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Courtney Gunter
Dr. Sietman
Comm 444
16 April 2020

The Bourne Identity Review: Pull No Punches

Doug Liman’s The Bourne Identity hit theatres on June 14, 2002, marking the beginning

of a well-known action franchise that now boasts of five films. The film franchise is based on a

series of novels, The Bourne Series, written by Robert Ludlum. The original movie in the line-up

is an action thriller following the precarious life of Central Intelligence Agency assassin Jason

Bourne, played by a young Matt Damon (known previously for his roles in Good Will Hunting

and Saving Private Ryan). This film contains all the expected components of a typical action

thriller: car chases, explosions, gun fights, suspense, broken windows, gruesome wounds, and a

bit of romance. However, this movie also contains a surprising emphasis on the character

development of Bourne himself. Although the thrilling movie is packed with action and

surprisingly sweet moments, the unnecessary graphic violence at times makes it difficult to

watch.

The film recounts the story of a man whose unconscious, bullet-ridden body is found

floating in the Mediterranean Sea by Italian fishermen. When he awakens, he suffers from

extreme amnesia, with no memory of who he is, where he is from, or why he was floating in the

sea with bullet wounds in his back. However, he begins to discover that he possesses a vast array

of surprising skills: hand-to-hand combat, linguistics, gun-mastery, high memory levels, and

more. He sets out a journey with Marie, a new acquaintance who is played by Franka Potente, to

discover who he is, why he possesses these potentially dangerous talents, and why he is being

chased by deadly assassins. Underlying the numerous action-packed scenes is a story of self-

discovery and identity.

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My first viewing experience of The Bourne Identity left an indelible impression. I

watched it one evening while in COVID-19 quarantine with my boyfriend’s family, while my

boyfriend was in night-class. With our popcorn in hands, we were prepared for a fun action-

adventure movie, but not for the display of violence that unfolded before our eyes. When I think

back to this viewing, it is difficult to remember anything other than our grimaces as legs were

sharply broken, as ballpoint writing pens were shockingly shoved into a person’s hand, and as an

innocent older woman was shown with a bullet hole in her forehead. At one point in the film,

Jason Bourne states, “I don’t even know who I’m running from.” He may not know who he is

running from, but we can be sure that it will be a violent chase.

However, subsequent viewings of The Bourne Identity revealed deeper meaning. Bourne,

is in search of his true identity throughout the film but afraid of what he might discover, says at

one point, “I don’t wanna know who I am anymore. I don’t care. I don’t want to know.” It is

obvious from the beginning of the film that Bourne has the potential to be a dangerous assassin.

However, he vehemently fights this characterization, which can be clearly seen through the

multiple times he throws a gun away or fights people only out of necessity for protection. The

theme of identity and whether a person’s character is tied to their past is developed surprisingly

well. Overall, the movie raises insightful questions about how your past identity correlates to

your future development.

In the context of media effects studies, The Bourne Identity proves to be an interesting

case study. The uses and gratifications theory of media usage may provide insight as to why

people may seek out the over-the-top violence in this film. This theory explains the ways in

which people use various forms of media to meet their own personal needs. One common reason

under this theory is arousal: people may engage in media in order to raise their heartbeat and
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blood pressure (Sparks, 2016). People often seek out sensations; this type of people may desire

to view violent or thrilling media content, such as high-speed car chases or bodies falling out of

windows that can be found in Bourne’s adventures.

Furthermore, I believe that this film may lead to desensitization to violence. Media

violence may have a desensitizing effect, which essentially causes numbness to violence in real

life (Sparks, 2016). One particularly violent scene from the Bourne films occurs when Bourne

himself is fighting people in a stairwell. Throughout this graphic scene, four men are shot, three

killed, and one man’s dead body is used as a human shield. This explicit violence occurs with

disturbing normality. The excessive violence in this film is important to discuss in the context of

the concept of priming. Priming is a process: essentially, thoughts about one thing trigger, or

“prime,” thoughts of something else that is related to the original thought (Sparks, 2016). This

concept has been studied to show that viewing media violence may prime people to act more

aggressively. Jason Bourne’s exciting exploits may be an entertaining adventure, but we must

also consider the hazardous impact.

Overall, The Bourne Identity is enjoyable and surprisingly touching action thriller for

some audiences. However, it is overflowing with dramatic violence. The character development

that Bourne undergoes, as well as other sporadic heartwarming moments, provide some relief

from the violence that surrounds the majority of the movie. Thus, I am unable to recommend the

film for all age groups, but it is worth seeing for a mature audience that knows what they are able

to view.
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References

Sparks, G. (2016). Media effects research: A basic overview (Fifth ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage

Learning.