Review of Die Hard 2 (1990) by Joe T — 11 Feb 2013

Die Hard 2 continues the trend of being unoriginal as John McClane third outing (second if you exclude the novels) is base on the novel 58 Minutes. This sequel is a prime example of doing the same thing on a bigger scale doesn't equal better results.

Die Hard 2: Die Harder follows LAPD officer John McClane attempting to avert disaster as rogue military officials seize control of Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C. Usually I'll buy anything a movie is willing to throw at me, but this sequel really pushed it to point it took me out of the moment. Not only is the same thing happening to the same guy twice, but there's also too many conveniences that it becomes tiring. One of the many conveniences involves McClane being stuck in a plane cockpit and the villain henchman throw grenades to kill McClane. This scene results in the series most over the top moment as the grenades take forever to blow up and the way McClane escapes death just looks ridiculous. There is also a plot twist that lead to other plot holes and I don't even want to mention the over the top climax. The few positives about the plot is the humor is in tack, though we're constantly reminded of the first "Die Hard". The first hour is very solid being grounded in some sort of reality. The second half is the opposite having cartoon logic reaching towards the end. If you're wanting more of the same than this does the trick, but not at the same level as the original.

Bruce Willis returns and he does the same thing. Spout comedic one-liners, kill terrorists, and arguing with incompetent characters. Willis is as enjoyable here as he was in the original. Then comes the villain played by Bill Sadler who's not bad, but is not memorable either. Aside from Sadler practicing material arts naked for some reason the villain here doesn't stand out in any significant way. Some of the supporting cast of the original return and they do good job even they contribute little to nothing in the plot. The action scenes no matter how over the top are solid. Include some planes blowing up and any action fan should be happy with the results.

Die Hard 2: Die Harder gives us more of the same which is not a bad thing, but pales in comparison to the original. It's not a bad movie, but if anything it's a less than stellar sequel.