MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE ISN'T MASTERFUL, BUT IT IS FUN!

FULL DISCLOSURE: The film being discussed today was directed by Gary Goddard, who was accused of sexual misconduct by 8 men. I in no way condone or endorse this kind of behavior. 

The creative mind behind Jurassic Park: The Ride, Terminator 2 3-D: Battle Across Time, and The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man ride brings us an incredibly silly, cheesy, and dated action-comedy spectacle.

In Masters of The Universe, He-Man (Dolph Lungren) and his ragtag group of freedom fighters are battling the evil Skeletor (Frank Langella) and his army in their homeland of Eternia. When He-Man and his team are outmatched, they are forced to escape through a portal to Earth (California, to be specific). Stranded in a foreign world, they are tasked with protecting the Cosmic Key, which has the ability to open a portal to anywhere in the Universe. With Skeletor hot on their trail, the final battle for mastery of the entire universe begins.

Gary Goddard directs, and his proclivity for all things theme parks shows. A good deal of the film feels like you are watching a live-action stunt show in a theme park, with all the good, the bad, and the silly a show like that entails. The effects aren't necessarily bad, but a good deal are definitely quite dated. The fight scenes are fun, but do feel fake (in fact, I'd be lying if I didn't say I was reminded of Poseidon's Fury during some portions of the film). 

California and Eternia feel surprisingly empty, as there are barely any extras to be found in the film (With the budget of $22 mill, you'd think the filmmakers could afford more than a few extras). It's certainly odd. By far the worst thing about Masters of The Universe is the decision to set almost all of the film in California. The setting just doesn't really add any excitement to the film. In fact, it's a fairly bland and dull location, despite the film featuring more than it's fair share of action/fight scenes. I could see how having He-Man and crew interacting with aspects of Earth society may have sounded like a clever idea at the time, but it just doesn't work in execution. The film likely would have been better if the whole thing had just stuck to the setting of Eternia.

Dolph Lundgren is passable as He-Man. He can't really act, but he certainly looks the role. Frank Langella is fine as Skeletor, and does a suitably over-the-top performance. Billy Barty plays the role of Gwildor, a good-natured dwarf who invented the Cosmic Key and reluctantly joins He-Man's team. His character is pretty much what you would expect him to be: Annoying yet entertaining. 

A young Courtney Cox plays Earth girl Julia, who is preparing to move to New Jersey while still grieving over the death of her parents years prior. Her boyfriend Kevin (Robert Duncan McNeil, who is likable and decent) and her come into possession of The Cosmic Key and team up with He-Man and crew. She does a good job with what the script gives her to do. James Tolkan (best known for his role as Principal Strickland in the Back To The Future trilogy. SLACKER!) plays Hugh Lubic, a dumb and angry detective who is roped into the proceedings. 

In the end, Masters of The Universe is not a terrible film, but it's also not really all that good either. The direction from Gary Goddard is decent, and the script by David Odell is pure 80s silliness. Masters of The Universe is entertainingly bad, and either you love that kind of thing or you don't. Myself? I had a lot of fun with the film and would gladly recommend it to lovers of good-bad films.

3 STARS

WATERWORLD DOESN'T FLOAT

Waterworld cost $175 M to produce ($235 M in total if you count marketing and distribution), and only raked in $88 M in The US and $176 M overseas. While a flop and generally disliked by most, the bare basic plot isn't bad. An Earth where melting ice caps (global warming?) has resulted in all land mass sinking below the ocean, with survivors living on the water on sailboats, watercraft, or makeshift floating colonies is actually a very interesting, creative set-up that has potential.  The Rube Goldberg-esque way the contraptions work in Waterworld is fun, and the Floating Atoll set piece is quite impressive and holds the best scenes in the entire film.

Dennis Hopper is clearly having a lot of fun as Deacon, and he is entertaining, though his villain isn't as menacing or threatening as he should be...He is cool and likable enough, though. Kevin Costner plays our "hero", The Mariner, who is a completely unlikable asshole who finally begins to soften somewhere in the third act (He's a dick for around 70 % of the film).  Jeanne Triplehorn and Tina Majorino are fine as our heroine and her "adopted" kid, respectively. It's not fun to watch The Mariner continually abuse them throughout the first two acts plus of the film.

