Chase'
Audio commentary with director Paul Greengrass
U-Control
BD Live
Ratings: (Out of 10)
Film 9.0
Optics 10.0
Sonics 10.0
Extras 9.0
Overall 10.0
