MPAA Rating: R/Genre: Action Thriller/Stars: Bruce Willis, Jeremy Irons, Samuel L. Jackson, Graham Greene, Colleen Camp, Larry Bryggman, Anthony Peck, Nick Wyman, Sam Phillips, Stephen Pearlman, Kevin Chamberlin, Michael Cristofer, Richard Council, Mischa Hausserman, Phyllis Yvonne Stickney, Phil Theis, Sven Toorvald, Robert Sedgwick, Timothy Adams, Tony Halme, Aldis Hodge, John Doman, Elvis Duran/Runtime: 128 minutes
I think it can safely be said that if you were to make a list of the more iconic action franchises that Hollywood gave movie goers back in the late 80s/early 90s then one that would without question have to be on that list would have to be Die Hard. Yes I know that there might be at the very least perhaps a hint of an asterisk to this distinct claim that I am making due to the presence of both the 4th entry which some are a bit skeptical on though I have no shame whatsoever in admitting that I actually enjoyed and the 5th one which has very few (and rightfully so) advocates praising and which I thoroughly despised then and I thoroughly despise now. Even with that in mind however, the fact still remains that the first 3 Die Hard movies from 1988, 1990, and 1995 respectively are very much so a collection of action flicks that not only have aged incredibly well, but are all slices of cinema that action aficionados still love and adore to this very day. Yet whilst the first one (which is most assuredly a Christmas movie in the eyes of this reviewer so there is my answer to that particular debate out of the way for those of you who were wondering) is definitely the pinnacle of the franchise for me and always will be, I feel that the 2nd best has to be the 3rd entry, and slice of cinema I happen to be reviewing for you today incidentally, 1995’s Die Hard With a Vengeance. An entry that not only reunited franchise star Bruce Willis with the director of the first installment John McTiernan (following Renny Harlin of 1993’s Cliffhanger and 1999’s Deep Blue Sea fame handling directorial duties on Die Hard 2), but which also brought into the mix a pair of fellow cinematic icons in Jeremy Irons and Samuel L. Jackson respectively along for the ride. As such, the ingredients were definitely in place for one heck of a good time and thankfully I can safely say that is exactly what cast and crew have managed to deliver to us as movie goers in abundance here. To be sure, this slice of cinema does suffer from a little bit of that infamous disease that a fair bit of movie follow-ups do seem to be stricken by known as “sequelitis” and there are most assuredly some issues to be found here should one take the time to look for them, but even with those in play however, there is no denying that with the aid of capable work on both sides of the camera, Die Hard With a Vengeance is a well-cast, well-made, fast-paced, and just rollicking good time to be had and which I can definitely promise you will leave you on the edge of your seat from the moment the title drops all the way to the moment at the end when the credits begin to roll….
The plot is as follows: Taking the action to the iconic location known as New York City, Die Hard With a Vengeance gets its thrilling narrative underway as we see that it looks like a typical day is just starting to get underway in the Big Apple. Indeed traffic is clogging the streets, swarms of people are bustling to and fro, the taxi cabs are charging outrageous fares, the subway is running on time (or as close to on time as it could hope for), and there is an amazing sale going on at the Bonwit Teller department store. Or at least there was before a horrific explosion decides to rip its way through the store and in the process throw this typical day into complete and utter chaos. At any rate, we soon see that it isn’t long before an anonymous individual calls into the offices of the NYPD where we, along with the police on duty, learn a few things. Those being that the individual is going by the alias of Simon, that they are claiming responsibility for the bombing of the department store, and that more explosions are imminent. That is unless the NYPD are able to get one of their own off of suspension to take part in his twisted little game. That officer, in case you hadn’t put two and five together yet dear reader, would be none other than our hero John McClane. Unlike the last time we saw him however, we see that the 5 years since the events of the 2nd film haven’t been too kind to McClane as not only has Holly officially separated from him, but he also seems to be close to burnout to say nothing of highly dependent on a seemingly steady diet of alcohol and Tylenol just to continue to function. Regardless of his state however, we soon learn that what this sinister Simon would like McClane to do is solve a series of challenges and riddles that he has set up which are designed around the incredibly annoying (speaking from experience incidentally) children’s game Simon says. It is the first in that list of challenges incidentally that sees our hero acquire the, albeit highly reluctant, aid of a store owner in Harlem by the name of Zeus Carver who saves McClane from what was sure to be a certain and significant butt kicking and a half due to the nature of the task being asked of him. Thus, with Zeus along for the ride, can our wisecracking and highly reluctant hero find it within himself once more to rise to the occasion and figure out who Simon is, why he’s specifically gunning for him, and put a stop to his nefarious schemes or is this one fight too many for even ol’ John “Yippee-kai-yay!” McClane to handle? That I shall let you uncover for yourself….