Waterworld is not helped by the extensive production troubles it ran into behind the scenes. Kevin Reynolds (the director) and Kevin Costner clashed behind the scenes, leading to Reynolds quitting the project after filming (due also in part to creative differences with the producers and Universal) and Costner taking over directing duties during post. Besides throwing out certain scenes, Costner also hired James Newton Howard to re-score the film. There were last minute script re-writes (by Joss Whedon) as well. The film is disjointed, and doesn't always feel like it flows. Events happen with little to no explanation (like Deacon's ambush later on in the film), and the editing is chaotic, fast, frenetic, and confusing.

 Waterworld is a film that, by all means, should be a lot of fun. It's got a creative, interesting premise and work was clearly put into the action scenes...unfortunately, it's sunk by it's numerous production troubles and Kevin Costner's massive ego.

2 STARS

EDIT: I am happy to say that the fan cut (dubbed the Ulysses Cut) is significantly better. It doesn't necessarily fix all the film's problems, but it does flesh out the character of The Mariner (Kevin Costner) and, to a minor degree, the world the film is set in. This cut is 3 hours long (It restores 40 minutes of  the film. The Ulysses Cut finally turns Waterworld into the epic it so desperately deserved to be. 3 STARS

JASON BOURNE IS BACK, BITCHES!

In Jason Bourne, 12 years have passed since Bourne (Matt Damon) has disappeared off the grid after taking down Briarcliff. Now, still tortured and full of regrets, he has bunkered down in Athens. He lives life day-to-day, fighting in underground fight clubs. When ex CIA employee Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles, who is very good in her minor but important role here) comes to him with information that the CIA is developing a new Treadstone program called Iron Hand, which is close to becoming fully operational, Bourne willingly steps back into action. Along the way, he learns dark secrets his father hid involving the original Treadstone program.

Matt Damon is back once more as Jason Bourne. He doesn't seem to have as big of an issue with killing this time around, but is still pretty sympathetic. It's hard not to feel for where we find him at the start of the film. He's still a bad-ass, and it's always a joy to watch him spank the CIA (You think the CIA would have learned their lesson as far as Treadstone goes by now). It feels great to have him back.

 Alicia Vikander plays Heather Lee, the head of the CIA Cyber Ops Division. She is a loyal member of the organization that decides to play both sides when Bourne comes out of hiding. Are her intentions selfish, or more altruistic? She makes for a great, memorable character as it's hard to tell who's side she's really on throughout the film (It would be interesting to see where a sequel would take her character).

Tommy Lee Jones is great as Robert Dewey, the corrupt and slimy Director of the CIA and person in charge of the Iron Hand program. He makes for a nice villain and is also fairly memorable. Vincent Cassel plays The Asset, a ruthless, unhinged, and angry CIA assassin who has some personal beef with Bourne. It is his mission to find Bourne and finish him. Cassell is appropriately threatening, and makes for a great adversary for Bourne to butt heads with.

 Riz Ahmed plays Aaron Kalloor, a Silicon Valley tech guru who has created a new platform called Deep Dream that collects users private data and stores it all in one central place. He used to be in cahoots with the CIA, offering them a backdoor into the system so they could have access to all of the user data. He backs out of his agreement after suffering a crisis of conscious, which is an issue since Deep Dream is integral for Iron Hand to work properly. Ahmed does a fine job, but his subplot comes across as unnecessary and really only serves as an attempt to make this outing more topical and current.

Paul Greengrass returns to the directing chair (He co-pens the script alongside editor Christopher Rouse). In his very capable hands, Jason Bourne is a fast-paced, thrilling, tense, and taut thrill ride. The action scenes that occur throughout are great. The one that opens the film is a motorcycle chase set during an escalating riot in Greece, while the final one is a pulse-pounding car chase through the streets of Vegas (with a large amount of pedestrian vehicles getting completely destroyed) that leads into an exhilarating and impressive fist-fight. Both scenes are exceptional.

The cinematography by Barry Ackroyd is pretty at times, gritty at others. The editing by Christopher Rouse is more than competent, and resembles the editing found in Ultimatum. It's fast-paced and choppy, but you can still make out what's going on. This last (?) outing is the most anti-Government outing since The Bourne Identity. This film casts constant, suspicious glances at Government activity and openly questions if we can trust our own Government to do right by us (much like Identity did before).

While the opening teases that  Iron Hand (a black ops surveillance program) will play a large role in the proceedings, in reality Jason Bourne is more concerned with delving into Bourne's dad's past and connections to Treadstone. The answers they come up with are pretty interesting and make sense, but don't exactly feel necessary or like they advance the franchise in any significant way. The ending to Jason Bourne seems to hint that Iron Hand is still very much a threat, but it remains to be seen if we'll get any more Bourne sequels (I would guess not).

