The Bourne Legacy -- the fourth Bourne movie, and first without Matt Damon -- at times plays like a Bourne copy, not the next chapter in the franchise.
It's not necessarily the fault of Jeremy Renner (who takes over the lead role) or new director Tony Gilroy (who co-wrote the other three movies). The Bourne Legacy often looks like the real thing, but there's something missing in this side story about Aaron Cross, another castoff from the shadowy government agency that made life hell for super-spy Jason Bourne.
In fact, the bad guys are now covering their tracks by wiping out every test subject in the shady program that was uncovered in the last couple of movies. But like Bourne, Cross – along with a marked doctor played by series newcomer Rachel Weisz -- is one step ahead of them.
Overlong, needlessly complicated, and short on the post-007 action sequences that made the Damon movies so great, The Bourne Legacy furthers the story without adding much to it, besides a huge opening for part five. --Michael Gallucci
