"James Bond only does things you could never do, but Bourne does things you could never even think of." Steven D Greydanus DECENT FILMS GUIDE "Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass have created a fiery, quick-witted film that presents compelling evidence that the action-suspense genre has been Bourne again." David Foucher EDGE BOSTON "If you've forgotten the kick you get from watching a globe-trotting, butt-kicking, whiplash-paced action movie done with humor, style and smarts, take a ride with The Bourne Supremacy." Peter Travers ROLLING STONE "A spy thriller for espionage fans who feel that James Bond has gone soft in the head." Glenn Whipp LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS "With an intense tone, strong mystery and dedication to story over frivolous action, The Bourne Supremacy is one of the best movies of the year!" Willie Waffle WAFFLEMOVIES.COM

"a sequel that actually trumps the original... establishes a tense atmosphere almost immediately... and barely lets up for the next two hours." James Sanford KALAMAZOO GAZETTE "As thrillers go, Supremacy is indeed supreme." Tom Long DETROIT NEWS "Fans of the original film will certainly be pleased with this sequel." Sean McBride SEAN THE MOVIE GUY "More action-filled and tense than The Bourne Identity." Eric Harrison HOUSTON CHRONICLE "From top to bottom, from the action parts to the talky bits, The Bourne Supremacy is a movie that absolutely flies by with nary an unnecessary breath." Scott Weinberg EFILMCRITIC.COM

At A Glance

"A great sequel. Bourne, like Spider-Man's Peter Parker, has a conscience and sense of responsibility that sets him apart as an admirable hero. " Jeffrey Overstreet LOOKING CLOSER

