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Die Hard 2 [VHS]

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Die Hard 2 DVD


Once again John McClane deals with terrorists at Christmas time; once again McClane is forced to crawl through ventilation shafts muttering to himself; once again McClane climbs up and out of elevators; once again no one's going to take the threat seriously but McClane. And once again, McClane gets to drop everyone's favorite line: "Yippi ki-yay, motherf----r."

To make things worse, the film itself, adapted from the novel "58 Minutes" by Walter Wager, is unrealistic nearly to the point of ridiculousness. McClane dodges bullets and chases villains on snowmobiles like Roger Moore's James Bond. What made McClane so appealing in the original film was the fact that he was an everyman, not the unbeatable hero he would seem in "Die Hard 2," were he not saved by a down-to-earth performance from Willis. There are points at which scoffing is inevitable. That's not helped by William Sadler's villain, who pales in comparison with Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber. There's plenty of:
-cussing
-shooting
-Explosions, and
-action
In other words a typical Die Hard movie


"Die Hard 2" isn't bad, though. Viewed as a standalone film, it's actually quite good, and considering the stature of its predecessor, it's a decent sequel, too. It recalls "Die Hard" enough to get by, but what really keeps the film afloat is Harlin's cold, sharp style, which adds just the visual flair the film needs to entertain. On the topic of visuals, there are two truly stellar shots in this film. The first is a frightening plane crash, the one time John McClane doesn't succeed (though of course what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger). The second is a shot of McClane, strapped to an ejector seat, shooting up into the sky toward the camera as a jet blows up below him, cursing and then falling to the ground.

Though it's not the action spectacle that was McTiernan's classic, "Die Hard 2" is a decent film, guaranteed to liven up a dull night. It has enough of the original to satisfy, enough brainless action to entertain, and the kind of clever directing that makes that brainless action seem worth something.

Recommended for fans of Bruce Willis and Die Hard fans

Gunner January, 2008

The makers of Die Hard 2, hoped to surpass the success of the original Die Hard. While the second film may feature action on a larger scale, the plot does not draw the audience into the story in the same way the first Die Hard did. Director and action movie specialist, Renny Harlin, is only partially successful at creating and sustaining a high level of suspense and excitement, working with a script that could have been stood a bit more polish.

Once again police officer John McClane (Bruce Willis) gets into some heavy-duty action on Christmas Eve. This time it's at Dulles Airport, in Washington, where terrorists have taken control and seek the release of a foreign general. McClane is suddenly in the middle of the action, seeking to foil the plot and also save his wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia), who is a passenger on a circling plane, in danger of running out of fuel.

Die Hard 2, is a very different film from Die Hard. Some of the elements most critical to the success of the first film, are not present. The first time around, action was confined to a limited area, a few floors in the Nakatomi Plaza. The danger to McClane's wife was more immediate and real, reinforced by the menacing presence of supercrook Hans Gruber, played with style by Alan Rickman. There was real antagonism between McClane and Gruber, which propelled the movie. In Die Hard 2, the action is spread over a much wider stage, with many more players. McClane, though still a one-man army, never establishes a relationship with one principal "baddie". Colonel Stuart (William Sadler), the wild-eyed leader of the mercenaries is rather robotic, and lacks any special charisma. McClane and wife Holly, are pretty much out of touch throughout the critical phases of the movie. And if not for the "coincidental" presence of news reporter Dick Thornburg (William Atherton) from the first film, Holly would have almost nothing to do. A logical plot, is secondary to the action. If not, then the "same thing" wouldn't happen to the "same guy".

Die Hard 2 - Die Harder, is a good action film, that takes a different approach from its predecessor. There is no shortage of action, but the "intimacy" that characterized the first film is absent. Bigger? Yes. Better? Perhaps not.

The Special Edition DVD features director Renny Harlin's detailed and revealing commentary. As usual, he is very informative, insightful, and frank, in discussing the production of the film. Harlin's commentaries are among the best, for their honesty. You also get a second disc with a couple of documentaries, deleted scenes, interview with Harlin, and other special features.

Die Hard began a subgenre in action films (as well as Bruce Willis' career as an action star)--that of the lone hero, a sort of cowboy for the modern era. Films like Under Siege ("Die Hard on a boat") and Passenger 57 ("Die Hard on a plane") are example of substandard entries that soon followed. What they missed is that Die Hard is a good film on its own.

John McClane (Bruce Willis) is a New York cop transplanted to Los Angeles when his wife gets a job with the Nakatomi Corporation. When terrorists take over the building during a Christmas party, it's up to John to save the day. Alan Rickman gives an excellent performance as lead terrorist Hans Gruber but it's Willis that carries the film with his wisecracks, catchphrases, and charisma.

Inevitably, there would be a sequel and we should consider ourselves lucky that it was Die Hard 2. Subtitled "Die Harder," it was actually based on an unrelated novel (58 Minutes by Walter Wager) that was then geared to fit the McClane character.

Again, it's Christmas, and again Mrs. McClane is in danger. Her plane is flying over Washington, D.C., and is quickly running out of fuel. But more terrorists are attempting to fly in a drug lord and will have no planes landing until he arrives safely.

Die Hard 2, although a lesser film than its predecessor, more than makes up for it in the fun factor. Self-referential remarks ("How can [this] happen to the same guy twice?") and a total lack of any coherent logic along with terrific effects (and a stunning high perspective shot) come together to make one of the best action sequels.

A double feature is probably not in order, but either of these films make for fine escapist viewing. "Yippy-ki-yay, [melonfarmer]!"

