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Jason Bourne came alive on the big screen in 2002 kicking off with the first of the series, The Bourne Identity; and Matt Damon portrays the amnesiac Jason Bourne since. With The Bourne Supremacy shown some three years ago, this August 3, his Ultimatum has finally gotten through. As most films have significant departures from their source materials, this one, as with the previous two, have sacrificed a lot of precious scenes and have moved to a direction, uhmm, not really that far-fetched from what Robert Ludlum had intended.

The Bourne Identity mini-series for television in 1988 was a closer portrayal of the original substance; but Damon was a much, much better Bourne. Needless to say, the only veritable Jason Bourne.

I could hardly stress how The Bourne Identity film is so great, for, though omitting a lot of Ludlum’s depictions of his stories, it is still like you’re watching the film as you were reading Ludlum’s book itself. So for the two later films, the same energy remains. You can feel or see Ludlum’s hand and his mighty pen — the screenwriters have somehow absorbed that energy from Ludlum. This time, even the spirit of Ludlum’s pen was captured.

As what the French writer Andre Gide said, “To read a writer is for me not merely to get an idea of what he says but to go off with him and travel in his company.”

I have started reading Robert Ludlum’s books since high school and have loved his books ever since. The first was The Parsifal Mosaic, published in
1982, which I had borrowed from my classmate’s mom, who had a lot of Ludlums in her library. Her books were bought in the U.S. and it was in one of those paperbacks where I saw a photo of a young Ludlum shot while doing an ad for a toilet bowl cleaner. Well, I’m not sure anymore. That was years ago. All I remember is a guy with some kind of bottle on his hand and he was set in the toilet.

He made his readers know a little bit of what other things he did when he’s not at his table with his manuscripts.

I started building my collection of Ludlums whenever I had excess allowance during college days; but those were mere reprints. Of course, all were borrowed from me and were never returned. And though I haven’t really exhausted all the rest of the books in his list yet, I surely love re-reading what I have in stock.

I also remember in one of Ludlum’s books I borrowed in high school where he related to his readers that CIA and FBI men would frequent his house, not for an autograph nor an interview, but more like make an inquisition on how he knew a lot of government ins and outs, secrets, and codes. He would explain that he was just a writer doing his research assignments.

Through his books did I learn of practical geography for his conspiracy theories span around the globe and were so current then and even now. And somehow, it was a journey with the man himself in those places mentioned in his books. In high school who would know of a place as the boulder-y coast of Costa Brava some million miles across the globe, sharing the lovely Mediterranean Sea on its shores?

I would prepare myself during weeks, in college, for weekends of hiatus with his books. Once I have flipped the cover, I could never stop nor wanted to drop it again until I read the last word on the back cover. I would be so secluded just reading, as if watching a movie that would take me three days to enjoy, or until before the first subject for Monday’s class would start.

All of his books I’ve read were so remarkably gripping and so alive. I was even so conscious whenever it was the last page already and seemingly the knots were not yet tied, it was like, how could all these get resolved with just three or four paragraphs left?

Reading and reading more of Ludlum’s books was the closest I’ve had to be with the man. Really, I envy those whose books had his autographs with their names and a little dedication on them. I would even imagine attending one of his book launches in some library or bookstore somewhere in the world.

Ludlum is a classic, not just for hugging the New York Times bestseller for all his books, and despite being so, so are the Bourne series and the others he had written and left behind. He died on March 12, 2001 with a lot of manuscripts left, some of which were posthumously written based on his massive outlines. The Bourne Legacy, written by Eric Van Lustbader and published in 2004, is one
of Ludlum’s latest.

I don’t find the need to review the Ultimatum, not that it isn’t good. It is actually a brilliant finale and Damon is just as thrilling and as breathtaking as all the other actors; but today is more a tribute to the author in whose mind all these moving stories flourished and my remembrance of those brief but memorable excursions we had through his books. (Besides, the filmwad has a finely written review on the cinematic series.)

The world has lost a visionary who has never stopped warning us of how possible it is for governments and groups to commit crimes against humankind.

Though so late for I have never known until I surfed the internet lately and how it broke my heart to learn too late of his passing away, goodbye, Mr. Ludlum, from a true-blue fan from far away.

Reference:

(1) bookreporter.com for Robert Ludlum’s photo