The Bourne Legacy (2012)
Average Rating: 5.8/10
Reviews Counted: 215
Fresh: 119 | Rotten: 96
It isn't quite as compelling as the earlier trilogy, but The Bourne Legacy proves the franchise has stories left to tell -- and benefits from Jeremy Renner's magnetic work in the starring role.
Average Rating: 6.5/10
Critic Reviews: 42
Fresh: 22 | Rotten: 20
It isn't quite as compelling as the earlier trilogy, but The Bourne Legacy proves the franchise has stories left to tell -- and benefits from Jeremy Renner's magnetic work in the starring role.
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Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 277,885
Movie Info
The narrative architect behind the Bourne film series, Tony Gilroy, takes the helm in the next chapter of the hugely popular espionage franchise that has earned almost $1 billion at the global box office: The Bourne Legacy. The writer/director expands the Bourne universe created by Robert Ludlum with an original story that introduces us to a new hero (Jeremy Renner) whose life-or-death stakes have been triggered by the events of the first three films. For The Bourne Legacy, Renner joins fellow
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Cast
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Jeremy Renner
Aaron Cross -
Edward Norton
Retired Col. Eric By... -
Rachel Weisz
Dr. Marta Shearing -
Joan Allen
Pam Landy -
Albert Finney
Dr. Albert Hirsch -
Stacy Keach
Retired Adm. Mark Tu... -
Scott Glenn
Ezra Kramer -
Oscar Isaac
Outcome #3 -
Donna Murphy
Dita Mandy -
Michael Chernus
Arthur Ingram -
Corey Stoll
Zev Vendel -
Alice Gainer
Lean Forward MSNBC A... -
Prue Lewarne
CNN Reporter -
Howard Leader
MSNBC Man Analyst -
James Joseph O'Neil
Sterisyn-Morlanta Ga... -
Tony Guida
Dr. Benezara -
Sonnie Brown
Dr. Lieberburg -
Neil Brooks Cunningh...
Dr. Dan Hillcott -
Zeljko Ivanek
Dr. Donald Foite -
Rob Riley
Outcome #6 -
Noel Wilson
Neuro Luncheon MC -
Dennis Boutsikaris
Terrence Ward -
David Strathairn
Noah Vosen -
Corey Johnson
Ray Wills -
Jennifer Kim
Outcome #4 -
Page Leong
Mrs. Yun -
John Douglas Thompso...
Lt. Gen. Paulsen -
Adi Hanash
Outcome #1 -
Robert Prescott
Air Force Officer -
David Wilson Barnes
Drone Spec. -
Don Guillory
Drone Pilot -
Patrick Vincent Marr...
Drone Command Guard -
Ali Reza Farahnakian
Dr. Talwar -
Gita Reddy
Dr. Chandra -
Tom Riis Farrell
Blue Lab Doctor -
Steve Routman
Blue Lab Doctor -
Peter Barent Lewis
Blue Lab Doctor -
Anitha Gandhi
Blue Lab Doctor -
Heather Lupton Rasch...
Blue Lab Doctor -
Natalie Bird
Blue Lab Doctor -
Nilaja Sun
Blue Lab Doctor -
Christopher Mann
Lab Guard -
Billy Smith
Lab Guard -
Murray Knudsen
Alaska Airport Guard -
Susan Egbert
DIA Attorney -
Tim Devitt
FBI Honcho -
Brian Poteat
State Investigator -
Clayton Barber
Gene -
Elizabeth Marvel
Dr. Connie Dowd -
Michael Papajohn
Larry -
David Leitch
The Driver -
Michael Berresse
Leonard -
Deidre Goodwin
Candent Spokesperson -
Laura Spaeth
Walking Woman -
Sam Gilroy
C-Team -
Rachel Black
C-Team -
Sharon Washington
C-Team -
Frank Deal
C-Team -
Rob Yang
C-Team -
Catherine Curtin
C-Team -
Matt Oberg
C-Team -
Gary Lee Mahmoud
C-Team -
Faye Yvette McQueen
TSA Guard -
Pat Battle
MSNBC Anchor -
Nico Bernuth
Flight Attendant -
Jane Jameston
Flight Attendant -
Roland Manansala
Steri-M Guard -
John Arcilla
Joseph -
Josh Banks
Mackie's Assistant -
Shane Jacobson
Mackie -
Allen Jo
Guard -
Jonathan Eusebio
Guard -
Jon Valera
Guard -
Carl Villa Roman
Sterival Catwalk Gua... -
Louis Ozawa Changchi...