I love the original `Die Hard'. Honestly, it's pretty awesome. In fact, in my personal (Fisti) awards for 1988 I shower it with nominations in Director, Actor, Supporting Actor, Film Editing and Sound. It's a great mix of action and humor, with Willis giving a marvelous performance that makes the most out of stereotypical one-liners in a way that is fresh and intriguing.

`Die Hard 2' is a disaster.

I'll tell you why. John McClane, the famed character portrayed by Bruce Willis, makes an astute observation partway in. He mentions that it's another elevator and another basement and he says something to the effect of "how can the same thing happen to the same man twice?" I have that same question. You see, outside of some fluff, nothing new happens in `Die Hard 2'. Sure, this is an airport and not a hotel, and the terrorists have differing goals, but at the end of the day it's all the same. Sure, Willis has other `heroes' to contend with as they fret over his involvement in matters, but they are an annoyance and a cheap way to add a layer that never pays off.

Dennis Franz is gross.

So, in `Die Hard 2' John McClane, equipped with a new array of cheesy one-liners (none of which hit as well as those in the original), is attempting to pick his wife up on Christmas from the airport. Of course, things get sticky when a terrorist group hijacks the planes and demands the airport management to comply with their wishes (revolving around the arrival of a terrorist leader). If they make life difficult for the group, the planes will stay airborne till fuel is gone and, well, they crash. McClane is obviously smarter than everyone else and he is extra motivated, since his wife is on the plane, so he sneaks around and kills bad guys and uncovers their hideout and basically saves the day yet again.

Having the action less contained than in the original makes this film far louder yet far more generic in texture. It just feels like an average action flick starring Bruce Willis. Sadly, Willis phones this in horrifically. His performance is terrible, especially when a plane crashes and he forcibly cries on the runway (so unbelievable). The terrorists are nowhere near as scary or as convincing as in the original, and the rest of the cast is a mixed back of serviceable and embarrassing.

Franz and Art Evans are the epitome of atrocious acting.

At the end of the day, this is a cheap substitute for the original; a phoned in cash cow that capitalized on a smart idea but failed to do anything substantial to live up to the `Die Hard' name.

As soon as the movie would started, and the audio switches to DTS-HD, it would either go totally quiet or make this little clicking noises like there were aliens trying to talk to us. Unfortunately I didn't know there were problems with this disc, so I spent all kinds of time fooling around with my equipment. Buyer Beware! They are having issues with DTS-HD audio on this movie. It did work when I switched to Dolby Surround, but who wants to listen to that if your into uncompressed audio?

It's a snowy Christmas night in the nation's capitol, one year after the terrorist attack of Nakitomi Plaza in L.A. New York detective John McClane (Bruce Willis), the terrorist attack's underdog police hero, is there at an airport to wait for his wife Holly (Bonnie Bedelia) to arrive from her flight. But when military terrorists, led by the unmerciful Colonel Stuart (William Sadler), seize the terminal and start to take over, McClane faces the nightmare of his past in this new emergency as he slips into top gear in a daring attempt to save the terminal and his air-born wife trapped in a doomed airplane. Provides the same suspenseful action-packed adventure from the original, and a worthy sequel to that awesome thriller. Also stars Reginald VelJohnson (original "Die Hard", "Family Matters" T.V. series) as McClane's old friend from L.A. This specific film, unlike the original and the third episode directed by John McTiernan, was directed by Renny Harlin, who also directed "The Long Kiss Goodnight" (starred his now ex-wife Geena Davis), "Captiva Island" (starred his now ex-wive Geena Davis), "Cliffhanger" (starred super-action star Sylvester Stallone), and the genetically engineered shark horror tale "Deep Blue Sea", just recently released in 1999.

I am only going to review the Blu Ray Disc. The picutre quality has a lot to be desired. I know part of the blame is on Renny Harlin heavy colour filters he used, like the orange or reds are to imposing at times .I couldnt help but notice the low quality tranfer which obviosuly came from a poor print. Much better than Die Hard Blu ray but this is not worth buying now. Audio is good and quite loud for all the right reasons.
Please 20th Century Fox do not let your customers down with inferior quality products.

I did not remember the story in Die Hard 2 as well as the original. This made seeing it again a treat, because I did not know what was going to happen. Some complain that it is a "been there, done that" Movie, but I didn't see it that way at all. This is a very good action film! Willis is great as the wisecracking cop who is always in the wrong place at the wrong time. The action never stops and the plot twist did surprise me. I have the Ultimate collection and I think that is the way to go if you are into the Die Hard films. Each film comes with great transfers and plenty of extras of two disc sets for each! I found the set for peanuts. Under $15.00 for a 6 disc set isn't bad.

This second Die Hard film incorporated a lot of elements from the first -- a gang of "criminals" on a secret mission, John McClane accidentally caught up in the plot, startling developments as the story progresses -- it's an enjoyable action flick, to be certain. However, consider all of the mayhem, injury and death that could have been averted if the authorities had simply given into the freedom fighters' demands: free their political prisoner, turn him over to the freedom fighters, allow them to fly to a neutral country, and that's the end of that. Instead, by resisting these freedom fighters, the authorities (and John McClane) prompted them to kill airport personnel, kill an innocent man at a church, and kill everyone on an airliner, in addition to injuring no telling how many others and destroying all sorts of property. The lesson here is that when freedom fighters make demands, it's best to immediately appease them, let them have what they want, and avoid bloodshed. This movie would have been far less violent if they'd only done that in the first place. Instead of "Die Harder," the film could then be called "Cave Easily."

If you ask me I think that "Die Hard 2" is vastly superior to the first film, the main reason being it has more action, the first film had a few shootouts and that was it. While the first film had a much stronger story than this film, this film is better directed than the first one.