Paul Greengrass director of the critically acclaimed "Bloody Sunday" first saw Matt Damon in "The Bourne Identity" while on a date. It didn't take him long to sum up what makes the "Bourne" franchise a huge success. "The genius of the franchise, and I do think of it as a genius of a franchise," he explains, "is Matt Damon playing Jason Bourne. He is an utterly fresh character and that's what Matt brings to it—because everybody knows Matt is basically a good guy in terms of personae. He projects goodness." But that wasn't what attracted him to the job of directing the sequel "The Bourne Supremacy" "I was wanting a bit of adventure in life and feeling that I'd done a few films of similar type. Sometimes you need to kind of do something totally different to find out what it's like, totally new actors, totally new technicians," he revealed, "it's good for you and it teaches you something." Matt Damon was as equally impressed by the talented Greengrass. "Paul Greengrass really understands the character of Jason Bourne, the fact that he's a guy," he says, "even though he happens to be a trained assassin who is swept up in these puzzling circumstances that force him down a certain path. I thought Bloody Sunday was one of the best films in recent years. Paul's ability to capture the classic 'man versus the world' conflict in a cinematically distinctive style is remarkable." Paul L Sandberg, one of three producers working on the film notes; "Paul Greengrass brings a willingness to approach things from a non-standard fashion, which has proved to be key to the Bourne series. He comes in as a European outsider, if you will, and that informs everything he does—from how he lights his shots to how he motivates his actors. He really stepped up to the plate in collaborating with all of the creative participants, discussing his vision with Tony and helping to formulate and reformulate to bring out what he felt was important as a director simultaneously with what Matt felt was important for the character." Fellow producer Frank Marshall concurs with the style of the production and the need to recapture that spirit by saying, "We made an intellectual spy film, a paranoid thriller, but we did it in an unconventional way." Unconventional it may be but it's a style that has worked once again. Even casting Damon in the lead went against the grain of the films star character Jason Bourne. "Putting Matt in the lead was casting against type, and he turned out to be the perfect choice," notes Marshall. "A non-traditional action hero was born in that film. He's proved so compelling that we wanted to continue his story." "The Bourne Supremacy" was the second of three novel written by now deceased author Robert Ludlum. Released in 1986 it was a number one for eight weeks, while spending twenty five weeks on the New York Times best sellers list. The last novel in Ludlum's Bourne trilogy is "The Bourne Ultimatum". Just as Ludlum's novels are action packed so too are the films, even thought they are removed from the timespan Ludlum's Bourne was placed in. "We held to the idea that the action is always developing the character, that it grows right out of the story. We really wanted to build a story where the action was integrated into the characters and their situations—so that you might be able to believe that these are kind of ordinary people pushed into extraordinary circumstances. It sort of defies the customary action formula, and I feel it's one of the compelling things about Bourne's continuing story," Damon said. "The action is driven by character, and the characters' motivations are driven by realistic events," Marshall adds, agreeing with his star. "There's not just action for the sake of action." One thing that many fans note is that "The Bourne Identity" made them think. It's sequel does the same. According to Marshall it's deliberate. "We made an intellectual spy film, a paranoid thriller." But there is much that is comfortable about the sequel with the return of familiar characters. "Two years have passed since Jason and Marie ended up on that beach in Greece," says Franca Potente. Brian Cox is back again in the role of the cunning Ward Abbott. "Clearly in this new world far removed from the Cold War Abbott is a bit of a dinosaur, an old-school kind of guy," he observes. "Now, so much of the game is about political use or abuse of intelligence, no longer so much of 'agency as independent entity,' accountable to no one. The operation that spawned Bourne, Treadstone, has been dismantled. Abbott is, in some ways, the lord of a shrinking fiefdom, and truth be told he's not very pleased about that." Putting pressure on Abbott is newcomer Agent Pamela Landy played by three time Academy Award nominee Joan Allen who is a delight to watch on the big screen. "With the death of Conklin, there was a hole where a new character needed to be. Pamela's a no-nonsense, intelligent woman who's a pro at her job. She's classy, smart, accomplished—all qualities that Joan Allen embodies. She's a magnificently understated actress who's also very cerebral, which works wonderfully in the part. She's able to convey that feeling of containment, that there are swirling undercurrents just beneath the surface, and that makes her infinitely fascinating to watch," Greengrass noted. Working alongside Agent Landy is Nicky, once again played by rising star Julia Stiles. "In many ways, I think Nicky was in over her head when we first met her," Stiles says of her returning character. "But now that she's been pulled back, she realizes that the information she has actually empowers her and puts her on more equal footing with Abbott and the upper echelon. She understands the negative effect that Treadstone had on its operatives as human beings. She sees Bourne as a casualty of this operation. She's torn between carrying out the orders of her bosses, whom she does not trust, and helping Jason, who basically saved her life. It's an interesting predicament that only adds to the 'who's the good guy here?' situation." Add to this a new ruthless assassin, intrigue, doublecrossing, deception, the best car chase in years, a driving soundtrack by John Powell and you have a glimpse of how much fun you are in for with "The Bourne Supremacy". Crew Bytes "The Bourne Supremacy" was .......
directed by BAFTA Award winner Paul Greengrass ["World In Action", "Resurrected", "The Fix" and "The Theory Of Flight"]; screenplay by Tony Gilroy ["Proof Of Life", "The Devil's Advocate", "The Cutting Edge" and "The Bourne Identity"]; based on the novel by Robert Ludlum ["The Scarletti Inheritance", "The Chancellor Manuscript", "The Bourne Identity" and "The Bourne Supremacy"]; costume design by Dinah Collins ["The Theory Of Flight", "Bloody Sunday" and "Gladiatress"]; production design by Domonic Watkins ["Wicked" and "Bad Boys II"]; edited by Richard Pearson ["Drowning Mona", "The Score", "Men In Black II" and "Welcome To The Jungle"] and Chris Rouse ["The Italian Job", "Paycheck" and "The Bourne Identity"]; Director of Photograhpy Oliver Wood ["U-571", "Mr Holland's Opus", "Mighty Joe Young", "Terminal Velocity" and "Die Hard 2"]; original music by John Powell ["Into The West", "Face/Off", "I Am Sam", "Shrek", "Paycheck" and "Antz"] and the producers were Patrick Crowley ["RoboCop 3", "The Bourne Identity" and "L A Confidential"] Paul L Sandberg ["Apocolypse Now", "Raising Arizona", "Swingers", "The Bourne Identity" and "Training Day"] and Frank Marshall ["The Sixth Sense", "Signs", "Raiders Of The Lost Ark", "Seabiscuit" and "The Bourne Identity"]. Casting About "The Bourne Supremacy" stars .......
Academy Award winner Matt Damon ["Good Will Hunting", "The Talented Mr Ripley", "Dogma" and "Stuck On You"]; Franca Potente ["Run Lola Run", "The Bourne Identity", "Try Seventeen" and "Blow"]; EMMY Award and two time Olivier Award winner Brian Cox ["X-Men 2", "25th Hour", "The Ring", "Braveheart" and "Troy"]; Julia Stiles ["State and Main", "The Business Of Strangers", "The Bourne Identity" and "Mona Lisa Smile"]; Karl Urban ["Heaven", "Lord Of The Rings", "The Price Of Milk" and "The Chronicles Of Riddick"]; Gabriel Mann ["The Life Of David Gale", "Boffalo Soldiers", "Abandoned" and "The Bourne Identity"]; and Tony Award, OBIE Award, Clarence Derwent Award, Drama Desk Award winner Joan Allen ["The Contender", "Pleasantville", "Manhunter", "Nixon" and "The Notebook"] as Agent Pamela Landy. The Story

