Two years have passed since Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) attempted to solve the mystery behind his amnesia and slipped into hiding in an attempt to leave his past as a spy/assassin behind.

      In the new film “The Bourne Supremacy”, Bourne and his girlfriend Marie (Franka Potente), are vacationing in India as Jason struggles to recover more of his missing memories. Bourne is haunted by a constant image of a man, woman, and a picture, but he is unable to decipher who they are and why they are so important to his subconscious mind. Thousands of miles away, a covert operation under the leadership of Pamela Landy (Joan Allen), is about to go horribly wrong in Berlin and the only clue to the crime is a fingerprint left that indicates an operative of the secret Treadstone project. Persistent in her pursuit, Landy is able to gain access to the project and learns that the mysterious print belongs to Bourne. Despite numerous warnings to not pursue the matter, Landy is given permission to seek out Bourne and with the formidable Section Chief Ward Abbott (Brian Cox), in tow; Bourne is a marked man, as the agency will stop at nothing to remove the perceived problem from their hands at any cost.

      Abbott is very uneasy about Bourne and with the events that unfolded in the last film, he is very eager to see Bourne dead and the whole matter behind his career and subsequent amnesia gone for good. At roughly the same time, an assassin has arrived in India forcing Jason to flee as his cover has been blown. Bourne is convinced that his former colleagues have ignored his warnings to just leave him alone, and has decided to make good on his promise to take the fight to them should they ever intrude on his life again.

      Bourne eventually finds himself in Berlin after coming aground in Italy. His appearance makes his former supervisors nervous, as they know a man like Bourne would not make his presence known unless he wanted them to know he has arrived. Upon arriving in Berlin, Jason begins to have a sense of Déjà vu, though he is unable to place why certain signs and locations look familiar to him. As the plot unfolds, Bourne is pitted against his former employers, the local police, and a Russian assassin who all seem to want him dead for reasons Bourne is endeavoring to uncover, as his quest will take him all over Europe as he attempts to piece the shattered fragments of his memory together to see if there is a connection to the events that are unfolding before him and the hazy memories that will not dissipate.

      The film is a pleasant surprise and a solid mix of action and suspense that is never to over the top. Damon does solid work as Bourne as he is a man who struggles for control, yet always is in control when the situation is most critical. Like a deadly master of Chess, Bourne is always several steps ahead of his opponents waiting for the moment to strike. When he does, it is with blazing fast and ruthless determination and venom that shows that he is very much a creature of instinct and deadly when provoked. Allen performs her role with quiet intensity as she is a career woman who is willing to do what it takes to uncover the truth and is not intimidated by the forces around her. While it is clear that she does not have a clue as to the true threat that Bourne poses, she is not willing to blindly have him killed, as she is smart enough to know that there are other factors at work. Solid supporting work by Cox and a nice, albeit to small part that has Julia Stiles returning as Nicky round out the solid ensemble. If I had to find fault with the film it would be that the camera work during the action sequences was at times very shaky giving the impression that the camera was being kicked around as it was filming. For some the plot may be a but complex as it many ways it opens up even more questions than it answers, yet this does set the stage very well for future films in the series. Since there are still more books to film in Robert Ludlum’s classic series, fans should stay tuned, as I am sure audiences have not seen the last entry in the series.

-- Gareth ( 3 1/2 out of 4 pops )