Few could imagine the squeaky clean Matt Damon playing a jaded CIA operative suffering from amnesia in The Bourne Identity, but this adaptation of Robert Ludlum's espionage thriller turned out to be an "above average blockbuster" which translated into big money at the box office. Just in time for the theatrical release of its sequel The Bourne Supremacy, comes this Special Edition DVD. How convenient...
Identity Crisis
In their introduction to The Bookend Scenes, producer Frank Marshall and screenwriter Tony Gilroy explain that The Bourne Identity was among a slew of Hollywood actioners revised after the tragic events of September 11th. Gilroy reveals that the original finale saw a gas station being blown up, but that post-9/11, "explosions in movies were over." Well, for a while anyway.
Strangely, for all the talk about it, the exploding gas station doesn't feature in the original opening or closing scenes presented here. Furthermore, the "never before seen!" ending is actually an extended version of what was already available on the initial DVD release. The menu of deleted scenes is also exactly the same. Cheeky...
Intelligence Gathering
Fresh meat comes in the form of seven featurettes, varying from three to five minutes in length. Among these is an interview with screenwriter Gilroy, who says about the casting of Matt Damon, "To be honest, I didn't quite get it." But Matt shows Tony what for, displaying his dexterous hand-to-hand combat skills in a behind-the-scenes look at one of the film's major set-pieces.
Arguably the best of all the featurettes is an interview with CIA liaison officer Chase Brandon, who compares Jason Bourne's skills and training methods with his own experience in the field.
The major weakness of this supposed Special Edition release is the absence of a director's commentary - in fact, Doug Liman hardly gets a look-in anywhere on this disc. It's a glaring omission, especially as this formed part of the original DVD package. For those who are genuinely interested in the filmmaking process, you're better off with the first disc. For those who would gladly be swept up in the hype of The Bourne Supremacy - or if you're suffering from amnesia - this one's for you.
EXTRA FEATURES