LARX #3 -
Madeleine Nicolas
Landlady -
Ruby Ruiz
Philippine Pharmacis... -
Cherry Devera
Crisis Translator -
Julienne Orindain
TV Girl -
Antonette R. Garcia
TV Mom -
Sonny Tuazon
Manila Cop -
Normandy Bacaltos
Manila Cop -
Edgar Letran
Manila Cop -
Alvin Zalamea
Manila Cop -
Spencer Sano
Manila Cop -
Julie R. Ysla
Woman with the Bag -
Joel Torre
Citrus Samaritan -
Hermie Concepcion
Pissed-Off Guy -
Arthur Acuna
Manila Driver -
Adrian Talinga
Captain's Son -
Lou Veloso
Captain -
Ian Blackman
Landy's Attorney -
Jodi Applegate Kay
Landy Reporter -
Tony Carlin
Landy Reporter -
Karen Pittman
Landy Reporter -
Ana Berry
Landy Reporter -
Matthew Walters
Landy Reporter -
Brian O'Neill
Landy Reporter
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All Critics (215) | Top Critics (42) | Fresh (119) | Rotten (96) | DVD (3)
Shares crucial DNA with the earlier films but is drawn from the shallower end of the gene pool.
Top CriticPerhaps the most interesting question arising from The Bourne Legacy is just how long the filmmakers hope to trade on the Bourne name without any, you know, Bourne.
Renner and Weisz work well together as two hunted souls who initially need each other for utilitarian reasons.
Gilroy's a fine writer - he also penned Michael Clayton - but without the discipline of an action veteran like Greengrass to rein him in, he indulges his weakness to over-explain things.
It's twists and turns and nothing else. And fast and furious as it may be, if this is the best this once-smart series has to offer, this is no legacy.
The Bourne Legacy is one of Alfred Hitchcock's "refrigerator movies," in that it succeeds pretty well "in the moment" but starts to fall apart when considered in retrospect.
A fine movie, in the end. And that's the problem. It's just fine. The first three "Bourne" movies were incredible.
The rather serious and businesslike film offers a handful of intense action scenes and some satisfying spy-vs-spy combat.
It doesn't so much as end as run out of running time.
No one wanted this. Not even lapsed Christians sought to be "Bourne" again.
Legacy intact! Bourne Legacy ensures we've not seen the end of the franchise just yet.
Renner's Cross isn't as compelling a protagonist as Damon's troubled Bourne, but when it comes to bruising combat he certainly delivers.
Unless America is really that stuck on Matt Damon in the Bourne franchise, I see no reason that Renner's work here shouldn't make him a star.
Semi-successful revamp uses Bourne's name
It couldn't ever hope to match the Paul Greengrass/Matt Damon movies for sheer punch and propulsion, but it's as close to replicating them as you could expect, and marks another excellent entry into the Bourneography.
Nicely overlaps the previous films while carving a name of its own
'The Bourne Legacy' is by no means a bad film. Unfortunately, it just has trouble living up to the real world Jason Bourne 'legacy.'
There's a lot to like about The Bourne Legacy, but it's hard not to feel a little worried that the rich complexity of Ludlum's past work might be lost in the transition-and that's a legacy that really needs to be upheld.
... all middle with no beginning -- and, of course, no end, so the franchise can go on.
"The Bourne Legacy" may not be the thriller the first three films managed to be. But, it's well written and very entertaining. Renner has become one of my favorite action stars.
The Bourne Legacy is the strangest sequel to come out of the Hollywood studio system in a long, long time. It's a product of shallow studio greed and staggering creative ineptitude.
Though the weakest of the series, "The Bourne Legacy" is not a throw-away action film. It's one of the best thrillers of the year and a sure bet on the future success of the "Bourne" franchise.
If you can survive the first hour's complexities - you'll need to focus hard on the narrative to keep up - a pay-off, of sorts, awaits.