Now right off, it is worth pointing out that the work done by the various departments behind the camera on this cinematic outing is delightfully solid. This starts with the work done by the returning John McTiernan at the helm and, while it might not match the quality level of what he was able to accomplish on the first film, this is still very much a welcome homecoming all the same. Perhaps the key thing that McTiernan is able to bring to his work on this outing is, much like with the original, a flair as a designer for organic suspense that is not only unified as well as confined, but is also consistently maintained throughout the entirety of the film’s runtime. Yet whereas the first Die Hard had all of the suspense-driven action, with a few exceptions, take place in one building, this installment makes seemingly all of New York City (with shooting being refreshingly done on location as much as possible) its chaos-afflicted playground to operate in. A choice that, to some, might feel like it really saps this film of what made the first one so iconic yet to me dear reader I feel like it actually aids the film in, some weird way mind you, feeling much like one of the tasks that the antagonist assigns McClane and Zeus throughout the movie. By that I mean not only does every sequence in the film segway over in a logical manner to the next despite the presence of quite a few twists and turns, but every task’s resolution typically has a significant degree of split-second timing involved. We also see that McTiernan does a wonderful job at ensuring this slice of cinema is blessed with a wonderful degree of pacing. By that I mean unlike other action films where you might get a fair amount of time before getting down to business so to speak, this one instead makes the unique creative choice to just put you right in the middle of the action within the first 5-10 minutes of the movie. As a result, not only does the film brilliantly permit the audience to feel like they have just been thrown into this alongside McClane, but it also puts you immediately on the edge of your seat and then proceeds to keep you there for the rest of the film with few, if any, chances to just pause and relax. Helping out on that front undoubtedly would have to be the work done on this slice of cinema’s action beats. Indeed not only are they all, be it a car weaving through pedestrians in Central Park, a potentially explosive situation onboard a subway train, or a water tunnel being flooded among others downright gripping, but the brilliant work by the cinematography department as headed by Peter Menzies Jr. does a beautiful job at making you, the viewer feel like you are right there in the middle of the action with McClane and co. Suffice it to say that, when you also incorporate into the mix a terrific musical accompaniment from Michael Kamen (the Lethal Weapon movies, Band of Brothers, Highlander, and even 1983’s The Dead Zone) and skilled work by editor John Wright among others, there might be a few issues with the work done behind the camera, but overall the work done behind the camera on this installment definitely gets the job done in ensuring this film is both well-made to say nothing of an absolute blast from start to finish.
