Green pill!!!

Blue pill!!!

Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen pilllllllllllllll!!!

Blueeeeeee pillllllllllllllllllll!!!

Look, I don’t know what the fuck Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner) was actually taking, but I want some.  The movie does its best to explain it to you… in fact, it probably wastes too much time trying to explain a made up pill that doesn’t exist (OR DOES IT?!), but this movie was one hell of a ride.

Always wear your helmet kids. It may come in handy fighting a LARX-3 agent.

Coming hot off of the heels of Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol and the Avengers, Jeremy Renner is primed to be Hollywood’s hot new action star.  Jeremy Renner’s character Cross is much more of a gun-toting ops specialist than Jason Bourne.  This makes sense as Renner was a sniper in 28 Weeks Later, a soldier in The Hurt Locker, a gun wielding badass in MI4, and a sharp shooter in The Avengers (so it was a bow and arrow…. wanna fight about it?).

Did it take some getting used to the fact that Cross liked to shoot more than Bourne liked to beat people with objects from Office Depot? Yes, but in the end it was an exhilarating movie.  Honestly Cross is never put in a situation where he needs to use crazy magazine kung-fu to fight somebody, but the movie easily sets up for a sequel and I’m sure he will be doing more “Haiiiiii-yah!!” and less of “Bang bang!…Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!!“.

BANGBANGBANGBANGBANGBANGBANG

From an attempted-forced suicide (yes, you heard me right) to a motorcycle chase in the Philippines filled with win I really dug the new-born Bourne (See what I did there?).  In fact the opening scene of Jeremy Renner bursting from icy water as his glorious new beard glistened with power, had me pumped.  I was all like, “Bring it” after that point.

And then it brought it.

And then it slowed down and explained boring story with Edward Norton.

And then it brought it again.

And then Edward Norton spent 15 minutes showing that he is good at playing hide and seek.

And then they got to the Philippines and all the brought was broughten with a furious dose of broughtitude.

Shut up and show more Aaron Cross!!!

Now onto other characters.  Rachel Weisz also brought the only drama that I cared about in the entire movie.  Once the “clinical psychiatrist” shows up at her house, shit got real.  Sorry Renner… you brought the action, but Weisz brought the acting.  Zeljko Ivanek should also be commended for his small, but interesting role (although it was never quite explained).  Also… he looks an awful lot like John Malkovich.

After that all the other characters are super irrelevant other than being punching bags for Cross or vague, “Evil government types”.

Is it the best Bourne movie? Hahaha no, but it is good and it feels like it is the start of what could be a very good series of Renner films.  I give The Bourne Legacy an 8 out of 10 for an adrenaline pumping movie, but not quite elevating the series to new heights… yet.