johnlink ranks DIE HARD 2: DIE HARDER (1990)
Got a chance to catch up on one of my favorite sequels. Watching it for the first time in a few years proved to be the same as always. Fun!
This time, John McClane is stopping terrorists (like the T-1000 and one of the prisoners from SHAWSHANK) from overtaking an airport.
I watched DIE HARD 2: DIE HARDER (1990) on 3.26.09. It was, I’d guess, my fifth or sixth viewing of the film.
NOTE: THIS RANKING UTILIZES THIS SITE’S ORIGINAL SYSTEMIC ARTICLE WRITING METHOD. THE METHOD BY WHICH THE RANKINGS WERE ARRIVED AT, HOWEVER, REMAINS THE SAME.
FILM
Nothing special to report here. Your typical action flick. A little in the beginning about an 80s hero entering the technological 90s, but that gets abandonded once the action starts. It does what it sets out to do, but breaks no barriers in doing so. SCORE: 4
MOVIE
Fun for so many reasons. Ton of cameos (i.e John Leguizamo in a blink-and-miss), a few friends (and an annoying reporter) from the first film, some decent big parts for cop-drama actors (Fred Thompson and Dennis Franz) and good old fashioned action fun. Sure there are plot holes, a-plenty, but none so gaping to pull from the pleasure of the experience. The ice-in-the-eye scene is landmark from my childhood, though the violence in general is tame by today’s standards. SCORE: 8
ACTING
Run of the mill acting. Bruce does his thing, though he is more going through the motions in this one. In the first film, you felt exhausted with him by the end, in this one he seems to have less physical strain as the night wears on. Bill Sadler makes for a decent villain. Nothing major adding or detracting from the score, so it gets a middle number. SCORE: 5
WRITING
Never noticed until this viewing how convenient it is for film creators to be able to control weather. It snows when it is suitable, and we get clear skies for the action sequences. But, hey, whatever. The double-cross worked as a kid for me. I wonder if I would see it coming if I was watching for the first time now. SCORE: 5
FINAL TALLY
FILM: 4; MOVIE: 8; ACTING: 5; WRITING: 5
4+8+5+5+0= 22
FINAL SCORE: 5.5
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