Early reviews are in: Despite a strong performance by series newcomer Jeremy Renner and some stunning action sequences, The Bourne Legacy is a fairly lame entry in the successful Bourne franchise. While no one has exactly condemned it to the refuse pile that weak franchise installments like Rocky V and Batman & Robin call home, none of the critics really had anything nice to say about it either.
The largest complaints regarding The Bourne Legacy cited a lack of emotional urgency or power and a series of unmet expectations.
“I admit I was probably too excited for The Bourne Legacy ,” writes Dana Stevens of Slate , who praised Renner’s performance and the action sequences, but felt unfulfilled overall. “ The Bourne Legacy mostly holds its own as a late-summer thrill ride,” she writes, “but only if you’re able to wipe your mind clean of the knowledge that it could have been something more.”
Manohla Dargis of the New York Times was even harsher, finding practically nothing of value in the film. Calling the movie a “solid salvage mission,” she notes that “little feels at stake here,” aside from new director Tony Gilroy’s future as a Bourne director.
Ouch.
Rafer Guzman of Newsday wasn’t pleased either, finding the latest entry a hollow facsimile of what worked best in previous installments. Guzman’s final verdict?
“Renner replaces Matt Damon but fires blanks in this draggy, talky, no-thrills “Bourne” imitation.”
The Toronto Star wasn’t impressed either, calling Legacy “surprisingly limp and even more incomprehensible” than earlier installments, adding that it “demonstrates potential without ever kicking into high gear.”
Here’s the trailer for The Bourne Legacy . Still itching to see it despite the negative reviews?
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