"The Bourne Supremacy not only lives up to the promises of the novel by Robert Ludlum, but in many ways manages to improve on the first film." Leah McLaren GLOBE AND MAIL

Jason Bourne and Marie have been living quietly, far away from those who pursue him. Life has been simple and easy with one exception, he's still trying to piece together his true identity. Then a stranger appears in town. Jason's senses go into overdrive. After all this time Jason Bourne is suddenly back on the run after an assassin is sent to hunt him down. It appears that the Russians are not the only ones who want Bourne. His fingerprints have been found at the scene of an arranged handover to the CIA of sensitive documents. The documents are missing and those involved have been murdered. Bourne must come out of hiding and discover why he is once again a target for assassination. It will lead him from the subcontinent, to Europe and into Russia. It will require all his skills to survive this time especially when his old boss Ward Abbott wants him out of the way once and for all. The Verdict "All the thrills, tension and excitement of the original return in this nailbiting sequel that will have you on the edge of your seat. Like such recent noteables as "Spider-Man 2", "X-Men 2" and "Shrek 2", "The Bourne Supremacy" is a terrific sequel that outshines its predecessor. Strap in for one hell of an action packed ride, a good dose of white-knuckle fever and the most thrilling car chase in years. A killer sequel. A killer thriller." The Cast

Matt Damon Franka Potente Brian Cox Julia Stiles Karl Urban Gabriel Mann Joan Allen Marton Csokas Tom Gallop John Bedford Lloyd Ethan Sandler Michelle Monaghan Karel Roden Tomas Arana Oksana Akinshina Jevgeni Sitochin Marina Weis-Burgaslieva Tim Griffin Sean Smith Maxim Kovalevski Patrick Crowley Shane Sinutko Barnaby P Smith Jr Dominique Chiout Wanja Mues Keshav Nadkarni Chris Cooper

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Jason Bourne Marie Ward Abbott Nicky Kirill Danny Zorn Pamela Landy Jarda Tom Cronin Teddy Kurt Kim Gretkov Martin Marshall Irena Neski Mr Neski Mrs Neski John Nevins Vic Ivan Jack Weller Jarhead CIA Techie Waitress Night Clerk Mr Mohan Conklin

The Crew Directed by Paul Greengrass Adapted from the novel by Robert Ludlum Produced by Patrick Crowley/Frank Marshall/Paul Sandberg Original Music by John Powell Cinematography by Oliver Wood Film Editing by Richard Pearson & Christopher Rouse Casting by John Hubbard & Joseph Middleton Production Design by Dominic Watkins Set Decoration by Bernhard Henrich Costume Design by Dinah Collin Run Time 120 minutes Rated M15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2004 - Universal Studios - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2004 - Impact Internet Services & The Movie Pages - All Rights Reserved