Die harder.
One year after his heroics in Los Angeles, John McClane is an off-duty cop who is the wrong guy in the wrong place at the wrong time. On a snowy Christmas Eve, as he waits for his wife's plane to land at Washington Dulles International Airport, terrorists take over the air traffic control system in a plot to free a South American army general and drug smuggler being flown into the US to face drug charges. It's now up to McClane to take on the terrorists, while coping with an inept airport police chief, an uncooperative anti-terrorist squad, and the life of his wife and everyone else trapped in planes circling overhead.
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Character
Classical in form, resolved, unpretentious and relentless.
- classical in formformally daring
- resolvedopen-ended
- unpretentiousprestige
- contemplativerelentless
- effortlessdemanding
Who loves it, who doesn't
68 profiled raters. Loved most by The Thrill Chasers; disliked most by The Prestige Hunters.
Where do you stand?
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“Is it better than the first one?”
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“Is this Renny Harlin's best work?”
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“Are the characters only there to move the plot?”
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A yes-or-no question, answered from what people wrote here, on TMDB and on Wikipedia. Never made up.
Reviews
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Reviews on TMDB
Written by TMDB members; each links to the original. Not part of Tastebuds's numbers.
- RalphRahalon TMDB · Feb 20256/10
Die Hard 2 (1990) is a solid action movie that delivers high-energy sequences and a familiar setup, but it lacks the magic that made the first one a classic. The plot follows a similar structure, with John McClane once again caught in a high-stakes situation, but the tension does not feel as sharp this time. The script has its moments, keeping McClane’s signature humor and attitude intact, but it leans more on spectacle than smart problem-solving. The airport setting feels expansive, but it does not create the same sense of claustrophobic intensity as Nakatomi Plaza, making the action feel bigger but less impactful. Renny Harlin’s directing keeps the pace fast, and the cinematography does a good job of maintaining momentum, but the action sequences feel more chaotic than calculated. Bruce Willis still carries the movie with his charisma, but the villains are less memorable, and the overall conflict does not feel as compelling. The score and sound design are effective in keeping the energy high, but they do not add much beyond standard action beats. Die Hard 2 is an entertaining sequel with plenty of action, but it feels like it is trying to recreate the first film rather than build
Read the whole review on TMDB - CinemaSerfon TMDB · Aug 20237/10
If anyone were ever to need to write a training manual for terrorists that demonstrated how to maximise the chaos and destruction at a facility; then they could do a great deal worse than engage the services of Bruce Willis. In this cracking action adventure film, he is "Lt. John McClane" who finds himself amidst a hijacking - but this time it's not the plane that's being hijacked, it's the whole airport - and all so a drug-dealing general can escape justice with the help of some rogue highly trained military types. Willis has bags of charisma, and he needs it as he has to persuade sceptical authorities and other cops of the critical risk - and all before an incoming flight carrying his wife (with quite a fun little sub-plot of it's own) runs out of fuel. The dialogue is sometimes quite pithy, and Tom Bower is fine as "Marvin" (the janitor who gets roped in too). It does lack menace, maybe Willis' style of characterisation is just a bit too laid back; the smile and the glint - but it's still an end to end action thriller with plenty of pyrotechnics and near misses to fill a couple of hours in a world of mindless cinema. It's not quite as good at the first one, but there's not that
Read the whole review on TMDB - kevin2019on TMDB · Nov 20258/10
"Die Hard 2" treats the character of John McClane as if he is some sort of an all purpose celebrity action hero this time around. His energy levels are inexhaustible, he is always in the wrong place at the wrong time and yet he still knows exactly the right thing to do at the crucial moment in any given situation, and he is even capable of eschewing assistance and going it alone against a group of ruthless terrorists. However, this is still a brilliant and superbly paced action film in spite of all this where the exciting break neck momentum is never allowed to falter for a second - it would have been fatal if this had been allowed to happen - and the violent action scenes are sensational and of the highest calibre.
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Cast
- Bruce WillisJohn McClane
- Bonnie BedeliaHolly McClane
- William SadlerStuart
- John AmosMajor Grant
- Franco NeroGeneral Ramon Esperanza
- William AthertonRichard Thornberg
- Dennis FranzCapt. Carmine Lorenzo
- Art EvansLeslie Barnes
- Fred ThompsonTrudeau
- Tom BowerMarvin
Crew
- Renny HarlinDirector
- Doug RichardsonScreenplay
- Steven E. de SouzaScreenplay
- Walter WagerNovel
- Oliver WoodDirector of Photography
- Michael KamenOriginal Music Composer
- Stuart BairdEditor
- Robert A. FerrettiEditor
- Joel SilverProducer
- Lawrence GordonProducer
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Pairings
Companions we picked from the closest works, and how to take them.
Similar in taste
Closest on the same fourteen dimensions, from everything scored on Tastebuds Other media included when they land close.
Twisters 202486% alikeBoth classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
Lethal Weapon 2 198985% alikeBoth classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
Con Air 199780% alikeBoth classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
Gone in Sixty Seconds 200080% alikeBoth classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
The Gauntlet 197780% alikeBoth classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
Police Story 2 198879% alikeBoth classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
Die Hard: With a Vengeance 199579% alikeBoth resolved, classical in form, unpretentious.
Cliffhanger 199379% alikeBoth classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
Hawaii Five-0 201076% alikeTelevision · Both classical in form, resolved, unpretentious.
Dynasty 201773% alikeTelevision · Both classical in form, unpretentious, relentless.
Often watched with
Recommendations from TMDB. Opening one adds it to Tastebuds
