If Louis Leterrier has taught us anything, it's that reboot-sequels don't have to be bad. 2008's "The Incredible Hulk" was a very bizarre hybrid of reboot and sequel -- it had a brand new cast, but it was relevant to the story arc started by Ang Lee's arguably lesser "Hulk" five years prior. All you need to do is keep things feeling the same between the two movies, have a cast you know can act, have a solid script, and people will see the movie.
"The Bourne Legacy" is a different animal all together. It didn't have to compete with comparisons from one movie, but an entire trilogy (where each installment was a blockbuster nonetheless), and there are so many unanswered questions from that trilogy that complete Christopher Nolan-style reboot was out of the question. So, Universal Studios did the most logical thing -- pull a page from Leterrier's book and make a reboot-sequel (they did, after all, release "The Incredible Hulk"). The results are electrifying.
After a video of the heads of Treadstone and Outcome goes viral in light of rogue agent Jason Bourne's stateside return and subsequent disappearance (following the events of "The Bourne Ultimatum" perfectly), the Blackbriar Program is clearly in hot water. Now on damage control, Col. Eric Byer (Edward Norton) is forced to eliminate all remaining Outcome agents currently in the field to avoid further backlash. This includes Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner), who's been on a training assignment in Alaska far from contact with the outside world. After surviving two drone attacks that were meant to kill him, Cross goes on the offensive.
While tracking down more of the blue and green pills that have made him "more enhanced" that Outcome has been giving him for four years, Cross manages to track down and save the life of Dr Marta Shearing (Rachel Weisz), the last loose end in the whole Outcome fiasco. In a desperate run for both of their lives (and in pursuit of a permanent solution to ensure Cross doesn't go through a dangerous withdrawl from the "blues" and "greens"), Cross and Shearing make a run to the Philippines, and try and stay one step ahead of Blackbriar's hands.
Writer/director Tony Gilroy ("Michael Clayton", "Duplicity"), teaming up for the first time with brother and co-writer Dan Gilroy ("Freejack", "Two For The Money"), is given the chance to ensure "Legacy" wasn't botched and ruined. Having written the original Bourne Trilogy adaptations from Robert Lundlam's novels, the elder Gilroy set the stage for the next chapter that is "Legacy", and knocks it out of the park. The story is very fast-paced and twisty, so make sure you're paying attention. But the results are no less than amazing here.
Jeremy Renner is an amazing choice for Aaron Cross. After proving himself in "The Hurt Locker" and "The Town", not to mention his astonishing turns in "Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol" last year and "The Avengers" back in May, Renner proves that he can kick ass and still maintain not only a great screen presence, but great delivery. This is not him trying to be Matt Damon. This is not him trying to be any other character that we've seen him do before. This is Renner bringing a fresh new character to the table, making us beg for more long after the credits are rolling.
Let's not forget the supporting cast, though. Rachel Weisz holds her own well as Marta Shearing, and gets to kick a little ass of her own. Edward Norton is amazing yet again as Eric Byer, forgoing playing the good guy for once as he systematically takes out all the Outcome agents one by one, and refuses to sleep until Cross is dead. Returning from the original trilogy are David Strathairn as Noah Vosen, Scott Glenn as Ezra Kramer, and Joan Allen as Pam Landy, who, though only show up for brief moments, still manage to tie the film back to what we've already seen.
What makes "The Bourne Legacy" work is the fact that it's not trying to reinvent the wheel. Instead, it creates a wonderful new chapter from the book that seemingly was closed with the original trilogy. By delving deeper into what the actual consequences of Jason Bourne's actions mean for everyone, it fuels the fire for Cross to get his own storyline, which is gripping as a man trying to get his life back rather than a revenge story. I'm already wanting another sequel, and Universal would be stupid not to give it to us.
FINAL VERDICT: As much as I loved the original Bourne movies, "The Bourne Legacy" is an amazing evolution of the story. Instead of redoing what we already know, "Legacy" logically moves forward with a fantastic new leading man in Jeremy Renner with all the cloak-and-dagger elements (and, of course, epic car chase) that we loved in the previous three films. Robert Lundlam would be proud.
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