After the disappointment that was Legacy, it's hard not to walk into Jason Bourne more than a little cautious. Luckily, those fears are unfounded. Jason Bourne takes audiences back to the glory days of the first three Bourne films while updating the material a bit for the modern day. I wouldn't be opposed to another sequel, but if this really is the final outing for Bourne, then Jason Bourne closes out the franchise in a sweet, thrilling, appropriate, and satisfying way.

3.5 STARS

IT'S BEST NOT TO CROSS PATHS WITH THE BOURNE LEGACY

 In Legacy, Retired Air Force Colonel Eric Byer (Edward Norton) is brought in by the CIA to help contain the fallout from the events of Ultimatum. He investigates to see just how integrated Treadstone has become in the CIA and discovers a new Treadstone inspired super-soldier program code-named Outcome, which had been experimenting with altering human biology to create men who were smarter and stronger via chemicals in pill form. Byer sees only one way out of the mess...to burn Outcome and everyone involved with it to the ground. Unfortunately, one lone Outcome agent, named Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner), survives the extermination and goes on the run with pretty scientist, Marta Shearing (Rachel Weisz).

This flick is silly, stupid, and ridiculous. A film that deals exclusively with the fallout from Ultimatum definitely has the potential to be good and interesting, unfortunately under the direction of Tony Gilroy (who penned the previous three Bourne installments and co-pens Legacy with Dan Gilroy. The script this time around is just the worst.) this film comes across as directionless, aimless, and worst of all...boring. There are very few action scenes here (It takes a full hour to get to the first one and no, I don't count Renner's earlier fight with a wolf as an action scene. The last 30 minutes is where most of the action occurs). The ones that do occur are passable/decent, and it's easy to make out what is going on in them.

The action scenes in Legacy might be the easiest to make sense of in all the Bourne films thus far, thanks in large part to the editing by John Gilroy. John does an ok job in the editing room, and under his hands Legacy is still fast-paced. The cinematography by Robert Elswit is fine as well, but fails to really impress. I will say that Legacy does look consistently crisp and sharp though.

Jeremy Renner makes for a poor Jason Bourne stand-in, and feels very flat and uninteresting. Rachel Weisz is even worse. Her character is very whiny and annoying. Renner and her constantly bicker and argue in their scenes together. Both aren't all that likable. The only actor that does a half-way decent job is Edward Norton, and even then he doesn't emote a whole lot.

The Bourne Legacy is an uninspired, lazy spin-off that doesn't even have the confidence to stand on its own (The film continually reminds us that Jason Bourne still exists in this universe. Fitting, since this outing really doesn't feel like a Bourne film). The final slap in the face comes when it's revealed there is yet ANOTHER Treadstone inspired program that is still in operation named LARX (Brought up only as a way to introduce a less-cool and less-impressive T-1000 inspired soldier near the end).

Universal clearly wanted to find a way to continue the Bourne franchise, but didn't seem to know how to go about doing so. Hiring the man who penned the previous films to direct and co-pen this outing seemed like a safe bet. If anyone had a firm grasp on Bourne, it SHOULD be Tony Gilroy. Alas, this was not the case. The Bourne Legacy is boring, slow, doesn't always make sense, and has very little action. It's interesting to note that Legacy acts as a Gilroy family production (In case you didn't notice, there were quite a few Gilroys that worked on this film). Unfortunately, The Bourne Legacy ends up as a severely disappointing film that is sure to leave audiences yearning for the past glory days of Bourne.

1.5 STARS

JASON FINDS OUT HOW HE WAS BOURNE IN ULTIMATUM

"Look at us, look at what they make you give."

In the third outing of the Bourne franchise, Jason Bourne is back, and this time he's pissed. Determined to find the persons responsible for turning him into the ultimate weapon, Bourne continues on his search for answers. This time, the cards are stacked against him. Treadstone has been reborn as the deadlier, larger, and more efficient Blackbriar program. When Noah Vosen (David Strathairn), the head of Blackbriar, realizes Bourne is back, he sends the whole force of Blackbriar down on top of Bourne in an attempt to silence him once and for all.

Joan Allen returns as CIA Deputy Director Pam Landy. Noah brings her in on the mission, and predictably they clash heads as she, once again, wants Bourne brought in alive while he will stop at nothing till Bourne is terminated. Julia Stiles returns as well as Nicky Parsons. Bourne and her team up for a brief segment, and she actually gets to partake in a fight this time (pretty cool).

