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Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)

Director: John McTiernan

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From Time Out Film Guide

The first (entertaining) Die Hard film put an ordinary Joe in an extraordinary situation - namely, saving an office block from terrorists. The second just squeaked by on the same formula - saving an airport from terrorists - with the ironic line, 'How can shit like this happen to the same guy twice?' But you can only suspend disbelief so far, and by the third in the series - saving a city from terrorists (led by Irons) - the joke wears thin. With Willis's John McClane transformed by his previous experiences into a more traditional action superman, it's left to sidekick Jackson to play vulnerable. As the racist, Caucasian-hating Harlem store-owner Zeus, he provides some of the best moments with his inversion of 48 HRS, as well as the incidental pleasure of seeing two disparate characters from Pulp Fiction united at last: 'What have you been doing all this time?' the drunken ex-cop McClane is asked at the outset. 'Smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo,' he replies cryptically - a line recognisable to Taranteenies as coming from the song which played while Marcellus was being buggered. Apart from that, there's little wit or originality on offer, just the familiar escalation of car chases and big bangs.

Author: DW 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide


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