Alongside the work done behind the camera, this slice of cinema also finds itself benefiting quite immensely from the work done by the undeniably talented group of performers in front of the camera as well. To no surprise, or at least I am hoping that it isn’t a surprise to you dear reader, this starts with Bruce Willis as John McClane and once again he is awesome here. Indeed this is definitely the kind of performance that I like to refer to as “if it ain’t broke then don’t fix it” since this is, in many respects, the same snarky, stubborn borderline bullheaded, and very much reluctant hero that we as movie goers have come to know and love through the various installments in this franchise. With that in mind though, there is also no denying that Willis does bring a bit of an edge to McClane that wasn’t present in the previous installments by having the character not only be at what could best be described as rock bottom to say nothing of rocking a nasty hangover, but also by him very much looking and operating nowhere even close to the level movie goers saw in the first Die Hard let alone Die Hard 2. Even with that edge in place however, we see that Willis does a wonderful job of showing that, even at his lowest point, McClane will still be willing (however reluctantly) to pick himself up and save the day even if he’d rather be anywhere else. Suffice it to say that even if the studios try to recast there is no denying that Bruce Willis IS John McClane and he always will be no matter what. Of course, every good hero needs an equally as good antagonist to square off against and thankfully this slice of cinema is able to deliver audiences that with a wonderfully sinister turn here from Jeremy Irons. Indeed, in the role of Simon, Irons does a delightful job at giving this franchise another antagonist that relies less on physicality and more in terms of cunning and intellect to try and achieve his nefarious goals. Yes, it does take a solid amount of time before he physically appears on screen, but even when it’s just his voice taunting McClane over the phone there is no denying that Irons is chilling and calculating in all the best ways. Suffice it to say that it is a phenomenal turn from a screen icon who I’m still mad at for killing Mufasa (if you know, you know). Lastly, I would be highly amiss if I didn’t take some time to praise the work done here by Samuel L. Jackson as Zeus Carver. Indeed Jackson does a wonderful job here at giving us a character that is less a sidekick and more a three-dimensional individual who is just as street savvy, just as hotheaded, and just as intriguing of a character to follow as McClane. That and I just have to admit that whenever the two go back and forth here it is just a complete and utter delight to both listen to and watch. Suffice it to say that the movie on its own is genuinely good, but there is also no denying that Jackson’s performance here adds something special to the film that it wouldn’t have had otherwise. Suffice it to say that when you also take into account solid support efforts from such screen talents as Graham Greene, Colleen Camp, Larry Bryggman, Anthony Peck, Stephen Pearlman, Kevin Chamberlin, Aldis Hodge, Michael Cristofer, and former WWF wrestler Phil Theis among others it’s clear that whilst this slice of cinema might have a few issues here and there, the work done by this cast definitely does help to make up for more than a fair share of them.
All in all and at the end of the day is Die Hard With a Vengeance a perfect slice of action cinema by any stretch of the imagination? Nope. Nada. Not even close. For that matter is it as good as the first Die Hard from 1988? Again nope. Nada. Not even close. With that in mind however, is this the worst film I have seen from either Samuel L. Jackson or Jeremy Irons? Thankfully, (for both this movie and my own inner peace of mind) I can confirm that is also not the case. Indeed this might not be on the level of the first installment from 1988, but I gotta tell you dear reader that I really do dig the heck out of this movie. To be sure, there are a few issues here and there with particular regard to a few odd camera angles and the fact that, to a point, the ending to this film (without going into any spoilers) does feel a wee bit tacked on rather than one that was creatively thought about, discussed by all parties concerned, filmed, and then put into the final product in a way that felt organic rather than studio decreed in any way. With that in mind however, the pace is brilliantly mile-a-minute (if not second), the action beats are genuinely engaging and well-shot, the work done by John McTiernan in the director’s chair is nothing short of electric, the score is definitely pulse-pounding in the best way possible, and the performances given by the immensely talented cast of players here (with particular regard to the work done here by Willis, Irons, and Jackson) are all well-done no matter how big or small their role in the proceedings may be. Suffice it to say then that Die Hard With a Vengeance is a taut, thrilling, and just plain fun 90s action movie that I can most definitely take a cue from the title when I say that I absolutely do recommend it with a vengeance. Just make sure that if you’re watching this in New York City during the summer and you get a call from a guy claiming to be named Simon that maybe you let that call go to voicemail. Make of that what thou will dear reader and Yippee-ki-yay….well you know the rest. On a scale of 1-5 I give Die Hard With a Vengeance a solid 4 out of 5.
