Whatever happened to the good, honest practice of sticking numerals after a sequel’s title to indicate what number it was in the series? I grew up in the days of Jaws 2, Superman III and Police Academy 7 and, whatever the shortcomings of those pictures, at least you knew where you stood. Generally speaking, the higher the number, the worse the film in question was likely to be.
You wouldn’t know it from the title, but The Bourne Ultimatum is actually the third outing for Jason Bourne, the Bond-like character played by Matt Damon. The word ‘ultimatum’ is cunningly chosen in that it carries the suggestion that this may be the final part of the (God forgive me) Bourne trilogy, without in any way guaranteeing it. Unsuspecting punters may think, ‘Well, I’ve seen the first two, so I might as well find out how the story ends’ — but, if so, they’re going to be disappointed.
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