Scott Glenn appears as Ezra Kramer, the corrupt head of the CIA who is in cahoots with Blackbriar. He doesn't get much screen time but is still an important role. David Strathairn is perfect as Noah Varson, the weasely little worm in charge of Blackbriar. He has a very punchable face, and is super easy to hate. He is very effective and a great villain. Albert Finney plays Dr. Albert Hirsch, a shady doctor who might be responsible for creating Bourne, as well as all the Treadstone and Blackbriar agents. Could he hold the answers Bourne has been searching for all these years?

Of course, Matt Damon returns once more as Bourne. He seems much angrier and more determined here. He isn't just looking for answers this time...he also wants revenge against those who turned him into a killing machine. He still has a heart of gold, and it is his nuanced and rich character that continues to set the Bourne franchise apart from Bond. It remains refreshing to have a lead who hates what he has become and doesn't enjoy killing people.

Ultimatum is directed by Paul Greengrass, and he does a significantly better job than in Supremacy. Once again, this outing feels slick, sleek and super-cool. This outing is more action-based than the previous films were, and there isn't much of a mystery to solve here. It is nice to get full answers about Treadstone and Blackbriar, and the answers we receive are cool and satisfying.

The cinematography by Oliver Wood continues to impress, and this time the editing by Christopher Rouse is very effective. The editing and shot composition is still dizzying, but it's much easier to make out what is going on than it was in Supremacy. The action scenes in Ultimatum are still pretty fantastic, with the clear stand-out being Bourne's first fight with a Blackbriar agent (The build-up to it is fantastic, and the hand-to-hand combat that makes up the fight is breathless and exhilarating. It's easily the best hand-to-hand combat scene out of the three Bourne films I've seen).

One of the things I really dug about Ultimatum is Blackbriar (in this film it resembles and acts similar to Hydra in Captain America: The Winter Soldier). Blackbriar and the multiple agents at its disposal are, quite frankly, terrifying. Blackbriar and its agents have a large amount of resources at their disposal, and Blackbriar's main goal seems to be to burn Bourne, and anyone or anything that might get in its way, to the ground. I was surprised to find I was actually on the edge of my couch and quite freaked out whenever one of Blackbriar's agents showed up.

Ultimatum can't help but feel a little formulaic, as a lot of the same things happen as did in previous outings (There's a big car chase, a chase on-foot, dueling CIA heads, a hand-to-hand fight between Bourne and a fellow sleeper agent, etc). That said, it's not enough to detract from the super-fun and thrilling proceedings that follow. Bourne Ultimatum brings together the best of Bourne for an explosive and very satisfying end to the first three Bourne films (although the final scene isn't quite enough to leave you pumping your fists like Supremacy did).

4 STARS

BOURNE FIGHTS FOR SUPREMACY

It's 2 years later, and Bourne, still plagued by throbbing headaches, has yet to fully recover the memories from his past life. He is pulled unwillingly back into action when he is framed for the murder of 2 CIA agents. Bourne will have to solve the newest mystery of who framed him, why, some of the past secrets of Treadstone (now dead and buried), as well as find a way to make amends for some of his past mistakes.

The Bourne Supremacy is directed  by Paul Greengrass, and in his hands it is a sleek, slick thrill ride that is convoluted but still thrilling and entertaining nonetheless. The focus here is on both the action and the mystery. The cinematography by Oliver Woods is still pretty good, but it's the editing by Christopher Rouse and Richard Pearson that comes out the worse for wear. It is faster and choppier than the editing in Identity, and borders on being incomprehensible (I'm looking at you, car chase in Russia). It's clear that the reason the editing is done this way is to place the audience in the middle of the hectic action, and while effective, it doesn't fully work.

Matt Damon returns in the role of Bourne and he still owns it (especially a scene later on where he sits down for a chat with a pretty lady he had done wrong). He remains charismatic, likable, and believable as a reluctant killer with a heart of gold who is only trying to do right, make amends, and leave his past behind him. Brian Cox is back again as Ward Abbott, the slimy and evil CIA higher-up who is obsessed with killing Bourne so his secrets won't become known. He is still perfectly hate-able and does a great job in the role. Another returning character is Julia Stiles as Nicky Parsons, a former employee of Treadstone. She gets more to do here, and the film is all the better for it. She definitely impresses (especially in her one scene with Bourne).

