OK, hands up…who predicted that the young, mop-haired, scallywag star of Good Will Hunting would become this decade’s most beloved action hero? Exactly…me neither. But that’s just one of the many reasons why Matt Damon’s transition from cheeky wisecracker to fully-formed, cooler-than-cool, 21st Century movie icon has captivated audiences in every corner of the planet. That Jason Bourne has finished his on-screen tenure with what will surely become one of 2007’s finest movies will only add weight to the Bourne Trilogy’s already formidable legacy. How d’ya like them apples, indeed.
So, with some key sequences having been shot in London, it seems only fitting that Damon and his two-time director extraordinaire Paul Greengrass should head back to the capital for the UK premiere of The Bourne Ultimatum. And, with over $135 million taken at the US Box Office so far, not to mention the first two movies’ $500-million earnings already sitting in the bank, it’s unsurprising that there are smiles all around.
“This is the first $100-million student movie!” says the wonderfully charged Greengrass as he greets Empire. “Matt and I did the student bit and the studio dealt with the $100 million bit!”. As a master of the modern verité style (see United 93) Greengrass ensured he guided this third instalment to new heights of intelligence, speed and satisfaction, best summed up by the relentlessly frenetic sequences shot in various locations around the world. “You see, the thing about Bourne movies is that they’re a very interesting collision between the big Hollywood thing and the whole indie thing”, explains the director, “and that’s nothing to do with me – that all comes from Doug Liman. So out of that collision came The Bourne Identity. Then the films became increasingly successful, so the problem going into Ultimatum was this: How do you keep the true Bourne spirit alive when it’s become this huge, commercial juggernaut? Answer? Set the action and set the story in places where we couldn’t operate like a typical Hollywood movie. What happens to a film when it’s cut off from real places, when it’s cut off from the human spirit? It fails. And that’s what led us to places like Waterloo, Tangiers and New York. I mean, you’re not allowed to bring more than a dozen people into Waterloo station, so our base was two miles away and we just operated like a little guerrilla unit. It keeps you close to reality.”
As the rain begins to saturate the screaming hordes (Spider-Man 3 is the only large scale London premiere to escape bad weather this summer), Matt Damon arrives to take a quick look back at the moment when this all started: “You know, when the first movie opened, I was doing a play just around the corner from here (This Is Our Youth at the Garrick Theatre) and I’d walk through Leicester Square everyday. To be back here after three great movies is just unbelievable”. And, as the most beloved action star of current times, how does the World’s Best Value Star™ feel about the character he has made his own? “Bourne is smart. He thinks his way out of situations and he always seems to be at a tremendous disadvantage. Other super-spies get technical gadgets. Bourne survives by wit, instinct and strength alone. So, I think that’s what captivates the audience – especially the adults.”
With the rain beginning to turn The Bourne Ultimatum carpet into a subsidiary of the Thames and co-stars Julia Stiles, Joan Allen and the imitable Paddy Considine safely ensconced in the Odeon, it’s left to Greengrass to ruminate on the legacy of this truly world-class trilogy: “It’s fascinating, isn’t it? Why do people love this character? I think the answer is…no…the answer has *got *to be…that he’s a different kind of action-adventure hero. Bourne is not just a macho guy with a gun who goes around killing people and shagging women. He’s not about Prada suits and fast cars. He’s just a real guy, wearing nondescript clothes who’s got values and wants answers. It is the essential, direct honesty at the heart of the character. That’s what people relate to. That’s what people love.”
The Bourne Ultimatum is in cinemas across the UK from Friday August 17. You can read Empire's review of the movie here.