Renner and Weisz make an entertaining action-movie odd couple, the terse man of action and the chatty scientist who learns fast how to react when the shooting starts.
(Renner) has the required intensity and physicality to make his character-a highly-trained, genetically enhanced undercover agent-completely believable.
It's not Renner's fault the script is a heap of dung.
Audience Reviews for The Bourne Legacy
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
While not physically present, Jason Bourne, and what he was a part of, play a big role here, making the film's title of 'legacy' really appropriate. Set around (and during) some of the events of The Bourne Ultimatum, this is the story of a new agent whose fate has been sealed by the events of the first three films. His name is Aaron Cross, and, because of what Bourne did, he now founds himself on the run with a fellow person also deeply involved in all of the shadowy government business.
The film has all the globe-trotting thrills you'd expect from this sort of thing, but it doesn't have the same impact as the other films, and this one is easily the weakest/least interesting. That doesn't mean that it is a bad film, but it just isn't as captivating.
The ideas behind it are interesting, and I liked how the film shows the fallout and consequences of the events from previous films, but these new characters in general just aren't as compelling. Renner is solid as the leading man here, but I can't say the same for Weisz, who is rather underwhelming most of the time. I think Norton did decent too, though this seems more like a sleepwalk for him than anything else.
As far as the cinematography goes, Robert Elswit delivers the goods, and we get some gorgeous stuff here. The editing, especially in the action moments is also far less choppy than before, but the action scenes themselves aren't as thrilling as the earlier ones. I did like the end chase, but it went on a tad too long. The hands down best part of the film though, has to be the utterly gripping and suspenseful laboratory shooting scene. That was some intense and chilling stuff. And that's probably Gilroy's best strength here- the ability to really deliver tension and suspense. The rest feels kinda routine, though still decent.
Aside from not being as compelling, the essentially non-existent ending is really frustrating, even though I would like to see more of the Cross character, oddly enough. The film is also too long, and definitely feels that way. The script is also probably a tad too convoluted for its own good.
In the end, as flawed as this might be (and it sure is), I did enjoy this, even if it fails to be as strong as its predecessors. This is one of my rare times where I'll give it the slightest recommendation possible, so give it a watch.
Super Reviewer
Movies Like The Bourne Legacy
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- Retired Col. Eric Byer USAF: We are morally indefensible and absolutely necessary.
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- Drone Pilot: What kind of weapon systems is this guy operating?
- Dita Mandy: He's probably got a riffle.
- Retired Col. Eric Byer USAF: It's a high powered riffle.
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- Aaron Cross: Now, I've got a plan, and it's just not that complicated. What I'm going to do is wait for the next person to show up to kill you. Maybe they can help me.
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- Retired Adm. Mark Turso USN: Is it possible?
- Ezra Kramer: Possible? We had Bourne six weeks ago in Moscow. He was on foot, wounded, with a full Cossack posse up his ass. Somehow, he walked out of there. I've kind of lost my perspective on what's possible.
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- Retired Adm. Mark Turso USN: This went from something I don't know about to something on the drawing board, and now you're telling me it's up and running?
- Retired Col. Eric Byer USAF: It's up and running. Consider yourself informed.
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- Aaron Cross: June. Your name is June Munroe. Say it.
- Dr. Marta Shearing: June Munroe.
- Aaron Cross: Say it.
- Dr. Marta Shearing: June Munroe.
- Aaron Cross: Now, pick a place you lived. The last place you lived. The place you know.
- Dr. Marta Shearing: Bethesda.
- Aaron Cross: Bethesda. That's where you lived. Anybody ask, you're June Monroe from Bethesda.
- Aaron Cross: You lost your wallet. I'm driving you home. My name is James. James and June. Got it?
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Latest News on The Bourne Legacy
December 2, 2013:
Bourne Legacy Sequel Set for Summer 2015Universal sets aside August 14, 2015 for the franchise's next installment, which will bring back...
August 26, 2013:
Universal Refutes Rumors of Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon's Return to BourneThe studio stamps out widespread reports that the duo is in negotiations for another sequel.
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Foreign Titles
- Das Bourne Vermächtnis (DE)
- Jason Bourne : l'héritage (FR)