Karl Urban is super-cool and bad-ass as Kirill, the Russian agent who framed Bourne and has been tasked with taking him out (and I don't mean on a date, though that would actually be pretty cool). He leaves an impression and is quite memorable. Karel Roden plays Gretkov, a shady Russian terrorist who employs Kirill. He gets minimal screen time. Joan Allen plays Pamela Landy, Deputy Director of The CIA. It was her agents who were murdered, and she is on the quest for answers. She continually butts heads with Ward Abbott, as he wants Bourne dead but she wants Bourne brought in alive so she can question him. She is very likable, and comes across as surprisingly sensible.

The mystery at the heart of this film isn't quite as good as the mystery in Identity. It's pretty convoluted, and had me asking quite a few questions early on. Luckily, it's still very interesting and we do get full answers by the end. Treadstone is still a focal point of the film, though it was killed off by the end of the first flick. We get to explore a bit of Treadstone's past, and get a few more answers regarding the mysterious organization. Most surprising is that Briarcliff (which it was implied was Treadstone under a new name in Identity) doesn't play a role at all here. Pretty odd.

The Bourne Supremacy isn't quite as impressive or fresh as Identity was. The action scenes are way more chaotic and confusing (They are still great, just wish they were shot better), and the directing doesn't feel as strong as the directing in the first film. That said, it's appreciated that there is still a mystery to solve here and the character of Bourne is still as strong and likable as ever. The Bourne Supremacy makes for recommended viewing, just...maybe take anti-nausea medication before you turn it on.

4 STARS

BOURNE SEARCHES FOR HIS IDENTITY

"It's Bourne, isn't it?"

A young man is fished out of the Mediterranean Sea with 2 bullet holes in his back. He awakens with no memory of his past or who he is. Plagued by throbbing headaches, he eventually finds out his name is Jason Bourne, as well as discovering he has an impressive yet deadly and interesting set of skills. He sets out for Paris (where most of the film is set) and embarks on a quest to discover who he is, as well as his past. Little does he know, his search for answers and meaning will lead him into deadly, dangerous territory. Bourne will have to go on the run and fight to stay alive if he is to survive long enough to find any form of resolution.

Doug Liman directs this first entry in the Bourne franchise, and it's much better than I was expecting.
Matt Damon fits into the role of Bourne like a glove (He also did a lot of his own stunts as well, so props!). He is very likable and believable as a man with a dark past that now only wants to do good and is well-intentioned. Franka Potente is fine as Bourne's right-hand gal, Marie. Her and Bourne do share some chemistry in their scenes together. Chris Cooper is great as Alexander Conklin, the head of a mysterious secret CIA organization named Treadstone that might hold the answers Bourne is searching for. He is clearly a villain, but a likable one. Brian Cox is quite good as well as Ward Abbott, a CIA high-up that is involved with Treadstone.

Doug Liman does a great job at directing. The film is consistently tense and the action scenes are all pretty great (with the standouts being Bourne's first run-in with a Treadstone agent, the mini-cooper chase, and the final stairway fight). The action scenes are edited a bit fast and choppy, but you can still make out what's going on for the most part. The cinematography by Oliver Wood and editing by Saar Klein are great and clever as well. The film was made for $60 mill, and the whole thing feels like an independent movie (a good thing, imo).

The Bourne Identity is an action/mystery/thriller with most of the focus being on the mystery at the heart of the film. There is action throughout the film, but the flick is more-so interested in Bourne's search for answers than anything else. It's a nice twist that is very appreciated and comes as a breath of fresh air. What's also interesting is that The Bourne Identity is very much so an anti-Government film. It seems to be suspicious of the U.S. Govt. (The CIA in particular). This helps to set it apart from the James Bond films (which it is clearly influenced by).

Treadstone itself is one of the most interesting aspects of Identity. It seems to be a secretive, small, but mostly effective hidden agency inside the CIA that might be tasked with taking care of the dirty work for the CIA. It is a large focus of the film, and, while we don't get full answers, the answers we do receive involving the organization are still cool and satisfying. Chris Cooper and Brian Cox as dueling CIA higher-ups work off of each other well, and the twist involving them is surprising and tasty. I'm looking forward to getting to explore Treadstone more in the sequels.

In the end, The Bourne Identity is nice twist on the action/spy film (though Bourne is revealed to be more of a super well-trained thug than a spy). With thrilling action scenes, a refreshing focus on story, character, and mystery, and a charismatic and likable lead, The Bourne Identity emerges as a film to remember.

4.5 STARS