Now, I love the Bourne films. They changed the way action movies are made. One can argue that the Bat-Franchise, the New Bond Films, Taken and others all owe something to Doug Liman and The Bourne Identity. But this Untitled Jason Bourne Project should not get made. Here's why.
Serial Storytelling.
The first and second Bourne films are able to stand alone. They didn't necessarily need sequels, but they were designed to be part of the series. Serial. In the first film you still have a surviving antagonist who introduces a main plot element of the next two films. Black Briar.
The second film ends with Jason Bourne in New York City, but as we watch Bourne Ultimatum we find out that this event is really half way through the third film. The three films are tied together. There are loose ends at the "conclusion" of the first two films.
The third film, not so much. Jason Bourne exposes the whole thing. Every one is going to Jail. Nikki Parsons (Julia Styles) smiles. It's over.
Some sequels are good, some are bad. What usually makes the difference is if the storytelling is serial, or if it is episodic. These three Bourne films work together to tell one story. Just like The Original Star Wars Trilogy, just like the new Batman films, just like Lord of The Rings and The Godfather Trilogy. They all tell one story.
Sequels which are not good, don't do this. They take they same characters, or the same premise and ask you to believe that the same or similar story us starting all over. The films don't work together to tell one story, they work against each other straining a viewer's belief in an attempt to tell several stories. This is the category most sequels fall into.
Another Bourne films seems like it may be stepping into this territory. Maybe I'm wrong and shouldn't doubt Matt Damon and Paul Green Grass. Maybe this one will be better than the last. I hope it is. But it seems like the story is over and Jason Bourne should get some rest.
