The Brag

A thriller that doesn’t require you to shave several points off your IQ – that’s how Tony Gilroy describes The Bourne Legacy, but you could apply that description to any number of films on his resume. Gilroy has worked steadily as a screenwriter over the last two decades, and penned the first three entries in the Bourne series, which were the very definition of smart, cerebral action flicks. He stepped behind the camera for 2007’s acclaimed Michael Clayton, and followed that up with the equally lean corporate espionage tale Duplicity. There was never any doubt that the Bourne series was in good hands when Gilroy stepped in to replace Paul Greengrass as director, but with the absence of Matt Damon’s Jason Bourne, the challenge was finding a leading man worthy of the series’ pedigree. That leading man proved to be Jeremy Renner, whose mixture of toughness and vulnerability made him perfect for the role of Aaron Cross.

Posted: August 15th, 2012 under Arts, Arts - Interview, Brag 475, New.
Tags: Alasdair Duncan, Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, The Bourne Legacy, Tony Gilroy

The Bourne films have always been a cut above your average action thriller, and The Bourne Legacy lives up to their high standards, while also representing a new beginning for the series. When star Matt Damon and director Paul Greengrass announced their exit after Ultimatum, it seemed unlikely that the films could, or even should, continue, but writer-turned-director Tony Gilroy devised an elegant solution. The Bourne Legacy runs parallel to the events of that third film, letting them play out in the background while adding new characters, new layers to the central mystery, and a new leading man in Jeremy Renner. The tagline is ‘there was never just one’, and while we knew that all along, now we have compelling reasons to care.

Posted: August 14th, 2012 under Arts, Brag 475, Film Reviews.
Tags: Alasdair Duncan, Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, The Bourne Legacy, Tony Gilroy